Ken Sliwa
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About
With more than 20 years experience in advertising production design, marketing, electronic, and print publishing, I’ve worked for Arizona State Parks and Trails for the last ten years in a variety of marketing, advertising, outreach roles within the executive team. There I continued to develop an array of skills working to support agency marketing needs, including working with the State of Arizona's Governor's office, Arizona Office of Tourism, Arizona Game & Fish, Bureau of Land Management, National Park Service and other stakeholders. I resigned this role in December of 2024 to care for my mother to support her dementia and in-home hospice needs, as her only son, and last remaining family member. She passed away in April of 2026. My greatest achievement here was my role(s) in helping to create a memorial state park to support the memory of the 19 Granite Mountain Hotshots, who perished in the Yarnell Hill Fire in 2013.
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Education
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BA track Web DesignScottsdale Community College2011 - 2012
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Graphic DesignGateway Community College1988 - 1992
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Experience
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Freelance Production DesignerAug 2007 - Present (18 years 11 months)Work with ad agencies, in-house, and corporate marketing departments, to support their advertising production workflows. Provide turn-key solutions to clients, allowing them to maintain project schedules, quality, and productivity levels in the creation of high quality products for their advertising operations, clients, and customers. Worked with corporate PetSmart, Air Marketing, and many Arizona-based businesses to create, refine, and prepare digital advertising products.
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Senior Magazine Art DirectorPhoenix, AZSep 2014 - Dec 2024 (10 years 3 months)Starting out as the agency web master and graphic designer, I expanded my work in the central office to join the executive team as the Community Relations Administrator, working directly under the agency director. I continued my work as graphic/production/web designer, supporting the advertising and marketing needs of the agency, This included e-mail marketing, print, and web ad design, social media support, partnerships, and providing outreach across the state. Proud to have helped lead agency goals to create record revenue, visitation and the acquisition of the NRPA Gold Medal for best state park system in the United States in 2017. I continued to work to maintain agency branding and expand creative advertising throughout the state and country, which expanded park visitation to more than three million per year, and helped the agency grow to $22 million in annual revenue.
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Marketing, Communications, Graphic Design & Video CoordinatorFeb 2012 - Sep 2014 (2 years 7 months)Worked with staff, students and the public to support the message and goals of 31, K-12 public schools in the Scottsdale school district. Promoted the advantages of education within this district, highlighting scholastic, athletic, student, and faculty achievements through all available advertising mediums. Created and oversaw a large-format printing department to bring various marketing products (posters, banners, stickers, food packaging, vehicle graphics, POP, etc.) in-house, saving time, money and resources, saving the district more than $30,000 annually.
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Graphic DesignerJul 2010 - Apr 2013 (2 years 9 months)Created original web and print creative materials to promote enrollment, support staff, faculty, and students. Served as a liaison with school departments and external vendors to support the graphic design, web and promotional needs of SCC. Created and oversaw a large-format printing department to bring various marketing projects (posters, banners, stickers, vehicle graphics, POP, etc.) in-house, saving time, money and resources, saving the college more than $60,000 annually.
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Production DesignerOct 2007 - Mar 2008 (5 months)Worked in-house marketing department to support their graphic ad/product production workflow. Provided quality preparation of electronic ad materials, allowing the company to maintain project schedules, productivity levels and the creation of high quality products for their advertising operations, stores, and clients. Assisted in creation of print/web ads, vehicle wraps, in-store product packaging, and promotional materials.
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Advertising Graphics/Publishing Systems Manager1995 - Feb 2006 (10 years 7 months)Worked hands-on with staff, senior management, clients & vendors to create and support advertising projects, products and daily advertising operations for the 10th largest newspaper in the United States. Hired, managed & trained six supervisors, and was responsible for 75 advertising designers. Managed ad quality control, projects, technology, deadlines, and production of over 100 annual magazines, newspaper publications and supporting marketing products that generated more than $300 million in annual revenue.
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Awards
Assisted Arizona State Parks & Trails agency in winning the NRPA Gold Medal for the "Best managed state parks in the nation" in 2017, and the Commission for Accreditation of Park and Recreation Agencies (CAPRA) award, the first state park to gain this award, and first time winning the NRPA award in more than 60 years of operation.
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Affiliations
National Concierge Association, Local First Arizona, Arizona Parks & Recreation Association, National Recreation and Parks Association, National Association of State Park Directors, and the Nature Conservancy,
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Industries
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Skills
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Elsewhere on the Web
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On Coroflot@kensliwa, member since 2014