MENU BRAD J. BERKNER

Elon University

Instructor in the M.A. Interactive Media Program (iMedia)

My Role

  • Taught graduate and undergraduate courses
  • Led workshops and independent studies
  • Mentored students for life and careers beyond Elon
  • Coordinated faculty projects
  • Designed, resrouced, and built interactive media
  • Writer on an award winning professional blog team

Areas of Expertise

  • UX Methods and Design
  • UI Design and Development
  • Front-End Development
  • Usability Testing
  • Motion Graphics
  • Photography
  • Video Production
  • Information Architecture
  • Project Management
  • Teacher and Mentor

An Immersive Experience

In 2008, I read both of Jeffrey Zeldman’s Designing with Web Standards. Zeldman's books changed the course of my career. At Elon, I began my journey in the field of interactive media. I read everything I could and with that knowledge I tested new ideas and explored cutting-edge technology.

Courses Taught

Graduate and Undergraduate

Interactive Media Bootcamp three day intensive workshop covering HTML & CSS and a deep-dive focusing on web standards; each student created a microsite for their final project

Motion Graphics co-taught a video post-production course using After Effects

Introduction to Digital Media a digital media course for first year undergradtuate students covering introductions to storytelling, design, photoshop, photography, and video

SXSW Interactive Competition *see more about this course below

Workshops & Independent Studies

  • UX Methods and Design
  • UI Design and Development
  • Usability Testing
  • Responsive Design
  • Introduction to SASS
  • Emotional Design
  • Prototyping
  • Video Production
  • Photography
  • Post-Production
  • Motion Graphics
  • Emerging Technology

SXSW Competition and Course

After attending the SXSW Interactive Conference in 2010, I knew when I returned to Elon I had to figure out a way to get the students involved. To that end, I wrote a proposal and pitched the “SXSW Student Competition." There were two driving factors:

  1. iMedia students would gain professional experience and a chance to make life-changing connections at one of the world’s most elite industry conferences
  2. In only the second year of iMedia, the program would benefit from the marketing exposure. The students crafted project(s) around the iMedia experience. The competition would also serve as a key talking point for potential students looking at the program

SXSW Student competition

SXSW 2011 Logo

soccer.com customization 2015-2017

SXSW Recap from the Conference

Exploration

While working in the iMedia program, I pursued my passion for technology. I was able to experiment with cutting-edge software and hardware. I assisted students and lead many multimedia projects for the iMedia program.

Capstone - Facebook Share Booth

Following my workshop covering emerging technology, a student built a Raspberry Pi powered photobooth that posted photos through a Facebook feed. This project paved the way for future IoT projects.

iMedia Touchscreen

I was tasked with writing a proposal for a touchscreen. I conducted research and shared the proposal with leadeship.

Summary & Impact

My experience working in the iMedia program and at Elon was transformative for my career as a designer and leader. The friendships I made have endured and my network of industry professionals continues to expand because of my time with the program. Teaching is like rocket fuel for leveling up your UX design skills. Learning new technology, conducting workshops, and exploring human-computer interaction were all part of my Elon iMedia experience.

Say Hello!

Elon Eye on iMedia