Courtney La Prince ’13 thrives in environments that push her outside of her comfort zone. From her time at Moore College of Art & Design to her dynamic career in web development and UX (user experience) design, she followed a path of constant learning, reinvention and mentorship.
Originally from Washington, DC, La Prince heard about Moore through a member at her church. After earning her associate’s degree in graphic design at the School of Art and Design at Montgomery College, she took a trip to Philadelphia to tour art schools. Moore stood out immediately.
“Moore was the only school that gave me a full tour. The college also gave me the most money and scholarships. It felt like there was a bit more care,” La Prince said. “The representatives took the time to actually show me what Moore is all about. I said to myself, ‘You know what? I think this is the place for me.’”
La Prince excelled academically at Moore, thriving in her courses and gaining hands-on skills through her required internship with Center City Film & Video, who offered her a contract position as a motion graphics designer for her senior year. She also grew socially, building lasting friendships and taking on leadership roles through student government and Moore’s student ambassadors.
“I made a lot of great friends, met a lot of awesome people, and gained experience. All my classes were awesome,” she said. “What has stayed with me the most are the different relationships I formed there. I'm still friends with several of my classmates to this day.”
La Prince appreciated the College’s contemporary Graphic Design curriculum, which allowed her to develop her passion for web design and coding. Ultimately, her goal was to find a job that allowed her to turn that passion into a paycheck.
Her foundational knowledge in graphic design and technical skills allowed her to pivot quickly into UX and UI (user interface) roles. She moved across the country for jobs in Los Angeles, Atlanta, the DC metro area and New York, working for companies like IBM, The Home Depot, Yellow Pages, Nasdaq and US Bank before landing at food processing company ADM, where she’s been the lead UX designer for more than three years.
In addition to undertaking her full-time role, La Prince runs her own freelance digital product business called La Prince Studios, where she develops impactful web designs for growing companies like Lesbians Who Tech. She also teaches and mentors students through America on Tech and serves on the organization’s AI Advisory Council. Her passion for teaching led her to author an e-book, Introduction to UX Design: The Beginners Roadmap of the UX Process, to help newcomers navigate the fundamentals of UX.
La Prince credits Moore’s Locks Career Center and professors—especially chair of Communication Arts and professor of Graphic Design Gigi McGee—for providing resources and support long after graduation.
“Gigi still sends out opportunities to us years later,” she said. “I took advantage of my time at Moore to the best of my abilities, and I think that helped tremendously.”
Her best advice to students is to “network, network, network.” She also encourages Moore students to continue learning and sharing knowledge long after graduation.
“Even though I’ve been in this field for more than 10 years, I’m still learning new things about how to better teach my students,” she said. “I want to be educating for as long as I live.”
Moore College of Art & Design is the only independent art and design college in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Want to learn more about the Graphic Design major at Moore? Contact our Admissions team at enroll@moore.edu or 215.965.4015 to set up a call or a campus visit. We'd love to tell you more!
