Industrial Design – Institute for Educational Advancement

��Ƶ Summer Spotlight 2014

��Ƶ Staff — Wed, 23 Jul 2014 05:15:14 +0000

By Jennifer de la Haye

“I am happy to be in a room of too’s,” said Betsy Jones, ��Ƶ President, as we concluded ��Ƶ’s Summer Spotlight this year. “We are all too’s – too emotional, too smart, too intense….”

Tuesday, June 8, was a bright evening of community, learning, and friendship as ��Ƶ and its community gathered at the University of Southern California for dinner and a time of sharing. Eight ��Ƶ Apprentices, who studied Industrial Design under Stan Kong at Art Center College of Design, displayed their impressive concept design sketches – pieces of art that would later become final projects. Posters, books, and sculptures created by Academy students, Caroline D. Bradley Scholars, and Yunasa campers were also scattered about USC’s Vineyard Room, along with plenty of photos of Academy kids at The Huntington Library, Art Collection, and Botanical Gardens; Yunasa West campers frolicking in Colorado; and CDB Scholars who convened for the Bradley Seminar in April.

After dinner, ��Ƶ’s Program Coordinators introduced speakers from each of ��Ƶ’s programs. Min-Ling Li, the valiant leader of 29 Apprentices, began by announcing both Alex T., who is studying shock waves with Dr. Eliasson at USC, and Robert, an Industrial Design Apprentice.

Alex’s speech was an expounded acrostic he created from the letters of ��Ƶ: I –“I am Alex,” he began. This is Alex’s second year as an ��Ƶ Apprentice, and he thanked the Caroline D. Bradley Scholarship program for introducing him to an opportunity that would change his life. “Once you are a part of ��Ƶ, you support it, and it supports you,” he said. E – “Eager. That is what the students here are,” Alex continued. Finally, A – “Apprentice…we are all Apprentices, because every day we learn something new. One thing I learned while I was here is of all the gifted children being overlooked by teachers. ��Ƶ works to find them and help them come to terms with their giftedness…Institute for Educational Advancement: intelligent, eager, able,” he concluded.

Robert, who came to the Los Angeles-based Apprenticeship Program all the way from Miami, is a first-year Apprentice who described his experience as a time of extremely hard work and the unbelievable opportunity to “study at a school he hopes to get into in a field he hopes to make a career out of.”

One of ��Ƶ’s earliest Caroline D. Bradley Scholars, Ryan, spoke next: “It’s much more than a monetary gift – it’s a community,” he said of CDB. According to Ryan, CDB helped him develop the confidence to be whatever it is he wanted to be. When it was time to apply for college, the CDB coordinator helped him apply. Ryan opted for Harvard, where he began by pursuing an education in engineering, ended up in neuroscience, found himself in musical theater, and finished his degree in creative arts. Now Ryan produces movies – Lego movies, of late.

, stood upon a chair to reach the microphone and talked about how, in the past year at ��Ƶ, he has taken a Shakespeare class from a professional actor, advanced his math skills with a teacher who made it fun, made his first short film, painted himself blue using ice and an infrared camera in his first Physics class, and was introduced to the Spanish language for the first time. “If that wasn’t enough,” he said, “��Ƶ has given me this opportunity in public speaking!”

Finally, 10-year-old Alexander A., who also stood on a chair to speak, described Yunasa as a place where he is able to be himself, a place where he feels loved and accepted by all the people around him. At Yunasa and Yunasa West, Alexander has learned practical ways to help him calm down when he feels tense and emotional. He talked about Senior Fellows Patricia Gatto Walden, Ph.D., and Michael Piechowski, Ph.D., who have given him hugs and engaged him in conversations about deep and interesting things. Alexander’s favorite Yunasa activity is the low ropes course because, he said, “you get to work as a team to get through obstacles.”

When the young brilliant pundits of ��Ƶ finished their enlightening speeches, Betsy Jones told a story of a girl she met at Yunasa West this year. This young lady explained to Betsy that when she feels sad, she spends time with her “Too People.” She has always been told that she is “too intense, too distracted, too talkative, too quiet, too much,” so her stuffed animals became a family of “too’s” who provide a safe place where she can exist without feeling chastised. ��Ƶ has been around for 16 years, and it is still one of the only organizations in the world where, as Betsy said, these young brilliant individuals “can grow and learn and be and do whatever it is they want to do.”

Summer Spotlight was an evening of illumination – a light shone upon a community of “too’s” and the programs that help them to grow, succeed, learn, and feel safe to be themselves.

