Student Profiles

An interview with Bill Butler

Where were you born?
I was born and raised in Washington, D.C.

Why did you pick Gallaudet?
I could not resist the opportunity to be at a school where there is direct communication with teachers as opposed to relying on interpreters.

Which GSR class did you take in Spring '09 semester? 
GSR  150-05, Professors Amy Stevens and Dr. Carolyn McCaskill,  this interdisciplinary academic course was focusing on Graphic Design and ASL & Writing.

Tell us about that class? Field trips? Guest lectures? Movies? 
When I first realized that the class would include a computer design course I was very excited. Being a lifelong programmer, this offered me the opportunity to experience a new area of computing. I learned how to decide proper formats for a design, choosing color and design shapes. I also made decisions on appropriate photos and fonts. I learned how to format text and photos to allow my brochure to fold perfectly along borders. Most importantly, I learned what can and cannot be used in designs according to copyright laws. It was fun and exciting to watch my brochure unfold from a busy and messy start into something I was happy with.

What type of projects did you do for class? 

My project was to design a brochure that the National Association for the Deaf would either adopt or use ideas from for its new brochure. The biggest challenge was its logo since they preferred not to change it. My biggest challenge was finding time to work with the software (Adobe Indesign) and computer (MAC) because I am a part-time student. I didn’t know Macintosh computers and I didn’t have access to them if I wasn’t on campus. I realized the first key was to learn as much as I could about the software during class time. The more familiar with the software and computer I became the more the project became exciting. It went from an extremely busy piece of words and photos into something I became proud of. At one point I had planned to start over from the beginning but when a classmate commented on how he liked different aspects of my design I continued on with my brochure.