Engaging At-Risk Youth in the Collection and Visual Manifestation of Oral Histories
Mentor 1
Raoul Deal
Location
Union Wisconsin Room
Start Date
29-4-2016 1:30 PM
End Date
29-4-2016 3:30 PM
Description
This project is designed to address the professional challenges at-risk youth face. This is done by giving them an internship opportunity to gain valuable job experience while creating a large-scale mural. Students from across the city apply and are interviewed for one of ten available spots. The selected students then attend a training workshop where they identify which 21st century job skills they excel at and which are more difficult for them. From there, interns are involved in the process of planning and executing a mural. Undergraduate Research Assistants and professional staff members collect oral histories from founding members of the United Migrant Opportunity Center (UMOS) with interns listening in and taking attentive notes on each testimony. With their notes, interns participate in roundtable discussions to decide how to transform the information from the oral histories into visual elements to use on a mural. Once this preparatory work has been completed, interns collaborate to create a compelling composition, after which they can start putting paint to canvas. In addition to this overarching project, interns take part in journaling and sketchbook exercises, team-building activities, and reflection sessions every time they come in to their internship. Through this program, interns will gain the skills necessary to succeed in professional job environments. In addition, they will create a piece of art that they can be proud of and will be able to visit for years to come.
Engaging At-Risk Youth in the Collection and Visual Manifestation of Oral Histories
Union Wisconsin Room
This project is designed to address the professional challenges at-risk youth face. This is done by giving them an internship opportunity to gain valuable job experience while creating a large-scale mural. Students from across the city apply and are interviewed for one of ten available spots. The selected students then attend a training workshop where they identify which 21st century job skills they excel at and which are more difficult for them. From there, interns are involved in the process of planning and executing a mural. Undergraduate Research Assistants and professional staff members collect oral histories from founding members of the United Migrant Opportunity Center (UMOS) with interns listening in and taking attentive notes on each testimony. With their notes, interns participate in roundtable discussions to decide how to transform the information from the oral histories into visual elements to use on a mural. Once this preparatory work has been completed, interns collaborate to create a compelling composition, after which they can start putting paint to canvas. In addition to this overarching project, interns take part in journaling and sketchbook exercises, team-building activities, and reflection sessions every time they come in to their internship. Through this program, interns will gain the skills necessary to succeed in professional job environments. In addition, they will create a piece of art that they can be proud of and will be able to visit for years to come.
