Jen Folsom

Jennifer's passion for innovation and education truly shines through everything she does. During my three years working with her at TEDxGunnHighSchool, she inspired the team to go above and beyond with her creativity, open-mindedness and enthusiasm, encouraging us to think outside the box whenever we faced problems. As an educator, Jennifer not only illuminates the best in her students, but she also learns alongside them -- a quality that I find to be rare among teachers these days. Jennifer truly is a mover and shaker. I strongly believe her vision and capability has and will continue to make a positive impact in the organizations she is involved in. .

Jennifer was a leader in the district for active cross-curricular integration and collaboration of both sharing curriculum and photography projects, as well as coordinating student exhibitions and opportunities to showcase their artwork as professional artists. Jennifer pioneered the Student with a Camera through which students learned professional portrait business skills. She also partnered with the Gunn School journalism programs to coordinate the wide range of photography skills needed for the newspaper and yearbook programs. Along with being an advisor to the Photo Club to include all students in visual arts for personal enjoyment, she designed portraiture units for student in professional applications, like illustrating events around campus, like the annual musical, and student life activities.

Jennifer was the heart and soul of our project, building a compelling annual report for the Davis Street Family Resource Center in San Leandro, CA. Her beautiful photography and personal embrace of our client truly captured the spirit of our endeavor. That came across in the striking and compelling images she gave us throughout the annual report. I'd highly recommend her for for both her talent and her level of personal commitment to her work.