Chs aoit academy handout

CHS Academy OfInformation Technology

VIDEO &

ANIMATION FESTIVAL

Create a Community Buzz!How To Turn

Student Productions into a Media

Festival

It all started as a routine class project.

It evolved into something no one expected.

It was a learning experience.

How was the idea conceived?

In pursuing a challenging program for their students, the director and co-director, devised a program that all students could contribute to. 

The result was a spectacular Academy Awards style event complete with red carpet, statuettes, limousines, and search lights.

Afterwards, a reception was implemented by parents complete with student run activities. 

How Did We Do This?

AOIT Parent OrganizationInaugural Meeting ~January 2007~

An Idea is Born!

Parental Support

Connie LoganBekki MillerJudy Stelly

Elmer SlagleMaragret TreuilShelia Williams

Keana Zerangue

Melanie BarousseAndrea Boudreaux

Henry BarrettDorothy Beauregard

Robin BoudreauxMelinda Broussard

Leslie Cathey

Carla ChampagneLori Courville

Dolores CormierVicky ComeauxJackie DuboseCarol Derouen

Monique ForemanLisa Fornett

Judy FontenotLucy GuidryLynn Goulas

Henrietta Hilbun

Extra Special Thanks to these AOIT Parents

Dads helped

too!

Student Involvement!

Production Crew

Kit Becnel, CHS Faculty-ProducerJoel Hilbun, CHS Faculty-Multimedia Director

Guy Broussard, Cinematography Student-Technical Director

Dustin Arceneaux, CHS Student-Audio Engineer/EditorBen Cathey, CHS Student-Lighting Operator

Garret Derouen, CHS Student-PowerPoint OperatorKeith Blanchard, CHS Student-Pre show SlideshowKiashia Brown, CHS Student-PowerPoint Creator

Jesse Heath, CHS StudentPowerPoint Template / Graphics Designer

Shawn Boudreaux, CHS Student-Video Assistant

Keith Blanchard, CHS Student-DJ/ Exterior Sound

Jeff Blackwell-Announcer

The students completely produced and flawlessly executed the entire eventto the delight of the audience.

How did the students respond to the event?

Community Support

Rodney ArtigueRandy and Melinda Broussard

Karl and Susan GuidryJudy and Randy Stelly

Acadiana Open ChannelBlackwell Communications Group

Chick-fil-ALaFonda

Old VogueMulate’s Cajun RestaurantRuth’s Chris Steak House

AOIT/CHS Parents/Students/Faculty

Special Thanks

Corporate Sponsors

Big Boy Fences

Broussard Construction Company

Sterling Limousines Inc.

Lafayette Coca-Cola Bottling

The Lasting EFFECTS

Numerous articles in

local papers.

Reader cites 'all that is right with our schools‘

On March 24, I attended an event at Carencro High School's newly renovated Little Theater that was among the finest that I have seen. I attended an Academy Award-style digital media competition put on by the Academy of Information Technology. It was unfathomable that in just two months, these students worked to create the finest digital media I have ever seen. It was obvious to all present that these students are far more than computer literate. The AOIT co-directors, Kit Becnel and Joel Hilbun, visionaries in their field, planted a seed with the parents of the AOIT students, and stepped back. The parents not only ran with the idea, but they soared. The event was parent-driven, from the program ideas and format to the reception. The computer savvy Becnel and Hilbun also have business sense. The expert assistance of Chris Wotipka, The Daily Advertiser and other businesses brought this dream to fruition. A Reader's Choice Award, with more than 1,000 in the public voting, was presented to Bishop, the best film of the evening. When Ms. Rath, CHS principal, thanked the parents for entrusting their children to the AOIT at CHS, I thought that the AOIT parents made one of the best leaps of faith I have witnessed in a long time. I believe all in attendance would agree.

Rebecca S. Kreamer Lafayette

Letters to the editors“It was unfathomable that in just two months, these students worked to create the finest digital media I have ever seen.”

“The AOIT co-directors, Kit Becnel and Joel Hilbun, visionaries in their field, planted a seed with the parents of the AOIT students, and stepped back.”

“When Ms. Rath, CHS principal, thanked the parents for entrusting their children to the AOIT at CHS, I thought that the AOIT parents made one of the best leaps of faith I have witnessed in a long time. I believe all in attendance would agree.”

