Meet ATLAS grad student Celeste Moreno

"The instructors and advisors were genuinely excited about my interests and ideas, and they were enthusiastic about supporting my exploration into different subject areas from coding and robotics to design and museum studies." 

Name:Celeste Moreno
Hometown: Des Moines, Iowa
Program: MS CTD Creative Technologies + Design
Advisor: Ben Shapiro

My Path to Engineering

I grew up surrounded by talented interdisciplinary creators and scientists. My mom is a doctor who also happens to be an amazing cookie decorator, photographer, crafter, and more. My dad is a technology and computer whiz with some serious painting and drawing talent. My parents and family supported my creativity, and I was never pushed to follow in the footsteps of others or to pursue any career paths that I wasn’t interested in, so my younger self had a lot of ideas about what I wanted to be: pastry chef, journalist, artist, psychologist.

Eventually, I settled on becoming a graphic designer, and I began my undergraduate studies at Iowa State University in design. Shortly into my first semester, I felt like something was missing. I didn’t realize that the missing ingredient was science until my drawing instructor asked me if I liked science. I never identified as a scientist or felt a strong pull towards it, but I then realized that I was inspired by science. I loved the way the illustrations in my mom’s anatomy textbooks explained complex subjects so simply and beautifully, and I was constantly exploring new ways to use my dad’s computers and technology to make digital art. 

After realizing I enjoyed science, I applied to and was accepted into the biological/pre-medical illustration program at Iowa State University, which set me on a path to discovering my love for scientific visualization, and communication and creative learning experience design.

I was planning on going to graduate school to study biomedical visualization and medical illustration, but after working at the Science Center of Iowa as a maker-in-residence and then as an education and exhibits assistant, I realized I loved being a part of a team that created incredible, transformative experiences for curious minds of all ages. I didn’t want to limit myself to visualization or medicine, and I wanted to explore education, creative technology and fabrication.

I reached out to professionals in the museum, education technology and experience design fields and asked what they wanted to see in new recruits. Additionally, I collected job postings for positions that I considered “dream jobs." The information I gathered led me to a few realizations: 1. Many of the industry professionals that I admire have master’s degrees in a specialized field or have a specialized skill set that is unique. 2. Many of the job postings for my dream jobs required a master’s degree or interesting and relevant experiences.

After coming to these realizations, I knew I needed to find a way to further my education.

Why CU Boulder?

I looked all over the country to find a program where I could experiment with new technology, deepen my understanding of education, and pursue interesting experiences that matched my professional interests.

Some of the master’s programs that I looked into didn’t understand my desire to pursue interdisciplinary studies and had very strict boundaries set around their curriculum. Then I found the University of Colorado Boulder.  The Creative Industries (Creative Industries) program at CU Boulder was different. The instructors and advisors I talked to were genuinely excited about my interests and ideas, they introduced me to people and places at CU that they thought I might connect with, and they were enthusiastic about supporting my exploration into different subject areas from coding and robotics to design and museum studies.

I’m now studying Creative Industries at the ATLAS Institute. Within the Creative Industries program, I’m studying the development of creative learning experiences. I take classes that cover a range of subjects from coding and physical computing to developing inclusive learning experiences.

One of things I love the most about CU Boulder is that there are innovators and thought leaders around every corner. There are so many talented faculty and students here who are leaders in their fields, and as a CU Boulder student, you have the opportunity to learn from and connect with them.

I also love the resources that are available to students. I have everything I need on campus to make my ideas come to life: There are student and faculty mentors who can help me improve my plans, a wide range of traditional and cutting-edge fabrication tools to help me physicalize my ideas, and easily accessible media documentation tools that make it possible to share my creations with the world.