Take a look at more photos from Summer Spotlight 2014!

Are you interested in learning more about ��Ƶ programs and our impact? Sign up for our email newsletter, which provides regular updates on the work we do as well as resources on giftedness.

The Many Faces of Gifted: Monica

��Ƶ Staff — Wed, 18 Dec 2013 01:54:54 +0000

By Carole Rosner

Every gifted person has a unique story. The following story is part of a series of posts depicting the many faces of gifted by highlighting gifted children and adults we have found through ��Ƶ programs. ��Ƶ’s – mentioned in this story – links gifted high school students from across the country with mentors who advance each participant’s skills through the application of knowledge and exposure to real world experiences.

Monica Lienke
2001 Apprentice, Industrial Design at Art Center College of Design (Art Center)
Law Student, Stanford University

Twelve years ago, Monica Lienke was one of the first ��Ƶ Apprentices at Art Center. She worked closely with Stan Kong, a leading design educator in Los Angeles. She described her two-week experience as “long hours and a lot of work, but extremely gratifying. I remember feeling that I had learned a ton by the end of it. But probably the best part of the program was getting to know the other participants in the program, who were all incredibly talented and unique individuals.”

Monica focused on product design at Art Center and designed a concept for an ergonomic gardening tool. She said she chose a design-oriented program because she liked that there were creative and visual art components to it. Her days were spent in and out of the classroom with lectures, discussions, model-making, sketching classes and field trips.

After high school, Monica went on to earn a B.A. in political science from UC Berkeley and is now at Stanford for law school. “After graduating, I worked for a year at the Berkeley Roundtable on the International Economy, a political economy research institute on campus. I then spent almost three years in the legal department at Google. Going into my job at Google, I actually hadn’t intended to go to law school, but I found myself really enjoying my role there, which involved learning about technologies, helping to realize innovative ideas, and working with amazingly smart and passionate people.”

“I’m still in law school and working on the side for a small early stage start-up that was co-founded by an engineer and a law school graduate who met each other at Stanford’s Hasso Plattner Institute for Design. The product is a website for people with a creative project (like a product design, start up, or artistic work) to discuss their projects with a broader group of people, get feedback and guidance, and develop supportive communities around their projects to help them succeed. The A.I. component of the site is a recommendation engine that scans a person’s social networks to suggest people they know who could contribute to whatever issue they are discussing on the site. My role in the start-up is multi-faceted, but I mostly focus on user engagement and business development. I’ve loved getting to work with a great team on a product whose underlying goal is to encourage more people to undertake and participate in creative endeavors.”

Monica still takes some design-oriented classes and hopes to work with a start-up company or for clients that create and innovate.

When I asked Monica what she’d say to others who are considering ��Ƶ’s Apprenticeship Program, she replied, “It’s an amazing opportunity to explore an area you might be interested in and meet people who will inspire you!”

Does the Apprenticeship Program sound like a good fit for a high school student you know? 2014 Apprenticeship information and applications are now!

Mentorship and Gifted Youth

��Ƶ Staff — Wed, 09 Jan 2013 07:16:35 +0000

By Kate Williams

Kate was ��Ƶ’s Apprenticeship Program Coordinator. Prior to moving to the Los Angeles area, Kate worked as an educator for over five years in Washington, D.C.

What is mentoring?

The role of the Mentor is recognized in many parts of society as well as many cultures throughout time. One of the earliest known mentorships was from Homer’s epic poem The Odyssey. The Mentor in The Odyssey is described as a wise friend that helps to guide Telemachus in discovering his inheritance. According to Dr. Susan Miller and Dr. Anne Frederickson of The American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry,

Mentor did not guide Telemachus to discover the riches of plundered Troy, rather he guided the young man’s yearning for his father and heritage. Perhaps the same can be applied to mentorship, which guides us to understand the inheritance within us and our full potential in our chosen profession.

Mentors today are still guiding our youth, young professionals and protégés in the same manner. Without Mentors to guide us along the path of possibility, we wouldn’t know our true potential.

What does mentoring look like today?

Industrial Design Mentor Stan Kong teaches Apprentices about design each summer.

True mentoring today is not just an activity; it develops a lasting relationship between the Mentor and Apprentice that can be a highly meaningful experience.

Effective Mentors are trusted counselors that support their Apprentices’ ideas while giving constructive feedback so the protégés may grow. Mentors often include community volunteers, researchers, educators, university students and career professionals. Creating a worthwhile experience for everyone involved is often an intentional process and requires research and interest surveys. Structured instrumental mentorships often involve a third party to pair Apprentices with Mentors for a designated time period. This is how our Apprenticeship Program works. The majority of mentorships in education use this method because younger students often do not have the opportunity to create a spontaneous relationship with working professionals in their community (Clasen1987).