From: Keith Thibodeaux

Sent: Thursday, April 19, 2007Dr. Easton

I would like to personally thank you for your continued support of the

technology and business academies within LPSS. As an advisory board

member of the Academy of Information Technology, and through my

work with TechSouth, I have been involved with both academies and

cannot say enough about the professionalism and enthusiasm with which

the programs are administered. It too true vision of the staff to bring

these academies from idea to reality. This is but one more example of

what the spirit of our parish and our school system is all about.

In my role as the CIO of Lafayette Consolidated Government, former 2-

year Chair of Zydetech and former 3-year Chair of TechSouth, I know

what it takes to accomplish the goals that I witness these programs

achieving on a daily basis. I also know they could not have done it

without the support of the LPSS leadership.

I am pleased to offer my support to your Magnet School Assistance

Grant Program. Your past track record clearly proves that you will deliver

on the goals of that program and that an investment with LPSS is a wise

and safe one.Keith Thibodeaux

CIO, Lafayette Consolidated Government

Letters of support from community leaders and other officials who either saw the program or heard about it from attendees.

Representatives from the School Board presented glowing remarks to the parents involvement and the students efforts in creating the event.

Three months after the event, the community was still a buzz with positive publicity and recognition while the number of inquiries about the AOIT program continued to pour in.

AOIT students assist TechSouth

AOIT was given booth space and provided student volunteers to assist the conference.

AOIT students assist TechSouthMuch of the talk around the AOIT booth was the amount of effort that the students put into the Media Festival.

Many exhibitors commented that the AOIT booth was probably the most visited.

AOIT students assist TechSouthOriginally published May 6, 2007 amcelfresh@theadvertiser.com For the fourth year, technology industry leaders from across the country will gather in

Lafayette this week to help area business learn how to better integrate technology into their

workplaces. "TechSouth is really a gathering of people interested in applying technology

primarily to businesses," said Keith Thibodeaux, chief information officer for Lafayette

Consolidated Government and the founder of the three-day TechSouth summit.

"The main interest in it comes from business people," Thibodeaux said. "It doesn't

necessarily have to be the people who work in technical jobs, either. What we focus on is

applying technology and explaining how to use the different programs and devices that are

out there." Thibodeaux said the idea of a technology summit was bandied about several

years ago, but it took awhile for the event to get off the ground.

"We had talked about an event that would tie in technology and Festival International, but it

was always too costly," Thibodeaux said. "Then one year, I went to a regional technology

event in Pensacola, Fla., and that ended up being the model. At first, we didn't have a

single person who had done an event professionally before, but all of a sudden, it was off

the ground and has been growing ever since."

This year, Thibodeaux said TechSouth will feature 61 exhibitors, more than 40 seminars,

three keynote addresses for more than 300 people and will attract 24 sponsors and more

than 1,500 attendees. Thibodeaux said TechSouth organizers are expecting above-average attendance this year.

"It's bigger than it's ever been, so much so that we've had to create new booth spaces,"

Thibodeaux said. "It's really nice because last year attendance was down because a lot of

people were still dealing with the hurricanes. We've really bounced back this year."

AOIT participation generated many letters of thanks from both the conference sponsors and the attendees.

Through contacts made at the TechSouth conference at least 10 additional intern positions were made available to students.

These contacts in turn further expanded the AOIT program’s presence in the business community.

A study in LITEOne of the many success stories this summer has been the partnership between the AOIT program and the LITE Center.

The problem was that there was no funding available to pay the students.

The students sell themselves at TechSouth.

$7200 Grant for Intern Funding

Other interns were placed in IT jobs in various businesses around the city. Some employers have offered the students part time jobs once their internships have been completed.

Real World ImpactTotal internships: 26

Individual hours spent in workplace environment: 180

(5 Working weeks = 40 weeks of class time)

Total Intern man hours to businesses: 4680

Real World ImpactTotal Internships: 26

Average amount paid to student: $7.00 / hour

Total economic impact: $33,000+100% Placement

Real World ImpactWere 100% of these internships due to the attention that the Media Festival created for the AOIT Internship program?

Were a substantial number of internship positions created due to the positive attention given to the AOIT program by the local media and community buzz?

Were a substantial number of internship positions created due to the positive reactions from AOIT’s presence at the TechSouth conference?

NO!NO!

YES!YES!

YES!YES!

