Personas

As part of a workshop on design in my Research Methods course, we had to create personas for the direct stakeholders of our research project. My wonderfully hilarious and intelligent and all around amazing research group is studying early literacy and these were our personas:

Sammy Jackson, a four year old from the Seattle area. She has two parents and a 12-year old half brother. Sammy attends a nearby preschool three times a week; her mother walks her there in the mornings and her father picks her up in the afternoons. On the days where she does not attend preschool, Sammy has a nanny (friend of the family, recent high school graduate). Her parents are both working professionals and work full time. Sammy also wears glasses.

Sammy loves fairies and superheroes and comic books. She wants to be an astronaut when she grows up.

At preschool, Sammy is able to visit the nearby public library for a story time led by children's librarian Jefferson Wells. Sammy loves these story times, although she struggles with alphabet knowledge and phonological awareness. Because her parents work, they are unable to attend these story times and are unaware of Sammy's difficulties. They also aren't learning the literacy skills being taught by Jefferson at the library. At home, the bed time/evening story is often replaced by a family movie or outing.

Jefferson Wells, a 34-year old from the Seattle area. He is a children's librarian with the Seattle Public Libraries and loves his job. He has quite the beard. Jefferson is gay and lives with his wealthy husband (Leonard) in a town house. He loves grunge and soul music (a strange combination to be sure) and has secret musical ambitions. Jefferson has two cats named Sherlock and John. He loves vegetarian cooking as long as there are no mushrooms.

Jefferson recognizes Sammy as the shy curly-haired girl with adorable glasses that comes with a preschool group to his preschool story time. He wants to help participate more actively and gain new literacy skills.

Okay, so maybe I embellished just a little. Creative license?