Student looks at work

Each semester, the Honors Program at CCAD hosts a symposium where students and faculty present their semester’s work. This year it took place on May 7, starting with a reception for all CCAD faculty, staff, and students.

Work ranged from puppets to glass installations, and the projects came from two honors classes: Associate Professor Ariana-Sophia Kartsonis’ Ekphrasis: Art Begets Art and MFA student Elena Harvey Collins’ Art as Social Practice.

The following students showed their projects: Fine Arts seniors Jack Ramunni, Alejandro Bellizi, Krista Sison, Yezen Abusharkh, and Mary Nemeth; Media Studies senior Brian Liston; Fine Arts junior Eric Sherwood; Advertising & Graphic Design junior Danielle Williams; Photography junior Derrick Whitson; Industrial Design sophomore Kelly Lee; and Fine Arts sophomores Esteban Gonzalez, Nicole Santos, and Hannah Mason-Macklin.

Members of the 1492 project sit to discuss project goals

CCAD’s collaboration in two innovative entrepreneurial events this fall has lead to a rich new appreciation of the importance of creative thinking in business development.

Startup Weekend Columbus took place Oct. 7–9, 2011 on CCAD campus. In its fifth year, it was the first time this 54-hour program was hosted on CCAD’s campus.

The program, which normally draws students, entrepreneurs, and venture capitalists, had a new edge by including the creative class.

“Through Startup Weekend our students got an accelerated and intense sense of any number of considerations that impact business decisions and in turn impact design. They got to see how design contributes to business and how business influences design and how together, a company becomes more successful and their stories more impactful,” commented Cynthia Gravino, director of career services.

The program helped emphasize how closely related the creative and business processes have become.

“The weekend was not just another class exercise for students,”said Gravino. “This is a real-world experience that they can take with them as they launch their careers.”

Ten CCAD students participated in Startup Weekend Columbus, including honors students, Chavilah Bennett (senior, Advertising & Graphic Design), Lillie Templeton (junior, Advertising & Graphic Design), and Hilary Sroufe (junior, Advertising & Graphic Design); and Yiangos Panayiotou (junior, Illustration), Vincent Smigiel (sophomore, Advertising & Graphic Design), Abby Staley (freshman), Manuel Austin (sophomore, Media Studies), Michael Kroptavich (junior, Advertising & Graphic Advertising), Nikhil Nigade (freshman, Advertising & Graphic Design), Danielle Williams (sophomore, Advertising & Graphic Design), and Devin Broadnax (junior, Fine Arts).

The students worked closely with the 16 teams launching their business plans. Creatives and techies worked together to execute a successful start-up.

At the end of the weekend three of the 16 teams were chosen as the best concepts presented. They included, Source Match, DemandZilla, and UserTOS.

Similiar in some ways, 1492 is a program that accelerates the creation of start-ups in a couple of months as opposed to what would normally take a couple of years. The program is a collaborative effort among TechColumbus, Columbus State Community College, and CCAD, with support from the Ohio Third Frontier and includes money for the chosen projects.

Out of 162 applicants, 10 companies were chosen to present their ideas to a panel of judges on Wednesday, Oct. 21. Out of the 10, five were chosen to participate in an 11-week coaching program on CCAD’s campus. They will each receive a $20,000 grant and will launch a product or service in mid Jan. 2012, following the program.

The five companies selected for the 1492 program this year were Azoti.com, Capstone Innovations, Churchsys.com, hungerly LLC, and Infinum Education LLC

Azoti will serve local farmers, dairies, fisheries, distributors, co-ops, farmer’s markets and artisans by providing demand aggregation services, program management and a host of CRM solutions.

Capstone Innovations has designed and patented an adaptable interlocking pallet system made up of identical units.

Churchsys is a software service (SaaS) developed to manage all aspects of operating a church or any other institution with patrons.

hungerly LLC is a location-based mobile marketing, analytics, sales, and loyalty platform built with street truck and cart vendors in mind.

Infinum Education has developed Aviso, which allows students and instructors to collaboratively drive both student and institutional success.

