(ARA) - Learning doesn’t just
happen inside a classroom. For The Art Institutes, learning
is also creating opportunities for students and faculty
to take their talents and skills outside the classroom,
into the community, to help others.
This year, The Art Institutes will hold its second national
“webraising” event, with schools throughout
North America participating. Based on the Amish concept
of a barnraising where neighbors gather together and
build a barn in one day, webraisings build websites
for nonprofit organizations in one 24-hour period.
Webraising is just one of dozens of volunteer efforts
that some 5,000 students from The Art Institutes take
part in each year, contributing more than a quarter
million hours toward improving the communities in
which they live and attend school.
For a webraising event, students and faculty of the
Multimedia and Web Design departments of The Art Institutes
work closely with nonprofit organizations several
weeks in advance, conducting research, learning about
the organization and the population it serves, and
the purpose of its Website. They then work for a period
of 8 to 10 hours to meet the launch deadline date.
"Webraisings are a unique opportunity for Multimedia
and Web Design students to put their skills to work
creating a critical marketing and communication tool
for these non-profit organizations that they otherwise
might not have the resources to create for themselves,”
says Dr. Ameeta Jadav. She is coordinating the current
effort underway.
In fact, many students who have participated in webraising
events have continued to be involved with the organization
as volunteers and Web site managers.
For Art Institute of Atlanta student Robert Horton,
the experience of helping to raise a Web site for
a local arts organization was overwhelmingly positive.
“I liked the whole experience working with my
team members and the organization representative,”
says Horton. “My participation means a lot to
me; it says that I'm a part of something that's productive."
“While the goals of the event are to develop
a strong partnership among students, schools and their
communities, and provide our students with professional
hands-on experience, perhaps most importantly, we
hope to instill in them a life-long commitment to
volunteerism,” adds Dr. Jaday.
For more information on careers in Multimedia and
Web Design and The Art Institutes, visit www.artinstitutes.edu/nz.
