Empirical Research Report (pdf)
I wrote this report on technical communication in the environmental sciences for my English 3400 class. The report provides detailed information on technical communication in the environmental sciences, including: employment opportunities, salaries, duties and responsibilities, required qualifications, and recommendations for career preparation. I used MS Word to create the document and the tables that present data within the document. My Eng. 3400 instructor was the audience and she required that the research be as thorough as possible. The research methods I used to prepare the report included consultation of printed sources, Internet searches, and personal interview with field professionals. I also created a fact sheet using MS Publisher to present essential information in a brief format. The fact sheet was geared toward fellow students who were looking for the most basic and important information regarding technical communication in the environmental sciences.

Click the link above for a PDF of the research report. Click the thumbnail image at left for a PDF of the fact sheet.

Instruction Set for Adobe InDesign CS (pdf)
This was a group project (four-member team) for English 3400. We created a step-by-step guide for a prospective audience of beginning technical communications students (i.e., students enrolled in Eng. 3400 or 3410). We targeted this audience to limit the scope of the instruction set; having never used Adobe InDesign ourselves, our team wanted to create an instruction set that covered only the most basic functions. We created the original instruction set in InDesign. This gave our team valuable hands-on experience with the software and enhanced our foresight regarding potential audience needs. As we used InDesign, we often encountered problems and then found solutions that we could include as tips to the users of our instruction set. Overall, the collaborative experience was very positive. Our team succeeded in creating a project timetable, dividing workloads, establishing standard guidelines for document development, and completing the project by the deadline and according to the required specifications.

Click the link above or the thumbnail image at left for a PDF of the the instruction set.

UACD Watershed Project Final Report (pdf)
This is a final report on a watershed project in the Logan, Utah area that was funded through Section 319 of the Clean Water Act. The report, as it appears in this portfolio, is in the final stages of revision. There are comments regarding technical information that must still be added before the report can receive final approval from the Environmental Protection Agency. The creation of the final report entailed collaboration with the local Conservation District coordinator, Thayne Mickelson, to compile quarterly/semi-annual reports, photos, tables, maps, and final analysis of project results. Outside reviewers from government agencies such as the Department of Water Quality (DWQ), Utah Department of Agriculture and Food (UDAF), and EPA read and approve the report’s format and data. The report was created in MS Word according to established EPA guidelines.

Click the link above for a PDF of the report. Click the thumbnail image at left to go to the UACD website.

Website redesign proposal (pdf)
This project, for my English 3410 class, is a proposal for a website redesign including a mock-up made in Adobe InDesign. In the proposal I analyze the old website’s audience, purpose, and design defects. I then offer solutions to improve the site’s layout and features. In designing the mock-up I applied the principles of contrast, repetition, proximity, and alignment.  The redesign is more aesthetically pleasing and user-friendly.

Click the link above to view a PDF of the entire proposal. Click the thumbnail image at left for an enlarged view of the mock-up.

iTunes Power Point presentation (pdf)
This is a short PP presentation created to introduce and promote a software program.  For this project I worked in a small group (three-member team). Our assignment was to choose a software program and create a five-minute presentation, including slides, to demonstrate its uses and benefits. Our audience for the presentation consisted of our instructor and our fellow classmates. Our team chose iTunes and decided that we would use a limited number of slides to create a presentation that provided enough particulars to inform and intrigue our audience without becoming monotonous or overly involved. We used fun colors for a fresh clean design and included a short, humorous video clip to help give a sample of the media available on iTunes.

Click the link above to view a PDF version of the slides. Click the thumbnail image at left to view the PPT version.