Alumni Spotlight: Nathan Nasby

Name: Nathan Nasby

Years attended Seminole State College: 2012 - 2015

Seminole State College area of study: Web development certificate

What factors played into you deciding to attend Seminole State College? 
I struggled a lot with self-confidence because I couldn’t receive the appropriate accommodations for the SAT and ACT. Seminole State gave me the opportunity to overcome the hurdles of testing performance after I graduated from Crooms Academy of Information Technology. It turned out to be a really great thing because it allowed me to take the core curriculum classes like English and math, in turn, making my time at Rochester Institute of Technology (RIT) much smoother. I enjoyed being able to really focus on my degree.

What made you pursue web development?
Web development was a clear choice because of the combination of skills required and the creative aspect that comes along with web development. I recently had the opportunity to explore careers in information technology and computer science, but found that the isolated atmosphere was not something I could thrive in. New media design is the perfect field that combined my passions for the arts and technology.

Were you involved in any campus activities at Seminole State College?
I actually started two clubs. One of the things that I really learned from both of those clubs was effective leadership. There were two extremes that I figured out later – the middle ground in leadership was much more helpful and had a very positive impact. The first club I started was the sci-fi club at the Oviedo campus, and then at the Sanford/Lake Mary Campus I started a Doctor Who club. A few of the members in those clubs are still friends to this day.

Where did you go after Seminole State College, and what was your degree there? 
The Rochester Institute of Technology and I studied new media design.

How did your time spent at Seminole State College help prepare you for this role or for your time at Rochester Institute of Technology?
Seminole State was really the core of my understanding of how to learn and how to evaluate texts that may be more challenging for your comprehension level. I got increasingly better at reading research articles and complicated literature that allowed me to better interpret the literature that was necessary for my designs at RIT.

Who was your greatest influence at Seminole State College?
I think one of the major influences at Seminole State was Sabrina Deshner. She was really good at instilling wisdom. I may not have realized it then, but I still remember all the things that she said and the suggestions that she made that improved my career for the better.

If you could go back and do it all over again, what would you change? Why?
One thing I would change would be my resilience. I have really struggled with saying yes, and then accepting the results of that decision. I was very closed off in many ways, and one of the things I had to learn was that once you say yes to an opportunity, you must stay with it, accepting consequences and moving forward.

Was there a course that stood out to you at Seminole State College?
All my digital media courses. It was really the encouragement that I got from my classmates. As soon as I picked up Adobe Illustrator, I started coming up with new ways to use the platform. I would help others that were struggling in the class, and I’d never had that kind of positive interaction with my classmates before. I actually had someone that reached out directly for help with their tutorials, and I never saw that in myself before. It was another classmate that was struggling that helped me foster my talents more.

Professionally or academically, of what are you most proud?
I am most proud of my web development technical certificate. It carried over from high school, and it was probably the best early decision that I made. When you’re that age, you don’t typically think about how things will affect you in the future, but it really made an impact by becoming an asset in my classes at RIT.

What is something you would share with a current student?
Try to make decisions that will make your outcome in the long run a far more positive experience. A lot of people underestimate how their decisions now, and how their career choices now, will impact their career choices in the future. It’s so hard to realize that because we live in the now so much. You always have to think about what’s going to be popular 20 or 30 years from now because that dictates what we need to learn today. Skills are dependent on the trends, and the trends constantly change. Always keep up with the news – we’ve learned this before, flash was a thing and now flash is a thing of the past.

What do you like to do for fun?
I’m posting my artwork, particularly on Instagram!  It’s pretty easy to find me. On Instagram I’m @natenasby. My website is NathanNasbyArt.com