Shannon Chong  •  Principal, Lead Designer

Shannon Chong is a Principal and Lead Designer at AAJdesign with more than a decade of experience helping organizations build brands that connect with people. She specializes in developing thoughtful visual identities and design systems that help organizations communicate clearly and authentically. She earned her Bachelor of Fine Arts in Graphic Design from the University of the Arts in 2016. That same year, she received the Armin Hofmann Award for Excellence in Graphic Design and a Citation Award for her senior thesis project, Can You Look At This? Her work has also been recognized with AIGA Philadelphia Design Awards in 2016 and 2019, as well as a 2019 GDUSA American Web Design Award.

In addition to her role at AAJdesign, Shannon served as the Diversity, Equity & Inclusion Director on the board of AIGA Philadelphia from 2024–2026, where she contributed to initiatives focused on creating a more inclusive and accessible design community.

JP Bender  •  Principal, Lead Designer

JP Bender is a Principal and Lead Designer at AAJdesign. He graduated from the graphic design program at Philadelphia’s University of the Arts with high honors, and was awarded a citation for distinction in the conception and execution of his senior degree project, Painting the Corners: The Art of Pitching, as well as the CRW Award for Excellence in Typography. Alongside his work at AAJdesign, JP also previously taught sophomores at the University of the Arts.

During his seven years as a creative professional, JP has worked with large, international corporations down to smaller, local organizations making an impact in his community and those around him. He has approached every project with a desire to create work that is innovative, unique, and compelling, but also ultimately authentic, enduring, and most importantly: clear. The ability to communicate even the most complex of messages in both an engaging and understandable way is a challenge all designers face, and a refined design process helps ensure any project is successful in achieving these goals.

Jan C. Almquist  •  Consulting Advisor

Jan is recognized by leading professional organizations and publications worldwide for his contributions to both design and photography. He has participated in numerous solo and group shows and his work is in corporate and private art collections. Jan's work is also in the permanent collections of The Library of Congress, Washington, DC, the Graphic Design Collection of the National Design Archive at Rochester Institute of Technology, New York, USA, and the Museum of Applied Arts in Brno, Czech Republic.

Jan was an adjunct professor in the graphic design department at The University of the Arts, Philadelphia (formerly the Philadelphia College of Art) for 35 years. Many of the courses Jan taught involved the development of experimental curricula.

Jan studied at the University of Connecticut, Storrs, holds a BFA with honors in graphic design and photography from the Philadelphia College of Art (now the University of the Arts), and an MJ in journalism and communication theory from Temple University, School of Communications and Theater.