KRISTEN POWELL

LEAD DESIGNER AND CONSULTANT
Kristen Powell has more than 16 years of newspaper experience as an editor, designer and art director. She brings a reader-focused approach to design, using images, text and graphics to create pages that offer depth and context for heavy readers and rewarding scannability for light and occasional readers. Through training and hands-on coaching, she works with staffs to develop the reflexes to look at stories and pages in new ways to engage more readers.
 
Kristen has been a designer, consultant and trainer with Creative Circle since July 2001. She was lead designer for Scripps Treasure Coast Newspapers, a group of four dailies in southeastern Florida, The Advocate in Baton Rouge, La., The News Journal in Daytona Beach, Fla., the Staten Island (N.Y.) Register, and others. In addition, she worked with the staff of The Birmingham (Ala.) News to create their entertainment tabloid, CityScene.

Kristen also led redesigns and training for The News Tribune in Tacoma, Wa., and the Anderson (S.C.) Independent-Mail.
 
She has received several Society for News Design awards for her work including a silver medal, two features portfolio awards, and an award of excellence for her 2004 redesign of the Anderson (S.C.) Independent-Mail. Her work also has appeared in Print Magazine’s Regional Design annuals.

BEFORE JOINING CREATIVE CIRCLE, Kristen spent seven years as a designer and editor at The Charlotte Observer. In 1997, she led the creation of the paper's award-winning entertainment section, E&T. From ’97 to 2000, she coordinated content for the section and served as its art director.

Prior to that, Kristen was features editor at the Anderson (S.C.) Independent-Mail. Her sections won a Penney-Missouri Lifestyle Journalism Award in 1993, as well as several state press awards for content and design. Kristen also has worked as a copy editor and reporter. She has a degree in journalism from the University of Missouri-Columbia.

Kristen and her husband, Cory, live in Eagan, Minn. They have two children; a son, Cole, and a daughter, Carson.