For as long as I can remember, I’ve spent my time doodling away. Whenever I found a blank space, be it my notebook or a piece of scrap paper, I left my ink on it; it was my escape, my freest form of expression. When English was my second language, art did not discriminate. I could always count on art to help articulate what I couldn’t in words.

My love for art took a more utilitarian turn as I grew into an adolescent. When I saw my immigrant parents struggle to read the eye-straining print on government letters, bank notices, and utility bills, I would illustrate an explanation. Shape by shape and arrow by arrow, my parents' understanding grew, as did my excitement from helping improve my parents’ lives in a country built for the English-literate.

Little did I know that young Jenny was already making her way through the world of accessible product design. However, as much as I loved art, my college freshman self couldn’t get herself to ignore my parents’ narrow opinion of design majors, and instead opted for a degree in marketing. Ironically, I lacked support from the first users I served.

Like others in my position, I hungered for a creative outlet and found a hedge to my parents’ wishes in a graphic design minor and through co-founding Octagons, a digital marketing agency serving small businesses. I found myself genuinely happy designing: I’d spend hours on end optimizing the user flow on client websites and found fulfillment in coding out delightful animations for my internet design class. Seeing clients enjoy going through the website I created was also immensely rewarding.

With my humble empathy and genuine curiosity, I'm ready to make my mark on this world (or at least the digital world).