Alumni Spotlight

This month's Alumni Spotlight shines on Emily Hartung, MHS '14! From sketching in her Methacton art classes to now designing for a business-to-business advertising agency, Emily's journey proves that nurturing your talents and embracing new opportunities can lead to a successful and fulfilling career.

Emily Hartung has been creating for as long as she can remember, always having a paintbrush, crayon, or pencil close by. This lifelong passion for art truly blossomed in the Methacton High School art department, where she thrived on the freedom of self-expression and the opportunity to explore a variety of artistic mediums.

Two teachers were particularly influential during this time, Nancy Marcinko and Beth Hall. Emily recalls that they created such a welcoming and supportive environment for all art students. Their profound impact was instrumental in her decision to pursue a career in the arts:

"They both fostered my personal creativity and also pushed me to become a better artist. My time spent in the MHS Art Department truly was the start of the career I have today and I am so grateful for all of the support I had from the faculty."

Emily fully immersed herself in the Methacton High School art program, completing Art 1, 2, 3, and AP Art. As a culminating senior year project, she and classmate Astin Stratoti collaborated to create a mural at Skyview, which remains on display for the community to enjoy. Mural painting would later become a significant part of her professional life, though she didn't realize it at the time.

A career in the arts was a natural fit for Emily, and with the guidance of her high school art faculty, she discovered her passion for graphic design. This led her to pursue a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Communication Design from Kutztown University, after which she honed her skills at various advertising agencies in the Philadelphia and Central Pennsylvania areas.

Today, Emily is a Senior Graphic Designer at Godfrey, a business-to-business-focused advertising and marketing agency in Lancaster, PA. Her days are dynamic and varied, ranging from kickoff meetings for new client projects and concept development for campaigns, to designing digital and social media ads, editing photos and images in Photoshop, and crafting large-format branding projects in InDesign or Illustrator.

"I love where I have landed in my career because I am able to be creative every day. As designers, we get to be creative problem solvers for our clients."

Beyond her 9-to-5, Emily turned her creative passion into a successful side hustle during the pandemic, winning a local mural design contest in Bucks County. That first mural, located at The Square in Dublin, PA, sparked a passion project that has since grown to include ten commercial and residential murals across Eastern Pennsylvania and New Jersey, with notable clients like the Ronald McDonald House Charity in Camden, NJ, where she created a full-room mural.

"It really is a passion project of mine and I love being able to add beauty to a space using my art and seeing it on a large scale."

Alongside her mural work, Emily also maintains a freelance graphic design business, boasting clients such as Forbes, the Atlantic Council, as well as international collaborations. Her freelance portfolio spans logo design, branding, posters, merchandise, and a wide range of other client requests.

Despite her busy schedule, Emily remains committed to Methacton, maintaining close ties with former art teachers and recently returning for Career Day to share her experiences studying for her Bachelors in Fine Arts at Kutztown University and her professional journey with current students.

"I really enjoyed my time at MHS! I found my home within the art department and was able to grow my talents."

Her advice for current students is:

"Explore as many things as possible, try something new and don't be afraid to fail! Your teachers will be your biggest cheerleaders and use their advice and experience to your advantage."

If you are -- or know -- a Methacton graduate who should be featured in the ALUMNI SPOTLIGHT, complete the interest form here.

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