The Speakers
Keynote Speaker
Gabrielle Jarmoszko
University of Central Florida Professor
Gabrielle Jarmoszko is an advertising and public relations instructor at the University of Central
Florida and her journey, like the university she proudly represents, is one of growth, innovation and
dedication. Her path in the communication field began in high school, where she discovered the power of storytelling while working in the student newspaper and school yearbook staff. After being inspired by her teacher’s advice, she pursued marketing at the University of South Florida, earning an undergraduate degree. She later completed a master’s in digital communication and journalism at USF, where she was honored with the Kappa Tau Alpha Top Scholar Award, recognizing her as the highest-ranking graduate student in her program. But it was during a year-long work as a substitute high school photography teacher that she found her true calling in education. After gaining industry experience by working for marketing and creative organizations, she returned to teaching.
Today, Jarmoszko teaches a variety of topics at UCF, such as advertising copywriting and PR publications. Outside of the classroom, Jarmoszko is active in professional organizations such as Ad 2 Orlando where she is currently president and works to bridge the gap between academia and industry, linking her students with real-world possibilities, ensuring that they graduate with not only knowledge, but also the ability to lead.
Despite her professional and academic accomplishments, Jarmoszko’s greatest pride is her family. She finds joy in spending time with her daughter, partner and cats while managing her personal and professional duties.
As Jarmoszko looks to the future, her vision is clear: to continue inspiring her students and to help UCF become a global leader in innovation and education. Her story is one of passion, perseverance and purpose—a story that reflects the best of what UCF stands for: a commitment to excellence and a drive to inspire the next generation of leaders.
Bio Credit: Julia Montez da Costa
Mallory Padgett, MJE
Director of Yearbooks
After more than a decade of teaching and yearbook advising experience, Mallory has developed a skill set that allows her to specialize in yearbooks and yearbook education. Mallory understands the need for intentional and diverse marketing campaigns, offers insight into the education and classroom/school environment management that it takes to run a successful publication, and has successfully managed budgetary and branding components of a publication. As a recent high school yearbook teacher and adviser, Mallory has critical insight and experience that allow her to relate to the students, staff, and advisers at a local level. She is also involved in state and national Journalism conferences.
.jpg)
Yearbook Speaker
Peter Muhly
Photographic Coordinator
World Photojournalist and Leonard’s Photography Coordinator, Peter Muhly, will share over 25 years’ of his
photojournalism experience in covering both national and international news, sports and features. Peter’s images have won numerous awards, have been published in major publications around the world and continue to provide him with royalties. In 2014, Peter relocated back to Florida to join Leonard’s as the Tampa Photography Coordinator, where he trains and coordinates a team of professional
photographers. Whether creating portraits or covering sports, Peter strives for that ‘Decisive Moment’.
Photography Speaker
Steve Kent
Pictavo Chief of Staffs
One of the most prominent voices in scholastic journalism, Steve Kent drives yearbook innovation. While a publishing consultant based in Virginia, Steve’s family of staffs won more Crowns from Columbia Scholastic Press Association and Pacemakers from National Scholastic Press Association than any other group working with a single rep in the country.He has taught thousands of students from coast to coast how to create the new kind of yearbook: Inclusive, relevant and coffee-table worthy. Steve’s always been at the forefront of the yearbook activity, from product development aspects such as new paper, cover and upgrade treatments to curriculum and design innovations affecting how staffers create the books themselves. He helps staffers discover our buyers give us direction.Steve authored Yearbookonomics™ the go-to playbook for content gathering, staff management, business planning and marketing, and holds its trademark. In addition, for more than a decade, he piloted a grid-based, modular formatting approach with staffs all over America, providing a faster spread creation process and a straightforward way to increase the number of students involved in meaningful content. Now, the most modern form of that can be found in Pictavo.
Yearbook Speaker
Photography Speaker
Ally Eames
Leonard's Photographer
Ally Eames has 8 years of experience at Leonard’s spanning from her start as a sports photographer into her role now as Photo Logistics Coordinator. She’s won multiple awards for her photos from intracompany awards to her most recent SPOA finalist photos and award. Her professional expertise spans various genres such as school photography, portraits, social events and sporting events. Outside of Leonard’s her passion is photographing Ice Hockey where she’s photographed for Team USA Hockey’s Women’s 4 Nations tournament, University of Tampa’s multiple teams, College Hockey South and AAU Hockey.
