The Visual Communications program at Northeast Tech Afton is reinventing itself for the 2025–26 school year with new instructor Jennifer Johnson at the helm.
“This program has evolved over the years as the needs of the industry have changed,” Johnson said. “I was told it used to be more broadcast-focused, then it evolved into more of an information technology program. What I’m seeing now in my first year is that digital marketing is the direction we need to be taking this program. Video production, content creation, photography, shooting drone footage — that’s what businesses are looking for.”
Johnson is experiencing a “reinvention” of her own at NT after spending nearly 15 years as a teacher at Fairland Public Schools.
“When I was teaching at the high school level, I saw students who normally were not enjoying school who were loving going to Tech every day. Now I understand it,” she said. “They want to be here. They’ve applied to be here. It makes teaching fun in a whole new way. I’m learning all this new technology right along with the students.”
Johnson has challenged her students to approach projects with a “marketing and advertising agency” mindset.
“We run the classroom as if we are running a marketing and advertising agency. This is a business, and we want to put forth the best work we can because that creates our reputation. Reputation can affect securing future jobs. If we’re not securing jobs, then the business goes away. So we take a lot of pride in our work.”
Since August, students have completed a variety of projects, including a marketing video for the Grove Chamber of Commerce and capturing headshots for the Miami Chamber of Commerce at its annual Women in Business event.
“I want to give my students the opportunity to develop the skills they need to produce a lot of different projects. We’re only going to do that by networking in the community to complete practical, hands-on projects,” Johnson said.
Beyond a portfolio of work, Johnson’s main goal is that students are confident leaving her program and going into the workforce.
“I want them to feel confident navigating a business environment. I want them to have confidence in their skills, whether that’s editing a photo in Photoshop or flying a drone. I want to see these students be successfully employed and working their dream job. They can go create stuff they love every day and get paid to do it.”