Whereas the internship program sponsored by the AOIT program is definitely something that is right with our schools, going above and beyond the normal curriculum with parental involvement and community support creates a buzz that grows louder and louder each day.

To explain details of the Media Festival concept...

Joel HilbunCo-Director CHS AOIT

The

ORIGINof the Media Festival idea

Video of Joel’s speech at Festival telling how the idea began; overlay video with name and title

WHATwere the factors leading to

success?

In reflecting back on what made our Festival a success, we discovered that these factors were essentially the same factors which make for a successful Academy

Factors for Success• Thinking “outside the box”• Strong vision, dedicated leadership and lots of planning• Student-centered activities • Administration willing to let us take a chance• Faculty buy-in• Active and supportive parent organization• Key community involvement• Students in charge as much as possible and where

appropriate• Creative use of technology to improve activities

WHATwere the specific components

of the media festival?

Activities Prior to Awards Ceremony1. Student animations and videos were created in and

out of class.2. All students viewed all Festival entries during

school.3. Entries were judged by local professionals using a

web-based evaluation system.4. Local newspaper hosted a Readers’ Choice

Contest on their web site.

Activities Prior to Awards Ceremony5. The show flow, program, video, and music for

Awards Ceremony were developed by students and community experts.

6. Nominees and student workers did a run-through of the ceremony during school the day before the ceremonies.

Activities on theDay of the Awards Ceremony

7. Faculty, students, parents, and other community volunteers helped decorate and set up for the Awards Ceremony and Gala/Reception.

8. Nominees, their parents, and special guests attended the Awards Ceremony.

9. A Gala/Reception was held after the Ceremony.

Categories, Awards,Rules, and Rubric

Categories• Major Categories

– Slideshow– Video– Animation

• Categories were subdivided by:– Entertainment vs. Instructional– Entry duration

Special AwardsAll entries were eligible for these special

awards:

• Best Special Effects

• Best Technical Quality

• Best Storytelling

• Best Sound Track

• Daily Advertiser’s Readers’ Choice

Daily Advertiser’sReaders’ Choice Award

• Our local paper placed our 5 top videos on their web site and asked viewers to vote for their favorite.

• The paper considers 100 votes on a poll as a successful poll; our videos garnered 1000 votes.

• The paper made a presentation at the Awards Ceremony to the winner.

AwardsFirst place awards were presented to

each Category and Special Award winner.

Second and third place awards were given, depending on the number of entries in each category.

RegulationsVarious regulations, concerning

eligibility, video content, credits, copyright, etc. were posted on the web site.

Judging Rubric• Posted on web site ahead of time• Major components

– Purpose– Originality of Concept– Editing– Technical Quality of Image– Cinematography– Technical Quality of Sound/Music– Sound track– Overall Impact

Judges• Ed Bowie – Acadiana Open Channel Executive Director• Marcus Brown – Independent Video Producer• Yoen Choi - Professor of Graphic Design & Animation

at University of Louisiana at Lafayette• Wendy Cicciu - Independent Video Producer• Jana Godshall – Executive Director of the International

Digital In Development eXpo (IDIDX)• C.E. Richard - Head of Cinematic Arts Workshop at

University of Louisiana at Lafayette

Student Responsibilities

• The videos and animations that were the basis of the Festival

• A poster for the Festival• The Powerpoint presentation used to

announce nominees and entries in the Awards Ceremony

• The music played while speakers and nominees came on stage

Students Created:

• Ran the sound board during the Awards show

• Ran the winning videos, the announcement Powerpoint, and the video switcher

• Controlled the lights• Presented the awards to the winners

During the Awards Ceremony, students…

Web Database Component

Information about the entries was entered and managed using a web-based database.

• Web pages written with php scripting language

• MySQL database

Web Database Summary

Uses of Web-Based System• Students submitted their entry

application forms through our web site.• Judges submitted their evaluations on-

line.• We were able to print out winners,

excused lists of participants, etc.

Screen Shot of Application Page

Screen Shot of Entry Listings

Screen Shot of Entry Summary

Screen Shot of Judging Page

Screen Shot of Individual Results

Screen Shot of Judging Summaries

Kit Becnel & Joel Hilbun

www.carencroaoit.org

QUESTIONS & ANSWERS

kabecnel@lpssonline.com jdhilbun@lpssonline.com