December 2001 — Features
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Evolution of a Digital Production Studio
In the first year of funding, one of the authors received a quarter-time release from teaching responsibilities to manage and develop the studio. Part of this responsibility included locating skilled undergraduate students to staff the studio. Competent workers were found by contacting professors in several departments at IUP, including the College of Education's communications media department, the College of Fine Arts' art department, the College of Natural Science and Mathematics' computer science department, and within TST itself. In addition, some studio staff members were found by contacting students taking TST classes.Knowledge and skills required to staff the studio included computer troubleshooting skills; video production and editing; LAN installation and management; Web site design and management; computer graphics design; desktop publishing; 3-D graphics rendering; and multimedia authoring. The staff works an average of 10 to 20 hours per week with schedules staggered to keep the studio operational five days per week during the regular semester. Staff members made significant contributions to the success of the studio by researching hardware components and software for each workstation; collaborating on studio projects; and providing demonstrations to faculty and others. Current projects include an informational video series about the studio, careers in technology and the logo development for ECOB&IT.
With the studio still in its infancy, projected uses for the studio include providing faculty with an opportunity to use multimedia in course enhancement, and providing TST majors with a means to learn about multimedia careers in areas outside the normal scope of their program of study. In addition, the studio will expose public school faculty and students to new technologies with a long-range view toward possible careers in technology. It will also provide small-business professionals with exposure to multimedia applications for the development and enhancement of high-quality, commercial Web sites. Finally, it is anticipated that the studio's staff will provide training courses to faculty, K-12 educators and small-business professionals on specific applications utilized in the studio to use in their professional endeavors.
The Next Step
Applying multimedia and the Internet to a wide variety of business and educational environments creates a challenge to institutions of higher education to ensure that faculty and students have the knowledge and skills to use the technology. Implementing a digital production studio requires a great deal of planning, research, teamwork and time. One of the most important considerations in deciding to take on a project like the studio is the administration's commitment to the importance of technology in education. Successfully developing an advanced digital production studio requires support from administration, including deans, provosts and college presidents. IUP's administration demonstrates a continuing commitment to technological advancements and innovation. Evidence of this commitment can be found in both the dedication of matching funds for the Link-to-Learn grant, as well as public statements of a commitment to excellence in technology training and education for IUP's students.