College Counselor Kate Duey works with Apprentices on the college application process.

There are two types of mentoring in today’s society that support this idea: Informal Mentoring and Structured Mentoring. Informal Mentoring is a casual relationship, typically between a more experienced senior and a less experienced junior that provides long-term council. Structured Mentoring is designed to create an entire culture that reflects the proactive development within the company or organization. Structured Mentors are matched with their protégés to offer council as they pursue specific goals or topics. Here at ��Ƶ, we incorporate both types of mentoring in our high school Apprenticeship Program by offering our youth experiential learning opportunities and guidance on career choices.

The length of time in which a structured mentorship takes place depends on the goals of the mentorship and the age of the Apprentice. Elementary students often seek relationships by semester, while high school students need long-term support with strong academic focus. Regardless of the duration, the most important factor in establishing a mentorship is the commitment among all parties involved.

Why do gifted youth need mentoring? And how can you help?

Gifted students crave depth and challenge in their area of interest, which they often do not receive in the traditional classroom. They don’t want to just memorize facts; they want to see the subject come to life. Mentoring allows gifted students the opportunity to see practical applications in their field of interest and gives them the depth and challenge they need.

In addition to creating academic challenge not present in the traditional classroom, Mentors can provide gifted students with career guidance. Developing a connection with a Mentor can give gifted students the self-confidence they need to pursue the career of their dreams, and exposure to new ideas while creating real-world connections also supports occupational direction.

The Mentor-Apprentice relationship is extremely beneficial to both participants, and if prepared carefully, can make a lasting difference in their lives. Mentorship inspires students to reach new academic heights while building a community centered in emerging talent. At ��Ƶ, we have the opportunity to guide Apprentices and acknowledge and support the true capabilities of our gifted youth. By becoming a Mentor, you can, too.

We are currently accepting applications as well as securing Mentors for our 2014 Apprenticeship Program. If you are interested in learning more, please visit the Apprenticeship page of our website or contact us at Apprenticeship@educationaladvancement.org.

How has mentorship affected your educational or career path? Please share with us in the comment section below!

References
Clasen, D., and M. Hanson. Double Mentoring: A Process for Facilitating Mentorships for Gifted Students. Vol. 10. N.p.: n.p., n.d. Print. Roeper Review.
Colangelo, Nicholas, and Gary A. Davis. “Mentoring: A Time-Honored Option for Education of the Gifted and Talented.” Handbook of Gifted Education. Boston: Allyn and Bacon, 1991. N. pag. Print.
“Experience Pays: Mentoring.” Http://www.experiencepays.qld.gov. Queensland Government, n.d. Web. 21 Dec. 2012. .
“Guidance for Mentors.” Http://www.mrc-cbu.cam.ac.uk. Medical Research Counsel, n.d. Web. 21 Dec. 2012. .
Miller, Susan M., M.D., and Anne Frederickson, M.D. “Mentorship Matters: Mentor and Telemachus.” Mentorship Matters: Mentor and Telemachus | American Academy of Child & Adolescent Psychiatry. http://www.aacap.org/cs/root/developmentor/mentorship_matters_mentor_and_telemachus, n.d. Web. 21 Dec. 2012. .
VanTassel-Baska, Joyce. Serving Gifted Learners beyond the Traditional Classroom: A Guide to Alternative Programs and Services. Waco, TX: Prufrock, 2007. Print.
Wickman, Floyd, and Terri Sjodin. Mentoring. N.p.: McGraw Hill, 1997. Print.

The Many Faces of Gifted: Thomas

��Ƶ Staff — Wed, 31 Oct 2012 04:02:45 +0000

By Carole Rosner

Thomas Zenteno
2008 Industrial Design Apprentice at Art Center College of Design
Current Student at Art Center College of Design

Thomas Zenteno grew up in Miami, Florida, and came to Pasadena, California, in the summer of 2008 to participate in the ��Ƶ Apprenticeship Program at Art Center College of Design. I talked to him about his experience.

“I started the ��Ƶ program when I was 17, in the summer between my junior and senior year of high school. I was lucky enough to attend a visual arts magnet high school called Design and Architecture Senior High (DASH), where I was able to study Industrial Design as a focus. My teacher, Ms. Kwiatkowksi, selected myself and three other students from her program to participate in the ��Ƶ program that helped shape all of us as friends and designers.”

