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Building a Portfolio for Success

Sometimes a career path can have roots as humble as a coloring book. Growing up, Judy Kaczorowski was inspired by her family’s artwork. She’d watch her father doodle or her grandmother paint with acrylics. Kaczorowski’s first creative outlet was coloring books as a child. Now she’s pursuing her associate degree in graphic design and showing her work in art shows at AACC. 

She was drawn to AACC because of its convenience and the welcoming feeling it provided. “I feel like I relate to the other people who were working full time, going to school, or it was just, I felt like I fit in. ... It was homey,” she said. 

As a graphic design student, Kaczorowski juggles multiple different art projects, often in different mediums, at a time. For example, she has illustrated a 24-page book, built a website and designed an animation in one term. She's also had the opportunity to showcase her work in one of AACC’s on-campus art galleries

While it can be overwhelming at times, the key to success for Kaczorowski is remembering her end goal of a better future for herself. 

“You're going to school and you kind of have to treat that as a job, because that's what's going to be setting you up in the future. And what portfolio you have is going to be used to go into your job. So, if you don't go in with the full intention of doing your best or working your hardest, it'll show later on. ... It's going to be hard, but it's going to be so worth it at the end. And I'm still pushing to get to that ending, but it's going to be worth it.”