Two new professionals bring their talents to the West Virginia University School of Art & Design this year.

"The School of Art & Design is very pleased to welcome Donald Kent Kerr and Nichole van Beek to the faculty in graphic design and painting & foundations, respectively,” said Director Kristina Olson. “Both bring years of teaching experience to their positions and have research interests that align well with our Global Positioning Studies initiative that provides specialized, placed-based study courses for students."

Donald Kent Kerr, assistant professor of graphic design, holds an MFA in Design Thinking from Radford University and a BFA from Youngstown State University.

Kerr specializes in design-thinking research methods and human-centered graphic design. His research focuses on ways to utilize design and design-thinking methodologies as a catalyst for community development and revitalization. 

Kerr’s interests in graphic design include designing for packaging and production, identity systems and digital illustration. Additionally, he is co-owner of Plus Public, LLC., a B-corporation founded to provide scalable and sustainable design and communication solutions to economically-challenged communities and community-focused organizations, wherein he serves as a design creative and design researcher. 

Nichole van Beek joins WVU as visiting assistant professor of painting and 2D foundations.  She has her MFA in drawing and installation art from the University of California, Santa Barbara and previously taught at Davidson College in North Carolina. Her creative practice involves projects focused on material health and sustainability, as well as building connections to local environments, climate action and social justice.

For more information on the School of Art & Design, visit artanddesign.wvu.edu.