ABOUT REBECCA
Hey there! Nice to meet you. I'm happy you're interested in who I am. Here's a little background on me so when we finally meet, the small talk might not feel so awkward and we can chum it up like old friends meeting again!
GROWING UP
I grew up in upstate NY, in the tiny town of New Lebanon, right on the border of Massachusetts. My graduating high school class was 38 students. My high school was state champs for girls' soccer. I played volleyball. When I graduated from high school, I graduated with my regular diploma and a Regents diploma. That just means I had to take extra tests for the second degree. I was a C/D student. I never did homework. I never took the SATs.
I received a $2,000/year scholarship from a local organization to support me with college because I was the only one of my class moving forward with my education. I wanted out of that tiny town.
COLLEGE, THE EARLY YEARS
When I started college, I'd tell everyone who asked that "I want to make the dogs talk on TV!" In 2001, that was a huge deal... I only applied to one school, The Art Institute of Philadelphia. I was that confident. After a couple quarters in the Computer Animation track, I noticed the classwork of a friend who had recently switched majors to Graphic Design and thought to myself "Actually, that's what I want to do with my life." I had a hard conversation with my dad later that week.
I LOVED college. I did all the homework, I did more than my homework. My professors would touch on a subject, and I would dive in. I taught myself everything I could about the different programs, took extensive notes on all the things my professors told me, their techniques, their knowledge. I soaked it all in. I was fascinated by every class, even the "basics" because now, they applied to my life in ways that high school never had. "NO KISSING!" was a phrase heard in one of my earliest classes that's stuck with me throughout my career. (She was referring to any elements you put next to each other. A good designer never lets them "kiss"; they should overlap or not. Make a choice. Stick to it.)
STUDY ABROAD IN ITALY
In my last year at college, the school introduced their very first Study Aboard Program, focused on art history and culture. I was the second in line to apply for the program, and the second to be offered one of the 15 spots they had. I called my mom crying because I was so excited to be accepted, but freaking out because it was going to be a LOT of money. "Ehh. We'll figure it out'. Thanks, mom.
In Italy, all the students lived in apartments scattered around the city for the 3 weeks we were there. The drinking age is 18 there, and our apartment was the most northern apartment of the lot. We had to take public transportation, in July (where Italians don't wear deodorant), not knowing a lick of Italian except "Where's the bathroom?" (Dov'è il bagno) and taking advantage of the drinking age.. we got lost a few times.
We had "class" till 11am each day, which was basically a private tour through every museum, church, garden and plaza in the city, learning about history, art and culture, wandering historic halls, climbing countless stairs, walking thousands of steps each day. I climbed over the wall that protected the Arno River and sunbathed on the Pescaia di Santa Rosa until the policiá shushed us out. Stupid Americans... One of my favorite interactions was walking into a cafe or restaurant in the middle of those hot July days and having the server exclaim "Americans! I take care of you!" and proceed to give us bowls of ice. It's like they could see into my soul.
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We met so many people. And traveled to the countryside on our days "off." we rode the train to San Gimignano and drank espresso in the heat of the day. We rode to Piza and took classic touristy photos holding up the leaning tower, we rode to Viareggio where I tanned topless for the first (and last) time of my life. We rode to Venice where I threw my point-and-shoot camera into the pool at the $10/night hostel (with the only air conditioning in the country, evidently). Venice was amazing. No noise, surrounded by water, the gondolas were everywhere. It was there that I watched a maker blow glass and create amazing Murano glass sculptures right in front of my eyes. It was there that I got inspired to create my Final Project: a minimalist product package to showcase the Murano glassware. I developed a logo, designed hanging packaging that allowed the lights that I installed in the display to shine through. I won "Best of Quarter" for that project out of all of us that went.
COLLEGE GRADUATION
I graduated a couple months after my trip to Italy. I graduated 6 months earlier than I should have. I accelerated my program even though I spent a couple quarters in a different major. I was eager to get to work, to make my mark, to inspire others and to be an adult.
I graduated with the Best Portfolio Award. I graduated on President's List with on of the highest GPAs of my class. I graduated with honors, with flags on my sash representing my participation in the Study Abroad program. I was the most decorated graduate of my class. I almost tripped up the stairs to receive my diploma.
I also graduated inundated with student loan debt. But that's a whole 'nother story.
I was proud of myself and excited to move forward.
WHO I WAS, WHO I AM
All the experiences in college have carried through in my professional career. they've also carried through to mold my personality into who I am today.
I am tenacious, driven, motivated.
I am inspired, creative, inquisitive.
I am determined, unconvinced, victorious.
I am purposeful, calculated, teachable.
Most of all, I am authentic. I am always me, never pretending to be someone I'm not. I make decisions and follow through. My word is my bible. In the term of my profession: WYSIWYG.
Nothing more, nothing less. Just me. And I'm excited to meet you.