A Ball State University service-learning project, called Drawn to Reading, has earned an Innovation in Higher Education award from the Electronic Document Systems Foundation. The EDSF helps the industry and the public benefit from paper documents which are continually being transformed through the emergence of technology.
Drawn to Reading combines the efforts of university and elementary art students with the graphic communication industry to promote literacy through the creation of bookmarks.
"I saw a need for my students to produce printed materials and have the materials be something useful," Hans Kellogg, assistant professor of industry and technology and project coordinator, said. "This project is a great opportunity for my students to take advantage of service learning with the elementary students as their clients. It gives my students a chance to also gain experience in a current workflow of industry."
Fourth grade students at Sutton Elementary School on the south side of Muncie create artwork as part of their curriculum, and then Ball State students digitize the artwork and create electronic files.
Press manufacturer MAN Roland donates the printing work at its center in Westmont, Ill. The bookmarks are then distributed to local libraries by the Indiana State Library and are made available to the public.
"What I do is look at under-resourced schools which do not have as many resources as other schools might have," Kellogg said. "I contacted the art teacher at Sutton Elementary School and she was elated to have her students work on this project. She attempts to teach her students that art can be used by the masses, and this was a project to help solidify that concept."
Kellogg said each spring his commercial printing courses take part in this project. Joe Vinson, a senior majoring in graphic arts management, said students choose their own four-person groups at the beginning of the year.
Three people act as employees and one person acts as a manager. Each group works on a separate project throughout the year but all groups work on the Drawn to Reading project together.
The elementary students create the artwork for the project on their own, but over the course of the project, the groups visit the elementary school three times to work with the students on other art projects.
"Part of my job as a manager is to do quality checks to make sure the bookmarks are OK to send to press," Vinson said. "The most rewarding aspect was working with the kids and seeing their expressions. They didn't realize what we were doing for them. It was a great feeling to see the excited looks on their faces."
Kellogg was nominated for the award by Carol Hurlburt, director of education for National Printing Equipment and Supply.
The recipient of this annual award must be a degree granting institution whose program dedicates time to the advancement of document communication and graphic media through education.
Kellogg said EDSF's support has encouraged him to investigate expanding this program. He would like to produce a packet of materials and information to send to other universities, which can influence it in their own communities.
"Everyone benefits when children are 'Drawn to Reading!'" Kellogg said.
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