This story is featured in the Fall 2019 edition of the HPU Magazine. Discover below how HPU students have extraordinary hands-on experience through the School of Art and Design.
School of Art and Design students use their education to set new standards.
With eyes focused on the task in front of her, Kate McManus transforms an ordinary newspaper into an extraordinary creation. This piece of paper joins others just like it to convert a regular mannequin into an artistic installment.
Why? Because hands-on projects such as these make all the difference to a young designer’s education.
For students like McManus, Sophie Lannon, Chris Coscia and Bayleigh Thomas, their visual merchandising project allowed them to experiment with a medium not typically used in the fashion industry.
“Unique opportunities like this to construct new things out of ordinary objects is so normal to us, but many other universities don’t have these opportunities,” says McManus, a junior marketing major with a minor in fashion merchandising.
But this is nothing new at High Point University. Students in the School of Art and Design begin these projects early in their college careers and experience immense growth at HPU.
Life SKills = Lifelong learning
“I’m only a sophomore, but I can already show future employers I’ve accomplished things like this in a short period of time,” says Coscia, a fashion marketing major.
Hands-on projects are one of many ways School of Art and Design students learn the value of life skills.
“We encourage our students to be part of professional organizations,” says Dr. Jane Nichols, chair of the Department of Home Furnishings and Interior Design at HPU. “Networking,
shaking a hand, thanking people, introducing yourself or collaborating — life skills to us equals lifelong learning.
Things constantly change, and having a growth mindset allows our students to learn the skill of adaptation.”
HPU students are surrounded by experiential learning opportunities inside and outside of campus to make connections and find mentors. It’s all part of the process at HPU.
“From service learning courses that challenge students to document the significance of the home furnishings industry in the city of High Point, to bringing real-life clients like West End Ministries into the classroom, we introduce students to experiences that show how they can be a change-agent in whatever path they choose after graduation,” says Dr. John Turpin, dean of the School of Art and Design. “At our core, the School of Art and Design believes that artists and designers can facilitate social and cultural change at local and global levels.”
Graduates Guiding their Dreams
Molly Livingston lives for volleyball.
She’ll pull her red hair back into a long ponytail or weave it into two braids and lose herself in a game she’s grown to love.
She stands 6-feet-2, played middle hitter for HPU and was good. She started volleyball in seventh grade in her hometown of Sun Prairie, Wisconsin, and since then, she’s earned her share of recognition.
She graduated in May with a degree in graphic design and a minor in marketing, and afterward she headed overseas. She signed with an agent, and she’s playing professional
volleyball in Europe.
If that isn’t enough, she’s also running her own apparel company, Coast Easy, and her own graphic design brand, Miss Molly Graphics.
“It’s three different dreams working together,” says Livingston, referring to volleyball, graphic design and Coast Easy. “I can take all of these with me.”
It’s not uncommon for graduates like Livingston to begin their careers before they even leave campus. At HPU, Livingston learned how to run her own company, and she started
her own design brand. Now, she knows she can take an idea and make it happen.
Livingston discovered the potential for her graphic design career at HPU, and she knew that the faculty and staff would always be there to help her.
“It’s a great feeling to have someone behind you at a great university to help support your dreams,” she says. “That’s pretty special, and High Point University has the ability to make
people feel special.”
With the knowledge, connections and values in hand, Livingston and other HPU students enter the world equipped to make their dreams a reality.