How I Got Started
Born in the land of chocolate—Hershey, PA—I must admit to being a chocoholic. Dark chocolate is my favorite. But seriously, growing up in a small town in central PA instilled in me a love of rural America. It wasn’t until I attended Marywood University—in Scranton, PA—that I started developing an interest in something bigger. New York City was calling.
To be honest, it wasn’t my plan to become a teacher. But it’s turned into one of the best and most rewarding surprises of my life. When I moved to NYC I wanted to become the best graphic designer I could. It wasn’t until I took a Flash class at Noble Desktop that I realized I wanted to try teaching. I guess I shouldn’t be surprised—both my parents are teachers.
Teaching part time, I continued working my full-time job in a design studio just a block away. It was a nice mix, design by day, teach by night. When I was offered a full time teaching position I had to decide if it was the right direction for me. I liked teaching, but make it my career? I made the right choice when I decided to go for it. I love training, and I think that passion shows in my classes. Students get excited and they can learn better. Teaching at Noble Desktop has given me experience that makes me a better instructor. I have more knowledge of the software than I ever thought possible. Most surprising to me, I’ve developed a love of public speaking. Like many of us, public speaking made me nervous. But now, whether it’s teaching a person one-on-one or in a seminar of a hundred people I’m more than comfortable, I like it!
Thinking back it all makes sense now. In college we visited a local photo studio where they shot both film, and had just started with digital large format. Digital was still quite new and very expensive ($40,000). A man was editing a digital image from the camera in Photoshop. He was incredibly fast and efficient. Watching him I dreamed “Wow, if someday I could be that good!” Recently I’ve realized, my dream has slowly been coming true. I am that man now. And I love sharing that knowledge with others who want to be like that man too.
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Adobe Certification is a way to prove that I know an app. Each $150 test is rigorous, with 60–90 multiple-choice questions. I can’t look at the app, so I must remember terminology, keystrokes, etc. As an educator, passing these tests also make me a Certified Instructor.