Even in Florida, Thomas was familiar with the reputation of the Pasadena-based college. “I had met students who had gone to the ��Ƶ program in previous years, and all of them came back with exceptional work and much more knowledge both in design and in life experiences. I also knew of the prestigious name Art Center had in the design world and a lot of my favorite product, transportation and entertainment designers graduated from Art Center. I remember Art Center sending a promotional book about the different majors of the school to DASH, and I would spend hours reading through the descriptions of students and looking at the quality of work in those pages, which was key in inspiring me to go to Art Center above any other design or art school.”

When I asked Thomas what he did as an Apprentice, he said, “Stan Kong, my Mentor for the program, had a small class of nine students, and together we were able to work on both personal and class projects. We learned a lot about design thinking and how we could use product design to help improve lives around the world. The class was treated as a studio atmosphere where we would learn from Stan or our T.A.’s K.C. Cho and Wayne Johnson. Afterwards, we would be given an assignment to practice in class as well as homework to bring in the following day. We would pin the work up on the walls and critique projects one by one. Our projects ranged from alarm clocks to devices that safely relocated bats form one area of a city to another. For final presentations, we were required to make a physical model of our design. We learned a lot about time management, discipline and work ethics that I’ve carried with me at Art Center as a student and into my professional practice working as a freelance concept artist.”

Although Thomas studied industrial design in high school, the Apprenticeship Program provided a positive challenge for him. “I believe one of the biggest challenges was to produce the amount of work we were required as well as back up our designs with good research and thinking. Although it was stressful, and many nights I would stay up late working, it was well worth the amount of learning I gained in just three short weeks. The mileage and knowledge I gained gave me a great foundation to start my portfolio to get into Art Center and truly opened up a lot of doors for me.”

Thomas said there was a big change in himself going from that summer experience back to high school. “It was my first time really being away from home, and you could definitely see a change in my drive and direction to focus even more during my senior year at DASH. Many of my friends and classmates got “senioritis,” where they slacked off for their last year of high school, while the four of us who went to the ��Ƶ program continued to push ourselves to be the best in our class. As a result, we received some of the highest scholarships in our class. Two of us went to Art Center College of Design, while the remaining two went to College for Creative Studies (CCS). I credit a lot of my work ethic to the ��Ƶ program.”

Thomas is currently majoring in Entertainment Design at Art Center. “I chose Entertainment Design because it blends a few of my favorite sensibilities in design and art. At DASH, my foundation was in product and transportation design, but I had a great love for figure drawing and painting as well. Entertainment Design allows me to blend all of those sensibilities– characters, environments, vehicles and props for films, video games, animation and theme parks. I try to be as well-rounded as I can, so Entertainment Design seemed to be very fitting since it has a very broad range of applications. Looking back, though, at the root of it all is the fact that Entertainment Design is all about storytelling, and I think that’s what attracted me to it.”

What are Thomas’ future plans? “I’m still really young, so there a lot of different ways my life could go. I’ve been freelancing as a Concept Designer since 2010, and I really enjoy working on multiple projects from film to animation. I’ve had a handful of notable clients from Bad Robot to an aerospace corporation, and interning at Warner Bros. was an enlightening experience. I would love to work on films and games for much of my life, but in the end, I would really like to give back by teaching and helping the world out in some small way.”

Thomas is still in touch with some of the other kids who were part of his program. “A few of my fellow Apprentices are peers of mine at Art Center as well as others who have gone to other schools. I meet up with them in my hometown of Miami, Florida, occasionally. A lot of the Apprentices are currently in colleges spread out around the country, but quite a few are in Pasadena at Caltech or Art Center. The ones I’ve kept closest contact with are definitely lifelong friends, and we’ll find ourselves at dinner parties or just having a good time out hiking.”

Thomas really benefitted from his time as an Apprentice. “It’s easily a pivotal moment in my life, and I think it really can open up a high school student’s perspective. It’s extremely fun to engage in all the different activities that ��Ƶ provides, as well as the more work-focused part of it. I think you always get what you put into it, and in the case of ��Ƶ, it’s given me a sort of second family that was crucial to me moving out here from Florida when I was 18. ��Ƶ truly inspired me to be a better person, and I met a lot of friends I never would have had otherwise; all in all I’m pretty happy because of it.”

Industrial Design – Institute for Educational Advancement

������Ƶ Summer Spotlight 2014

The Many Faces of Gifted: Monica

Mentorship and Gifted Youth

The Many Faces of Gifted: Thomas

��Ƶ Summer Spotlight 2014