Meet Kim Rader—MFA student

Hello my Name is… Kim Rader!

Hello, my name is Kim Rader. I have a lot of labels for myself…I’m a graphic designer in Pittsburgh. I’m a grad student at Kutztown. I’m also a wife, a mother, a Girl Scout, an avid reader, an animal lover.

Why I decided to go back to grad school…

I decided to go back to school for my MFA because I want to push my design skills to the next level. Working in corporate design can sap my creativity, but the program at KUCD encourages me to explore unconventional ideas, try out new techniques, and get out of my own head and challenge my habits. The program at Kutztown made sense for me because I can continue to work full-time, but still pursue a degree that will both push me creatively and allow me to teach after I earn my degree.

Tell us about/describe your KUCD MFA journey thus far…

Journey Week is my favorite part of the program (so far). It’s amazing to me that I could work from 9am until midnight or later every day and still feel so energized. Being with such a talented group of designers and professors, collaborating, and pushing each other to be better…it’s invigorating. (Yeah, the Diet Coke helped too.) This is the kind of creative experience that was missing in my life and one of the reasons I went back to school. I’m so inspired by students in the cohort above me. Seeing their work, I know there is a lot of fun in store for me. I can’t wait to see where my KUCD journey takes me!

What has been your favorite project to date? Please tell me why.

Right now I’m working on a project about empowering girls to make a difference in the world-a subject near and dear to my heart as both a Girl Scout leader and a mom to two girls. I plan to focus on girls 18 and under who have made the world a better place through their actions. Working through the idea during Journey Week, the feedback I received from classmates and my professor really enabled me to hone and improve the idea.

Fun fact about you.

• I’m an avid reader. I try to read 50+ books each year.
• I of course love my family and friends, and all the cute fuzzy animals in the world, but my true loves are Diet Coke and my iPhone. You will almost always find me with both on my person.
• I’m a crier. I cry at books, commercials, tv, and movies-but especially Disney movies. I don’t think I’ve ever made it through a Disney movie without sobbing hysterically. It’s so bad that my kids watch and wait for it to happen so they can mock me.