Delaware Tech students work with Milton nonprofits
Delaware Technical Community College visual communications students in the Class of 2022 closed out their program-specific studies with applied practice courses that gave them valuable experience and benefitted two local nonprofits, Milton Arts Guild and the Milton Community Food Pantry.
“The applied practice course is a fantastic experience for our students,” said Patti Bishop, visual communications department chair. “It gives them real-world freelance experience with an instructor's guidance. They learn how to interview and present to the client in a professional way while still having to meet deadlines, work in a team and solve the problem for the client."
Bishop worked with students assigned to Milton Arts Guild as they created a new look and feel for the organization’s printed materials to visually communicate the guild’s evolving identity. Items created were a two-sided rack card, show program, trifold brochure, poster, yard sign, educational flyer and posts for Facebook.
“We couldn’t be more impressed with the Del Tech students under the leadership of Patti Bishop,” said Sue Dutton, arts guild board of directors president. “They were able to capture our essence very quickly in their designs by not only listening to us, but really hearing us. They showed great patience, good humor, professional-level poise and stunning results.”
Instructor Leif Osmundson was the faculty lead for students working with the Milton Community Food Pantry. That group provided photography and videography, graphic design, web design and development, and video editing to create video commercials and presentations as well as images for use on the website, within social media and on printed publications.
In addition, the students developed social media posts and templates as well as new brochure designs, and designed and constructed a WordPress website that can be self-managed by individuals at the food pantry.
“We really enjoyed working with the applied practice students. They tuned in to the pantry’s needs, and their creativity and enthusiasm for our project was inspiring,” said Donna Murawski, food pantry board of directors president. “As a nonprofit organization, the Milton Community Food Pantry relies solely on volunteers, and the students were able to provide us with an updated website, Facebook presence, video and brochure, all of which are invaluable tools to get our word out. This project was a great experience, and we would recommend the program to anyone.”
“This course is an extremely beneficial experience for both the students and local businesses,” said Osmundson. “The businesses receive photography, videography and design work that’s been guided by faculty, while the students experience meeting with clients and generating project briefs, developing branding guides, running through milestones and iterations, and then publishing their campaigns in the formats that best serve the clients and their potential patrons. Having work that was used in the real world also enhances the strength of the students’ portfolios.”
Companies and organizations seeking more information about the application process to work with Delaware Tech’s visual communications department may contact Patti Bishop at patti.bishop@dtcc.edu.
