Welcome to my portfolio website!

My name is Balvina Austin, and I am a Washington DC area native. I attended Suitland High School in Maryland, where I graduated in 2002. Afterwards, I attended the Art Institute of Washington, where I graduated in 2006 with a Bachelor of Fine Arts Degree with a focus on Media Art and Animation.

Eager to get my feet on the ground, I joined the professional workforce before I graduated. My first full-time job was with a civil engineering firm, William H. Gordon Associates in Chantilly. I attended night classes to finish my degree, and had my first real-world experiences as a designer, presenting to clients such as the Orbital Sciences Corporation (now Orbital ATK).

I have had many different jobs since my first one with William H. Gordon, all of which provided me with different important experiences. For example, working at the Gates Foundation as a Security Assistant helped hone my organizational skills. I helped organize large in-person meetings for visiting Gates Foundation staff and special guests. Working with Suntiva allowed me to experience working in business process reorganization with Air Force Civil Engineering, and my web development skills came in handy when I built a website for US Army PD ES.

Today, I am a graphic designer with over ten years of creative experience, as well as management, business process improvement, visualization and communication. I have served on many projects where I have coordinated with different organizations, set goals, and produced deliverables. An optimistic learner, I excel at learning new things, applying my experience, and demonstrating quick problem solving skills.

Maybe it’s because I was taught in the Montessori method from Kindergarten through the 8th grade, but I have a knack for finding solutions and tackling them. I love to teach myself new skills, and have a tendency to read ahead when I’ve got something new to learn.

I hope to continue learning, and to grow in my skills with people who are eager to do the same.