I was born and raised in Aurora, Illinois. I received an Associates in Science from Waubonese Community College, and then transferred to Northern Illinois University where I received a Bachelors Degree. At NIU, I discovered a love of art, and a passion for graphic design. That passion led me to apply to the Arts Program. Through Visual Communications courses, I found my medium - UI UX and print design. My other interests include light painting and landscape photography. The freedom of the Art Program allowed me to explore other art forms of interest including drawing, printmaking, and photography. While completing my art degree, I was motivated to obtain a Marketing Minor and Digital Marketing Certificate. The NIU Marketing Program has given me many valuable skills including an Excel certification, and several Google certifications including Google Ads Display, Google Ads Video, Google Ads Search, and Google Ads Measurement. In Spring 2022, I was accepted into the ELC (Experiential Learning Center) program in the College of Business. Through this program, I began consulting with a small business, Chocolaterie Stam in Glen Ellyn, Illinois. The team assigned to Chocolaterie Stam’s was tasked with providing the owner with recommendations to improve upon their current marketing strategies. My recommendations focused on redesigning the original website to improve navigation, content, and overall style to match the brand’s current vision. This project highlighted the intersection of my areas of expertise - design and marketing. I combined design recommendations with marketing strategies to create content focused on inspiring customers to visit the store with an emphasis on sense of community.