About Spencer Nowak

Background

I graduated from Clarkson University in May ’09 with a dual degree in Communication and Digital Arts & Sciences.

Web Design & Development

While at Clarkson, I served as webmaster for the radio station during a period of renewed energy among the members, and I am responsible for a rewrite of much of the radio site from the ground up. I worked as lead web developer on a two-year, grant-funded web project in which I coordinated the efforts of other students, interviewed stakeholders, set goals and milestones for the project, and wrote a manual for our users. During this project, I was introduced to the philosophy and methodology of participatory design, which served as a guide while building the site's custom content management system.

In addition to leading web development projects, I worked with professors, students, and external clients on several small projects. I worked with Professor Woodworth in the Biology Department to redesign his personal site. I designed a logo, wine bottle labels, and a website for a local entrepreneur through Clarkson Consulting Group. Lastly, I was a teaching assistant for two semesters of the “Intro to Web Design” course, for which I prepared and taught lessons, wrote and graded quizzes, and ran evening help sessions.

3d Modeling

Much of the Digital Arts program was focused on 3d modeling and animation. My senior project for the program combined 3d modeling with identity design and web development to create the fictional Halcyon, a vehicle designed to make commuting less environmentally harmful. Jacob Swain and I worked together to make the Halcyon as realistic as possible and created an animation showing it from all angles.

My other 3d pieces were shown in three exhibitions during my senior year, and are used in many of Clarkson's promotional materials for the Digital Arts program. Although I have worked with textures, lighting, rigging, animation, and polygonal modeling, I prefer to create detailed and accurate NURBS models.

Other Interests

In addition to web design and 3d modeling, I am interested in typography, information visualization, and interaction design. When I'm not parked in front of a computer doing any of the above, I'm probably on the local trails getting my bike and myself muddy, DJing at Clarkson's radio station, or curled up somewhere with a book or the latest issue of some magazine.