Community of Artists to close out year with puppy party
Community of Artists members pose with CVPA Dean Margaret Devaney and Director of Advising Donna Oliver during a holiday social event.
On Friday April 27, 2018 at noon on the Trinkle Hall porch, passers-by are likely to notice the conspicuous presence of a group of playful canines frolicking with students outside of the residence hall. They will be there as part of a wrap-up party for the Community of Artists, a living-learning community that resides in Trinkle Hall. Students will be celebrating the conclusion of the second year of this academic program.
The Community of Artists is comprised of first-year students residing in Trinkle Hall who are majoring in art, dance, design, music or theatre. Students participating in the program take UNIV 100, “Introduction to Higher Education,” together during their first fall semester. The community was designed to support the needs of new art students beginning their studies at Radford University. The group is active throughout the year, engaging in activities that allow students to socialize and build a support network with other student artists. This past year members were able to attend workshops on Halloween and theatrical makeup, t-shirt screen printing, training on how to use laser cutters, yoga, dance parties, and more.
Students participating in the program find it to be a rewarding endeavor. “This experience has helped me in both my major and non-major studies. As cliché as it may sound, you really do form a family with the people in your community. Everyone supports each other by attending other people’s performances or art showings. My favorite aspect of being in the Community of Artists is the fact that you are creating friendships that will build as your journey in college progresses,” said freshman Regan Mihailoff, who participated in the community this academic year.
Dana Trask, Assistant Director of Advising for the College of Visual and Performing Arts, is the coordinator for the program. She says the overall goal for the Community of Artists is to connect beginning students with other majors within the college in order to develop a more integrated cross-disciplinary network. “I feel like it is going really well,” said Trask. “We’ve been asked to grow. There is a wait list for the next two years. We’ve had about 50 students participating each year, but we hope to be able to expand the community by an additional ten to 25 members for next year.”