Roland Harper holds an award plaque he received Thursday, June 12, for completing the CRE8 Labs student summer program at the Eastern Iowa College Colleges Urban Campus in downtown Davenport. CREDIT DAVE THOMPSON
Roland Harper, 18, said he learned some valuable lessons during a weeklong Eastern Iowa Community Colleges (EICC) student summer program called CRE8 Labs. Roland, a recent Davenport North High School graduate, has the goal of getting a biology degree by going to Scott Community College and St. Ambrose University. Eventually, he wants to be a […]
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Roland Harper, 18, said he learned some valuable lessons during a weeklong Eastern Iowa Community Colleges (EICC) student summer program called CRE8 Labs.Roland, a recent Davenport North High School graduate, has the goal of getting a biology degree by going to Scott Community College and St. Ambrose University. Eventually, he wants to be a chiropractor. But recently he broadened his academic horizons by attending the summer program and learning some lessons in graphic design.“I didn’t know anything about graphic design before this. … It was fun to learn,” said Roland Thursday afternoon, June 12, during a CRE8 Labs Student Showcase celebration to honor the 18 student participants who engaged in professional-led workshops focused on exploring careers, building marketable skills and creating original work. That celebration was held at the Eastern Iowa Community Colleges Urban Campus in downtown Davenport, and attracted about 40 people.
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Tanner Jordan talks about his students’ work in the sound engineering portion of the CRE8 Labs student summer program at the Eastern Iowa College Colleges Urban Campus in downtown Davenport. CREDIT DAVE THOMPSON
Cory Holloway, creator of CRE8 Labs student summer program, talks about the program on Thursday, June 13. CREDIT DAVE THOMPSON
Liang Chee Wee, interim chancellor of Eastern Iowa Community Colleges, welcomes guests to celebrate students who took part in the CRE8 Labs student summer program at the Eastern Iowa College Colleges Urban Campus in downtown Davenport. CREDIT DAVE THOMPSON
In addition to graphic design, the CRE8 Labs summer program gave students lessons in sound engineering, content creation, creative writing and fashion design. The students also got lessons in financial literacy, workforce readiness and entrepreneurship during the summer program.CRE8 started last year as a collaboration between EICC and the Davenport Community School District as a way to keep students engaged during the summer and help fuel their enthusiasm for learning. (Last year, CRE8 started as a pilot program with 10 area students.) The big goal of the summer program is to show students that they can take their passions and turn them into careers, said Cory Holloway, an educator at EICC and creator of CRE8, during Thursday's celebration.The Thursday event was also a time for students to showcase their work, and instructors to tell about their experiences during the summer program.
Graphics, fashion design
Clint Blasar, who just retired from Davenport Central High School, taught five students lessons in graphic design. He told the audience he had the students design a brand identity for themselves. Mr. Harper created his own logo that could go on coffee cups and other items. Student Jada Cole created a “Barbie”-like logo with combs, hair dryers and other personal care products for a fictional cosmetology business called “Everything Beauty.” Her goal is to eventually have a career in cosmetology.Other students talked about their work in fashion design and styling with instructor LaNette Turner.Ms. Turner said one of the goals for the week was to have the students create new uses for old clothing that could end up in the trash and landfills.“On Day 1, we learned about the impacts of fast fashion and the importance of upcycling. We took a quiz and were surprised to learn that 85% of clothes end up in landfills; polyester takes 200-plus years to decompose. We stopped by Dress for Success to pick up a piece for upcycling,” according to information Ms. Turner showed the audience Thursday.The four fashion design students took turns showing the audience the old clothing they had “upcycled” during the week. Rylee Sexton gave new life to an old pair of jeans by creating embroidered designs on them. “I bite off so much more than I can chew, but I had so much fun,” she said.Many students said they had fun during the program, but there was also work to do. For instance, Tanner Jordan of AyeTJ Music, taught three students lessons in sound engineering. He praised them for doing work that can be fun, but also difficult at times.“It’s very technical. … It can be very frustrating,” he added.
Areas of study
The students and their CRE8 Labs study areas were:
Sound engineering – Abdur Howard, Nate Jack and Terrence Johnson. (Instructor Tanner Jordan).
Content creation – Benie Toko, Dalasyia Dixon, Sam Farnsworth and Ashdon Lightner. Instructor Jasmine Babers-Gunn).
Graphic design – Jada Cole, Janelle Harrell, Roland Harper, Carl Kordick and June Reed. (Instructor Clint Balsar).
Creative writing – Jontrice Brown and Keira La Grange. (Instructor Anthony Abboreno).
Fashion design – Jada Allen, Raha Jackson, Jamiah Smith and Rylee Sexton. (Instructor LaNette Turner).
Workshops – A workforce readiness workshop was presented by Melissa Mapes, EICC human resources; financial literacy workshop presented by Heather Waffle of IHMVCU; and entrepreneurship workshop by Joel Youngs of the Small Business Development Center.
Students were able to get thoseCRE8 Labs lessons because of partners includings EICC, IHMVCU, Dress for Success Quad Cities, Mindfire Communications, WVIK radio and the Small Business Development Center. Sponsors included Gear Up Iowa and the EICC Foundation.On Thursday Liang Chee Wee, interim EOCC chancellor, praised the students for taking part in the program and doing good work.He also told them that they can overcome adversities and achieve great things in their lives. He said he grew up in a rural village in Singapore. His mother survived World War II and went to work to support her family. Because of this, she didn’t have the chance to get a formal education, but wanted to make sure her sons did. With her encouragement – and help from many people – he got an education and eventually became a leader in the academic field.He also told the students that people in this community are willing to help them get an education and become leaders in their own fields. “We are cheering for you. … Don’t stop today. Take this opportunity to find your next step,” he added.