During the 11-week training the start-ups cover everything from financial advice to meetings with business mentors, and brainstorming sessions on how to achieve their desired goals and results.

In addition to these training programs, the start-ups will be able to utilize a CCAD intern. The intern will be with them through the duration of the program and their initial launch.

Support from participating organization, professionals, peers, and CCAD’s creative talent ensure the participating companies with a successful product launch.

Designed by CCAD students, Taylor Hicks and Danielle Williams

As fall semester gets into full swing, CCAD students will start seeing the fruits of some labors that began last year. The Market (CCAD’s dining hall) is going green.

“It began with a zero landfill concept,” said Dwayne Todd, vice president of student affairs and dean of students about the Student Government’s work to turn the Market into a sustainable dining center.

“Before we went ahead with any decision about sustainability within the Market we discussed the idea in an open forum with the Student Government last spring,” Todd said.

Danielle Williams, a sophomore Advertising & Graphic Design major and member of the Student Government, was involved with the committee that helped initiate the program.

“I see friends who are at universities that have all these sustainable options and to-go containers, so I figured it was time for our school to initiate a program,” Williams said.

Last year CCAD diners threw out roughly 250 to-go containers a day. This year the Styrofoam to-go containers and wax-lined paper cups are gone and the dining area is trayless and using china plates. The Market has also adopted biodegradable to-go products made out of plant materials instead of synthetics.

CCAD’s dining services recycle cardboard, aluminum, glass, and even grease. The dining service also uses biodegradable trash bags. This means that the trash bags will open and breakdown in a landfill, allowing the contents inside to break down sooner.

“It is great that we had an idea and and presented our feedback and research to Dwayne Todd and he ran with it and helped our idea become a reality,” Williams said.

But the process wasn’t all smooth sailing when they had to reach a decision about funding the project, in particular the to-go containers. A higher level of sustainability comes at a higher cost for the college. So how did they compromise?

The student government worked out a plan for the students. Instead of charging every student a higher fee for their meal plans, they decided to charge 25 cents per to-go container. The extra cost of the new containers is a total of 50 cents per container, so the college is covering half of the cost. In addition, each diner, upon purchase of a meal plan, is offered five free to-go containers.

“The Market was designed to be a social environment and this charge encourages the students to interact in the dining hall, but does not punish those who may need to take their meals with them,” Todd said.

“As a freshman, I remember our trash cans in our dorm would overflow with the old to-go-containers because everyone would just go back to their room to eat their food. With the new facilitates and initiative it will hopefully help foster interactions within our student body and college community,” Williams said.

“I am really excited to watch this initiative progress; we will continue to gather feedback from the program and make adjustments where need be. As a long-term goal, I hope to work towards gaining appropriate recycle bins in the dorms and work study areas,” Williams said.

The green initiative for the Market hopes to be completely rolled out by the end of September. The final piece is the composting dumpster. Then, student-created marketing materials will go up around campus to help explain the new sustainable changes.

So keep your eyes peeled and those sustainable minds conscious!

CCAD Student Government President David Merz III was honored at the annual Leadership Recognition Banquet.

In a reception hosted by CCAD’s Student Affairs office, 10 awards were presented to students, a staff member, and a student organization during the college’s second-annual Leadership Recognition Banquet.

More than 100 members of the CCAD community attended the reception Friday, May 6, at the Columbus Renaissance Hotel to honor members and advisers of sponsored student groups and leaders of registered student organizations.

“This year we are introducing a new award specifically for a member of our student government called the Service to Students Award,” said Vice President of Student Affairs and Dean of Students Dwayne Todd. “As organizers of the Student Government awards, there is little opportunity to recognize the hard work and dedication the president of student government has shown to the CCAD community, and this of all years is the time to begin this honor.”

Student Government president David Merz III received the award.

“We have seen more growth and development in the past year than in all the years we have had student government at CCAD combined,” said Director of Student Activities & Orientation Jason Bowser. “We have not seen as great a positive change in the organization and its presence on campus since the group was started and that is due in no small part to the leadership and vision of David.”

