Ali Zimmerman - Professional Biography

Born and raised in South Dakota, I enjoyed art and computers from a young age. In 1992, I began playing on the internet, even making my very first web page by 1993. I was also using MicroSoft Paint to re-create logos from Broadway musicals to display on my desktop.

Since that time, I have worked as a student web developer for both the University of South Dakota and the University of Iowa, using HTML, Photoshop, Cold Fusion, and SQL. Upon graduating from Iowa with a degree in Anthropology, I moved to Boulder, Colorado, to work as a designer and programmer for NASA's GLOBE Program, where I learned Perl and took several Oracle classes. My design work at GLOBE eventually led me to managing their 10,000 page Teacher's Guide in InDesign.

During my time at GLOBE, I studied web accessibility, specifically Section 508 standards. In 2004 I earned a certification in Assistive Technology Applications from the Center on Disabilities at the University of California - Northridge. Disability awareness and accessibility became a major focus in my life, and I joined the Board of Directors of the Physically Handicapped Actors and Musical Artists League (PHAMALY) of Denver. With PHAMALY, I found myself in all sorts of volunteer jobs, including designing and coding the website, developing marketing materials, fundraising, performing, and even helping hire the organization's first Executive Director.

My background with nonprofits began in 1998, when I was a co-founder of Dreamwell Theatre in Iowa City, Iowa. Since that time I have been involved with several nonprofits including PHAMALY, the Crohn's and Colitis Foundation of America, the Hearing Loss Association of America, the Association of Adult Musicians with Hearing Loss, and Families and Allies Working Together. In 2008, I completed a Master's degree in Nonprofit Management from Regis University.

Currently, I am working as a graphic designer and web developer at Conergy, but am heavily involved in marketing and communications strategy. Additionally, we have partnerships with the nonprofit American Solar Energy Society and the Solar Alliance.

In the future, I would like to use my current skillset and my education to help nonprofit organizations supporting persons with disabilities, the arts, and the environment.