Darren Cools

Darren Cools is an experienced UX Designer currently working at Common App since December 2025 and is also the Creative Director and Owner of Darren Cools Illustration and Design, specializing in branding and strategic communications since May 2010. Prior experience includes serving as Design Manager at JLA Public Involvement, where responsibilities encompassed design direction and public involvement from February 2019 to December 2025, and as Creative Director for the Archdiocese of Portland in Oregon, focusing on visual brand strategy and communications campaigns from February 2017 to February 2019. Darren Cools has also contributed as an Adjunct Professor of Graphic Design at Clark College and has held graphic design roles at various companies, including TNG, Inc., PARR, and Thomas Aquinas College. Cools holds a Bachelor of Arts in Liberal Arts from Thomas Aquinas College and is currently pursuing a Master of Social Work at Wayne State University.