Cal High computer graphic arts teacher Jennifer Bible draws a picture of the world of graphic design.

Originally starting as a business major, Bible first discovered her love for graphic arts and advertising in college at Chico State. She learned about graphic design from her roommate and started taking design classes. 

Soon after, she decided to change her major to visual communications. 

Bible’s first job was in San Francisco at Bill Lanese Advertising & Design, an Ad/PR Firm, where she advertised in public relations. But it was bought out by a larger company in Utah.

She was always interested in advertising, so she enjoyed graphic design because it still included advertising, but from a more creative angle.

Graphic design is a form of art that encompasses illustrations and type-based techniques in order to fulfill a need for a client. 

“You’re solving a unique problem,” Bible said. “And you need to figure out how you’re going to take all the information that you get and solve the problem visually.” 

Bible has gained a lot of expertise in graphic design as an artist for NFL logos, creating the logo for the Super Bowl XXXVII (37) in San Diego. She took nine months completing the design, which included choosing the colors, textures, and graphics for the logo to display for the event.

After experiencing changes in the graphic design industry, Bible decided to share her artistic abilities with Cal students and become a teacher.

Bible’s coworkers and fellow staff members admire her hands on approach to graphic design and art. 

“She is really talented, helpful, and a great resource to have,” traditional photography teacher Paul Fortayon said. “She has brought a lot of real world experience to the art department.” 

Bible’s computer graphic arts class teaches aspects of design used in commercial art, multimedia, and photography including design principles and tools. By the end of the year, students apply their creativity skills to work with layout and Photoshop. 

“Graphic design is in every single thing you see in the world, from street signs to the packages in grocery stores,” Bible said.

Many students in Bible’s class enjoyed many of the class projects this year. One of the highlights was creating a horror movie DVD case, where students invent a concept for a horror movie and design a poster for it. The principles of Photoshop are also a student favorite, as they were taught how to edit their photos. 

“I would recommend her class,” junior Rachel Dove said. “I learned a lot about Photoshop and digital photography.”

Students enjoy working with Bible because she is very inclusive and takes time to work with them individually. She ensures that every student is confident in their understanding of the concepts. 

“She never leaves a student behind,” senior Adrian Contreras said.