Taking His Creativity in a Different Direction

Joseph Mancino studied performance and earned an Associate of Science degree before health issues (three brain surgeries) left him with movement issues and forced him to change his career path. Rather than totally abandon his creative side, however, he began to search for different ways to express it. Joseph landed in the Graphic Design program at the International Academy of Design and Technology in Tampa. He graduated—as valedictorian, nonetheless—this past June.

Immediately upon graduation, Joseph set about using nearly everything he had learned over his two years at the Academy by founding his own magazine, INSPIRE Creative Magazine. The magazine focuses on creativity in all its forms. The first issue will be published in early May 2007.

"Almost since I started at the Academy, I wanted to launch my own magazine. I worked on projects during my time there that would set me up for it—page layout projects, helping with student-run magazines—and now I feel totally ready to tackle the real thing."

Joseph's magazine is starting as a local publication but he does hope to take it national one day. "I see that happening in a few years."

At the Academy, Joseph learned about more than magazines, too. He excelled in so many areas of graphic design—and has already collected so much real-world experience—that the Academy brought him back as an instructor almost immediately after he had graduated. Joseph is now teaching six classes in the Graphic Design department.

"Going from student to instructor was an easy adjustment for me to make," he says. "The teaching methods and projects that most helped me as a student are still fresh in my mind, and those are what I'm now using as an instructor."

While Joseph certainly enjoys teaching, he is assuming he won't continue teaching as many classes as he currently is as INSPIRE Creative Magazine grows. "That's going to take up more and more of my time. The flip side is that I will have more and more real-world experience to share with students, though."

"So much of what I took with me from the Academy came from instructors sharing their real-world experiences with me. I can't wait to do the same with current and future students."