RJ Thompson
Assistant Professor, Graphic + Interactive Design
About RJ
Practicing Designer, Educator, and Entrepreneur
MFA, Graphic Design, Savannah College of Art and Design, 2011
BS, Graphic Design, California University of Pennsylvania, 2007
AD, Specialized Technology in Visual Communications, Intl. Academy of Design & Technology, 2004
RJ Thompson is a practicing graphic designer, graphic design educator, and entrepreneur currently teaching graphic, web, and interactive design at Youngstown State University. RJ, formerly taught at Edinboro University as a Full-Time Temporary Professor, Adjunct Professor at Carnegie Mellon University, and La Roche College as a Visiting Professor of Graphic Design.
He has owned and operated his design practice, Zola Design LLC since 2008. Before entrepreneurship and education, RJ was a graphic designer for the H.J. Heinz Company – a Fortune 500 worldwide company.
As an educator, RJ is able to combine his hobby with his job to present design in a fun and easy to understand way, not only to
RJ served on the Board of Directors for AIGA Pittsburgh, the professional association of design, from 2007-2010. With AIGA’s mission “to advance designing as a professional craft, strategic tool and vital cultural force,” RJ certainly
RJ is a 2004 graduate of the International Academy of Design and Technology, where he secured an Associate Degree in Specialized Technology in Visual Communications, and is also a 2007 graduate of
RJ and his wife, Erin, live in Bellevue, PA.
Contact Information
Office: Bliss 4055 / Phelps Hall 215D
phone: 330.941.1561
e-mail: rjthompson01@ysu.edu
Please all 24 hours for a response.
iOS Apps
Intro to Interactive Design
Intermediate Interactive Design
Motion for Interactive Design
Advanced Interactive Design
History of Graphic Design
Intro to Typography
Youngstown Design Works
RJ Thompson Portfolio
City of Youngstown
Score Farmer’s Market App
McDonough Museum of Art
Awesome Foundation Youngstown