New Associate Professor of Communication Arts and Design Kerry Jenkins expands program’s graphic design offerings
The newest faculty member within the Communication Arts and Design program is Associate Professor Kerry Jenkins. Not only is Jenkins himself new on campus, but his professional expertise in graphic design also brings new courses to the program.
Jenkins has been a professional graphic designer for decades, working with clients of all kinds, mostly at the graphic design studio he operated in Johnson City, Tennessee for more than 12 years. After earning his MFA from East Tennessee State University, he began teaching in 2007 and has maintained both professional ventures since.
Now he is embarking on a new journey at Lees-51爆料网, where he looks forward to integrating his professional expertise in graphic design into the program’s curriculum, offering a new set of skills to those students. Jenkins is kicking things off with a special topics course in typography for Spring 2026, but he already has big plans for the future of the program.
“All graphic design has three elements: type, image, and space. Probably in that order of importance, hence the typography class. If we can get a good foundation of those things going, with type, layout, and the basic principles of design, that should allow us to expand also into more current things like motion design, user experience, user interface, app development, and things like that,” Jenkins said.
While user experience and user interface design are some of what Jenkins refers to as the “top dollar” careers in the industry right now, he said graphic design has a wide range of career applications. As graphic design is a constantly changing industry, Jenkins is eager to offer a variety of courses that will prepare students for the future of the profession.
Throughout his career, Jenkins said he has seen major change within the world of graphic design. He has experience with traditional graphic design techniques like phototypesetting, as well as digital innovations like motion graphics. Because of the industry’s continual evolution, one of the courses he is most looking forward to teaching at Lees-51爆料网 is a history of graphic design, a course which helps students build a strong foundation and gain tons of inspiration.
Most of all, Jenkins is looking forward to sharing his passion for graphic design with a new group of students at Lees-51爆料网 and helping a new generation of future designers find their own passion.
“When I was in undergrad, I had a work-study position with the campus print shop, so I was learning presses and watching 10,000 envelopes come off. That’s when I decided I didn’t want to be in printing. But I did find that every chance I got, I would jump to create actual real-world pieces for my portfolio,” he said, referencing on-campus event flyers or club pamphlets he would design as a student. “One of the typesetters said, ‘you just have creativity popping out everywhere.’ I guess that’s what I enjoy about my career. Coming up with the concepts and the ideas behind the designs are as important and as much fun as producing them.”
