Originally from New York, Janet is a UX Designer who splits her time between Utah and Oregon. Currently, she works for NICE as a Product Designer and engages in freelance opportunities as they arise. Janet loves design because every day is different and provides her the opportunity to create something truly impactful. Prior to becoming a UX Designer, she studied history (MA) and entrepreneurship (MBA), worked in finance (Goldman Sachs, Morgan Stanley, UBS, Fidelity), and managed several branch offices on the West Coast. When not designing, Janet loves to travel, run, figure skate, meditate, volunteer (with AIGA Portland and Delta Alpha Sigma), and spend time with friends and family. View her portfolio at janetgonzales.com

Elise is a passionate designer, writer, illustrator, and art director with over a decade of industry experience. Having begun her career as a copywriter and digital strategist before transitioning to design, she has a wide and comprehensive skill set that includes creative strategy, branding, visual design, writing, illustration, UI/UX design, and more. She currently serves as Brand Design Lead at Growth Spark, a creative agency, where she directs brand strategy, leads her team in delivering creative solutions for national and international clients, and recently spearheaded the rebranding of their sister agency (Trellis). She also runs her own freelance design business.In her spare time, Elise enjoys hiking, playing music, traveling, hunting through Portland’s vintage stores, and eating fancy cheese. She has a red golden retriever (Zelda) and a grumpy black cat (Lola) — they are her everything. See Elise’s website at www.elisemayton.com. Her instagram is @ironmaytondesign.

Laura is a designer, creative director, and photographer working in Portland, OR. Originally from Indiana, she started her career there in the publications industry designing non-fiction guides for DK, then spent time honing web design and art direction skills at digital marketing agency Element Three. She previously served on the Indianapolis chapter's AIGA board as secretary after becoming active with the Ball State chapter in college. A love for nature and travel brought Laura to Portland in 2019, where she is currently the Creator Director for marketing and communications at Otak, an architecture and engineering firm headquartered in the region. With a background in gardening and landscape architecture, she loves exploring the trails, waterfalls, and coasts of the Pacific Northwest with her partner (Chris) and dog (Ben). See more about Laura and her work at lauramerriman.com and on Instagram @l_merr.

Allyssa is a Multidisciplinary Designer and Art Director with over 8 years of experience in advertising, social media, and building brands. Passionate about making the world a better place, she specializes in crafting creative solutions that span social impact projects, brand systems, digital products, and websites. With a playful yet purposeful approach to design, Allyssa finds joy in experimenting with different mediums, ensuring her work is both authentic and vibrant. She continues to innovate and explore new ways to bring ideas to life while staying true to her mission of creating meaningful, impactful work. Find more at www.designbyallyssa.com or on Instagram @designbyallyssa.

Ron Bronson is a veteran service designer and UX strategist with over two decades of experience. As Head of Design at 18F, he directs one of the largest in-house design teams working on modernizing government digital services. In his personal design practice, Ron is pioneering the field of systems logistics, developing frameworks to enhance state capacity and optimize complex service ecosystems.

Ron recently served as a part-time faculty member at the University of Michigan and has held various leadership roles on boards, including the Portland Historic Landmarks Commission. He also founded Indianapolis Design Week. Outside of work, he's sometimes a radio news anchor, hosts trivia, and coaches high school tennis. In 2022, Ron was named Oregon 4A-1A State Coach of the Year after leading his team to a state title.

Visit his website at ronbronson.design.

Equal parts executive producer and creative director, Ventura has been a force behind the scenes of the motion graphics industry for the last 15+ years. He’s held leading roles at NBCUniversal and Motionographer. At Motionographer he shaped events, producing and directing the much venerated F5 Festivals to audiences of 1500+ creatives. As Creative Director for NBC ArtWorks Studio, he leads the in-house agency for brand and package design across all News/Documentary properties for on-air and streaming platforms. He has collaborated on campaigns with Yahoo!/Oath, Activision/Blizzard, Civic Entertainment, Lion's Gate Films, and KeexFrame. An avid cinephile, Ventura has taught at the EPFC and given talks at SCAD, SVA, and NYU. Visit him at venturacastro.com and check out his Portfolio Reel at vimeo.com/venturacastro

Nicole is a steward of the people, the product, and the product design discipline at Driveway. As a designer who also codes, she describes herself as technical. Having a deep understanding of the medium she’s designing for is crucial to realizing and executing exceptional user experience. As a manager, Nicole is passionate about "how we do design" work, design systems, and overall design operations. How to scale design is a compelling and meaty design problem to solve, and she’s up for the challenge. View her portfolio at nicolemors.com

Alex is an accountant with over five years of experience in finance and accounting. After completing his B.S. in Finance at the University of Oregon, he worked in the finance departments of a marketing firm in San Francisco and, later, a shoe and apparel company in Portland. Currently, he works as an Associate on the Corporate Accounting Team at Fisher Investments. He seeks to combine his skills in finance with his passion for design to assist AIGA’s Portland chapter in reaching its short and long-term goals. In his free time, Alex enjoys playing guitar, running in Forest Park, and snowboarding at Mt. Hood.

Carmen Keating is a multidisciplinary designer whose background is in E-Commerce, marketing, and advertising. Carmen's involvement with AIGA started with the Chicago chapter in 2008 and has moved with her to Portland. Before moving to Portland, she owned and operated a photography business for 12 years. In her free time, she enjoys ceramics, drawing, photography, and hiking. Carmen also loves to go camping and enjoys all of the outdoor activities that the Pacific Northwest has to offer.

Halle is an art director, designer, illustrator and educator with experience working for a wide range of creative clients in e-commerce, education, retail, healthcare, publishing and technology. Originally from Ohio, she left to pursue a career in design in NYC before coming to Portland in 2016. She taught at PNCA and the Art Institute Online for several years while also working as a designer and volunteering at AIGA, Caldera, The Right Brain Initiative and Bigs Brothers Big Sisters. She enjoys drawing, bicycling and hanging out with her 10 year old son. See Halle’s website at: hallecisco.com