The word "portfolio" might bring to mind the artist's case bulging with sketches, samples and finished or unfinished works in no particular order. On the other hand, it might suggest the familiar collection of report cards, crayon drawings and dioramas that accumulate in schoolchildren's homes over the years. In an adult education setting, however, a portfolio is a selective group of artifacts, placed in context within a carefully constructed user interface. Whether the interface is electronic, paperbased or some combination of the two is not important, what is crucial is that the artifacts have been chosen and arranged with thought and purpose. The portfolio can be created for any number of uses. It might be a graduation requirement, pointing out how the learner has demonstrated competence in various assessment areas. It might be geared toward a forthcoming job search. It might be a showcase of an individual's strengths with different kinds of art or media production. It might even serve as a simple act of self-assessment and reflection at a personal crossroad. What all these purposes have in common is that they result in "...a powerful tool for demonstrating growth over time which is the primary value of a portfolio" (Barrett, 2000). Knowing how to create an electronic portfolio is a beneficial skill in today's job market. Portfolios are defined as "organized, goal driven documentation of professional growth and achieved competence" (Cambell, Cignetti, Melenyzer, Nettles & Wyman, 1997, p. 3). Kimball (2002) further defines portfolios as a "reflective collection of work." Merriam-Webster defines portfolios rather narrowly using properties of their physical appearance (bound cover and pictures). Recently, advances in technology and personal computers expand the range of formats to include electronic media. An electronic portfolio allows one to store and display documents in an electronic format. We define electronic portfolios as multimedia environments that display artifacts and reflections documenting professional growth and competencies. This two-part article explores graduate student design and development of electronic portfolios during a one-semester course. This first paper describes portfolios; their classification in current literature and the development process students used in this class. The second paper is a reflective case study of how students implemented the ADDIE model when creating portfolios.