Julie and Jessica Having Some Fun!

Jessica Zarin Kessin
Jessica is a professional product designer with a passion for design that benefits children with disabilities. Originally from New York City, Jessica attended Stanford University where she found her niche studying product design (mechanical engineering with an emphasis in design) along with developmental psychology.

Jessica has always been passionate about helping people with disabilities. From working with children with severe disabilities at the American School for the Deaf, to volunteering in the pediatric ward of a NYC hospital, to interpreting and assisting for a deaf Stanford University professor, Jessica has consistently maintained involvement with special-needs populations.

Jessica’s college thesis is where she first combined her passion for design with her enthusiasm to help children with special needs. She volunteered at the California School for the Blind where she developed a toy that worked on many of the skills with which the children there had been struggling. After Stanford, Jessica spent four years as a Pottery Barn tabletop/entertaining designer. In 2005, Jessica left Pottery Barn to start DbD. Currently, Jessica is working on DbD and teaching in the Stanford Product Design Program.

Jessica Is having an incredible time working with Julie and rest of the DbD team. She is learning and having fun everyday and cannot ask for anything more than that!   

Julie Robbins, OTR/L
Julie is a pediatric occupational therapist in California. She has been working with children with special needs for over a decade in a variety of capacities, from helping to integrate children with Autism into community activities, to training camp counselors to work with children with Cerebral Palsy. Julie’s first OT job was in a private therapy clinic where she had many opportunities to build her skills-base. She has also worked in public schools, co-treating with speech and behavior therapists, co-designing and co-teaching summer classes for children with significant delays and language-motor deficits.

More recently, Julie has served as one of the leaders in the building of the Redwood City School District’s first occupational therapy department. She has implemented therapy groups in all of her special day classes, servicing all of the students in the classroom while training the classroom teachers and assistants in occupational therapy techniques to encourage more regular implementation of a variety of sensory motor, fine motor, and social skill development. Julie has had the opportunity to lecture both within her district and at the college level.

Julie has been directly involved with every aspect of designing, testing, and evaluating all DbD products and toys. She is currently available to respond to inquiries regarding Development by Design products.

Julie met Jessica in and American Sign Language interest group and she has loved working with Jessica, constantly learning about product design and how to develop products to benefit the children!

Nancy Zarin
Nancy grew up in New York City. At Brandeis University, MA, Nancy majored in mathematics, graduating with Honors, Phi Beta Kappa and Magna Cum Laude, obtaining both a Bachelor’s and Master’s Degree. She then went to Oxford University to study human biology, obtaining another Master's, returning to the Boston area to work for an environmental consulting firm and attend the Sloan School of Business, MIT.

Nancy then spent four years as a management consultant, working at Digital Equipment Corporation in Maynard, MA. In 1983, Nancy moved to the New York metropolitan area and began working in the textile business, first at General Felt Industries, then as Vice President of Textiles and Group Vice President of The Knoll Group. She left Knoll to become President and CEO of Belding Hausman Textiles, which she helped grow from a $30M to a $70M company.

Nancy is currently partnered in business with her husband, in joint ownership of an Instant Imprints franchise. Instant Imprints is one of the top 40 new franchises in America. Nancy and her partner are also Area Developers in Connecticut and Western Massachusetts for Instant Imprints, responsible for selling franchises as well as training and mentoring new owners.

Nancy is currently Vice President of the Board of Directors of Savvy Success, a new non-profit organization dedicated to helping women become successful entrepreneurs. She also serves on the finance committee of the Lakeridge CT Tax Association.

As Financial Manager of Development by Design, Nancy has been involved with all aspects of the finances of the company.

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