Yearbook Speaker
Nelson Helm
Pictavo Art Director
Nelson Helm is an art director, curriculum developer and staff consultant for Pictavo. Starting on his middle school staff, he continued yearbook through high school and college, editing national award-winners along the way. Before returning to the corporate side of the yearbook industry, he worked for Food Network Magazine and the Atlanta Journal Constitution.Nelson has helped staffs create the books of their dreams by listening, and relying on his unique insights to what buyers want. He enjoys sharing his passion by teaching at scholastic journalism conventions and engaging with young creatives across the country.
Yearbook Speaker
Nicole Krantz
Sales Representative
Nicole has over 20 years of experience behind a camera, photographing everything from landscapes to portraits. Her hobby of photographing pets blossomed into her business, Pawparazzi Pet Photography, based out of Sarasota, Florida. Along with the photographer’s position at Leonard’s, Nicole also serves as a sales representative for the company, which she began in 2017.
Kristen Unico
Senior Copywriter at Think Integrated
Kristen’s a creative with a love for getting to the heart of individuals’ stories, missions, and goals. Kristen’s passion for storytelling began in high school, where she developed her photography and writing skills in both newspaper and yearbook. She went on to study communication and marketing at the University of Central Florida, landing social media, copywriting, and editing internships throughout her college career. After gaining in-house, agency, and publication experience, she worked her way to her current role as Senior Copywriter at Think Integrated, an Orlando-based branding and marketing agency, where everyday she has the chance to craft concepts, build brands, and bring out the best in her clients and team. In addition to her official role, Kristen wears other hats at Think, heading up the internship program, turning on the perfect playlists as office DJ, and dusting off her still-good camera from high school to capture all that goes on around the office as a behind-the-scenes photographer.
Yearbook Speaker
Tricia Herriger
With six years of teaching experience and a distinctive background in digital media, Tricia brings a fresh perspective to yearbook advising at Lake Howell High School. Her journey began in Nashville's music industry, where she managed social media campaigns for music management companies. She later expanded her creative portfolio in Orlando, providing photography and videography services to local businesses and working with podcast production at Culture Architects, developing the strategic marketing skills that would later transform her school's yearbook program. Now in her second year as yearbook adviser, Tricia has transformed her program's approach to marketing and student engagement. By implementing innovative strategies—including the creation of the "Lady Silver Hawk" ambassador program and leveraging social media partnerships—she has achieved remarkable results, including a 90% senior portrait participation rate and significant revenue growth in yearbook sales. Tricia holds a Master's degree in Education and is Adobe Photoshop certified, combining technical expertise with educational best practices to empower students in marketing, design, and digital storytelling.
.png)
Yearbook Speaker
CARLY LOYD
Carly has a combined 10 years of teaching experience on English and Reading from grades 6-12 and 4 years in Journalism. She has her Masters in Career and Technical, along with certifications and endorsements in ESE, ESOL, Media Specialist, Reading, and Guidance. Her unique experience as a yearbook advisor and the path she traveled brings forth a new perspective on yearbook as a four year curriculum. Carly started her first year as an advisor with absolutely no experience, no support (was working with a different company), a school that viewed journalism class and the yearbook as “just a class” and a student body who didn’t have the passion for their yearbook. In four years she turned an underdeveloped program into a thriving one, both inside and outside the classroom. She increases copy count by 100 and sales by 80%. She built a program that encourages students to continue with the program year after year, with a waitlist of those wanting to join. She fostered a community of school spirit, passion for photography, and the drive to capture memories. Her school yearbooks went from “scrapbook” to actual journalistic works, with the focus on student led design. Her social media platform has increased school engagement. Her focus: student led design through building a community of learners.
Yearbook Speaker
Yearbook Speaker
ALLEE BILLINGSLeY
Creekside Yearbook Adviser
Allee Billingsley is an English teacher and yearbook advisor at Creekside High School in St. Johns County. With a passion for storytelling and student creativity, Billingsley has led the
Tributary to state and national recognition. She is dedicated to helping students develop
their writing and design skills while fostering a collaborative, creative environment that
reflects and represents the school community. Students have moved on from the Tributary’s program to pursue careers in the field of digital design, journalism, and communications.
