Sue Tatterson, B.S. ’06, M.F.A. ‘08
Professor of Digital Media
Division Chair, Visual and Performing Arts
Central Arizona College
“It may sound cliché, but UBalt really did change my life,” Tatterson explains about how her UBalt education helped her to combine a passion for design, photography, and teaching.
Tatterson transferred to UBalt in 2004 to pursue a Bachelor of Science in Corporate Communications after receiving her associate’s degree in graphic design from the Community College of Baltimore County. So why UBalt?
“The accelerated program UBalt offered was very helpful. I was able to complete graduate credits while finishing my undergraduate degree, which influenced my decision to pursue my Master of Fine Arts in Integrated Design. Also, I was an international student so I was especially grateful for the opportunity to work on campus. I worked as a student assistant for the Schaefer Center for Public Policy, which allowed me to continue developing my graphic design skills. And incredibly, I was offered a graduate fellowship at the Schaefer Center allowing me to complete my M.F.A.”
Following her graduation in 2008, Tatterson began full-time at UBalt as the graphic designer/photographer for the Schaefer Center and the Merrick School of Business. Her next step – accidentally discovering her love for teaching. “I began teaching as an adjunct faculty member in the School of Communications Design in 2011 and discovered I loved teaching!” After spending nine years at UBalt as a student, employee, and professor, she was hired by Central Arizona College where she is currently the Professor of Digital Media and the Visual and Performing Arts Division Chair.
“I wouldn’t be where I am today without the fellowship and the belief the Schaefer Center’s director, Dr. Ann Cotten, had in me. I made life-long friendships at UBalt and I will always be grateful for my time there.”
Even though Tatterson is more than 2,000 miles from UBalt, she has continued work on her M.F.A. thesis project, “Spirits of the Abandoned.” “It became so much more than a thesis project and took on a life of its own. What began in 2008 with fifteen or so abandoned locations in Maryland grew to encompass many states and over eighty locations.”
This year, Tatterson will have two editions of her work published as part of a series. Titled Abandoned Maryland: Ruin and Restoration and Abandoned Arizona: Ghost Towns and Legends , look forward to seeing her work hit shelves in October and December respectively.