The entire list of 2011 honorees is as follows:

• Service to Students: David E Merz III (CCAD 2011)
• Megan Clare Mathie Student Leader of the Year Award: Kenneth Aschliman (CCAD 2011)
• Commitment to Diversity: Amanda Knittle (CCAD 2011)
• Commitment to Service: Danielle Williams (CCAD 2014)
• Commitment to Involvement: Lacie Daley (CCAD 2013)
• Commitment to Involvement: Walker Crane (CCAD 2013)
• Student Organization: Student Programming Board
• Student Event: Quidditch Cup
• Most Involved Faculty/Staff (outside the classroom): Erica Ott, assistant director of student activities & orientation
• Design Square Resident Advisor: Amanda Knittle (CCAD 2011)
• Schottenstein Resident Advisor: Blake Roberts (CCAD 2013)

“The Megan Clare Mathie Outstanding Student Leader Award goes to a student who has also made a considerable impact on campus through leadership in student organizations and involvement,” said Bowser.” This award’s namesake made an incredible impression on campus through her involvement during her four years. This year’s winner is Kenneth Aschliman for his work with Student Government and the Spotlight Student Exhibitions Group.”

The Commitment to Service Award is presented to a student who demonstrates an exceptional commitment to community service by volunteering time, energy, or resources towards the aim of helping improve the lives of others within and beyond the CCAD community.  The award also recognizes those who make extraordinary efforts to promote an environment of civic responsibility among other CCAD students.

The Commitment to Diversity Award is presented annually to a student who demonstrates an exceptional commitment towards creating a campus environment that is welcoming and inclusive to students from varied cultural backgrounds and personal identities.  The award is given to recognize a student who shows a deep commitment to the values of equity and inclusion, while also helping raise awareness and understanding of multicultural issues within the CCAD community.

The Commitment to Involvement Award is presented annually to a student who demonstrates an exceptional commitment to enhancing campus life and creating opportunities for other students to develop memorable experiences and connections at CCAD.  This award recognizes a student who has helped to advance the goals of the CCAD Student Affairs Division through active involvement in multiple student organizations and campus leadership roles.

“This banquet is our way of saying thank you for contributing so much to the CCAD community and for being such an integral part of making the CCAD experience better for everyone,” said Bowser.

The winning T-shirt design by Danielle Williams

Danielle Williams, a freshman majoring in Advertising & Graphic Design, recently received recognition for her winning submission to Faith Mission’s “A T-Shirt to Change the World” design contest.

In the presence of hundreds on Nov. 21, Faith Mission, which serves the homeless community, announced Williams as the winner at its annual “Come Together in Unity” celebration.

As a student, Williams not only excels in the classroom but also works hard to give back to the community. From the small town of North Star, this Ohio-native loves volunteering and saw the contest as a perfect opportunity to use her artistic skills to help the shelter.

In conjunction with Firm 27 and FthreeO talent agency, Faith Mission kicked off its design contest in September to get the community more involved in helping the shelter. The challenge was to design a socially-conscious logo that focuses on any of Faith Mission’s four “h” goals: eliminating hunger, ending homelessness, providing healing, or inspiring hope. The winning design is featured on T-shirts that are to be sold to raise support for the homeless shelter.

The celebration coordinator, Julian Simmons, said the winning design by Williams “is beautiful and really embodies our mission.” Faith Mission revealed the winning design by having all of the event volunteers wear the design at its largest community program to commemorate all the donors and volunteers who support the shelter and help fulfill its mission of creating a better world by serving people in need.

“Winning the contest was completely unexpected,” Williams said. “Who would have thought that I could help Faith Mission by doing something I’m passionate about—art.”

Located in downtown Columbus near CCAD’s campus, Faith Mission is known by many as not only a place for a hot meal and a warm bed, but a haven of hope as well. Since 1966, Faith Mission has served the homeless community by offering a secure, Christian-based environment for homeless men and women on an emergency walk-in basis. The agency provides shelter, food and clothing, while helping individuals with access to longer term solutions such as housing, employment assistance, medical, dental and vision care, counseling and support groups.