Yearbook Speaker
LISA URBAN
Leonard's Sales Representative, CJE
Lisa Urban brings a wealth of knowledge from both her 21 years as a teacher and yearbook advisor and her 14 years as a Senior Sales Representative with Leonard's. Championing student design and input, Lisa is known for simplifying complex concepts and keeping her advisors and students in a positive state of mind.
With her extensive experience, she has a lot to share to help you make your program more successful. From budgeting and planning, to designing and executing to selling and marketing, Lisa works hard to help her schools create what they want to create and to meet their goals.
Schools love her honest feedback, and she works to keep up on trends in both Journalism and Education to remain relevant to her schools. Lisa has a clear passion for yearbook and loves being a part of the Leonard's team!
Photography Speaker
TOM ADDISON
Leonard's Senior Photographer
Since 1991, Addison has been a full time photographer, videographer, and artist. His experience, knowledge and talents have taken him on countless adventures around the world. His extensive worldwide travels have given him a discriminating eye for dynamic composition, an instinct for capturing decisive moments and a finely tuned sense of color balance. Addison’s brilliant use of lighting distinguishes his work and defines his unique style. Addison will teach and explains, as a high profile photographer, you are a portraitist, a sociologist, a fashion photographer and a photojournalist. Addison joined Leonards in 2012 as a photographic manager. Since then, he has become Leonard’s Senior Field Operations Specialist , who is a versatile team member responsible for executing photography production services, training , technical support and strategic field operations across both educational and military contracts. Addison is also an international and national award winning artist who continues to sell and exhibit his artwork throughout the southeast.
Shannon Welch
With over 15 years of education experience, Shannon Welch is a two-time county teacher of the year and current FSPA District 2 teacher of the year. She is the adviser of Tocoi Creek High School's yearbook publication, The Territorial. The yearbook is in its' fourth year of publication and has garnered awards at both the state and national level. Her passion for sales, marketing, and team building has led to sell out years and one of the fastest growing yearbook programs in the nation. Her program serves as a mentoring program for county middle school and K8 programs in which students share their passion for yearbook development.
Yearbook Speaker
Jessica Brown
Jessica Brown is a Yearbook Support Representative with Leonard's Yearbooks, bringing over 16 years of educational experience to her role. A former teacher specializing in design and publications, Jessica is passionate about helping schools craft publications that reflect the heart of their communities. She is a three-time Teacher of the Year honoree within the St. Johns County School District, recognized at Sebastian Middle School, Freedom Crossing Academy, and Beachside High School. Jessica’s sessions, including Easy Design Tips for K–8 Yearbooks, The Content Collector, and Click, Collect, Complete: Managing Yearbook Photography Without the Chaos, offer practical strategies that empower yearbook teams to streamline their processes and elevate their final product.
Yearbook Support Representative
Yearbook Speaker
Claire bryce
Claire Bryce is a graphic designer who specializes in layout design. Claire is a former yearbook staffer with Creekside High School in St. Johns County, FL. She graduated from the Savannah College of Art and Design, earning her BFA in Graphic Design with a minor in Marketing for Mobile and Interactive Environments in June 2024. After graduating, she completed a six-month internship with The Walt Disney Company as a Graphic Design Intern for Retail Innovation in Disney Consumer Products. Even though Claire is early in her career, she is grateful for her exposure to design in high school. Her experience with yearbook and Leonard’s Studios set her on the path to where she is today.
Yearbook Support Representative
Yearbook Speaker
Yearbook Speaker
.jpg)
Heather brooks
Leonard's Marketing Manager
A Pennsylvania College of Technology graduate with a degree in Advertising Art, Heather began her career as a graphic designer, where she developed a passion for understanding customer needs and delivering impactful solutions. After 15 years of experience as a graphic designer, she decided to take her career down a new path as a marketing professional.
Heather is a marketing manager with over six years of experience driving successful marketing strategies and campaigns across various industries. Heather has worked with large corporations and startups throughout her career, both with marketing and graphic design, honing her skills in digital and traditional marketing, brand management, and market research.
As a marketing manager at Leonard’s, Heather is passionate about developing marketing plans, branding, and communication that increase sales and improve brand recognition. She believes in collaboration and communication and has built strong relationships with cross-functional teams to ensure alignment and achieve common goals. She is passionate about continuously seeking professional development opportunities and sharing insights with peers.