On Wednesday, Mar. 27, HawkInteractive will host an Adobe Illustrator Workshop. The Workshop is open to all students, regardless of club membership.
Gianna Piroso is a senior communication student as well as the President of HawkInteractive, which is a relatively new club that serves as a bridge between students and the virtual world. “HawkInteractive is a student organization that gives students the ability to learn new technologies, such as 3D printing, Adobe Creative Cloud, and virtual reality,” she said. “Students are able to explore their creative side and make their ideas come to life.”
Piroso continued that the Workshop fulfills this mission perfectly, as it will give students the opportunity to learn more about one of these virtual, creative outlets. She elaborated, “The Illustrator Workshop will teach students how to design their own logo and character using Adobe Illustrator.”
Further, Piroso explained some of the aspects of Illustrator that attendees of the Workshop will learn about. She said, “Students will be able to learn the basics of this program, such as shapes and text, while still having a fun time doing it.”
Past workshops that HawkInteractive have hosted also included learning about 3D printing where students were able to print their own creations, a business card making workshop where students could design business cards for their professional use, as well as a gaming night for club members. The club has also traveled to the Paradox Museum at the American Dream Mall in East Rutherford.
Nicole Chamberlain is also a senior communication student and an active member of HawkInteractive. “I would say that HawkInteractive is a great opportunity for students to have access to the kind of technology they wouldn’t normally have access to. You also learn how to use these devices so that, when you leave the Lab, you have skills that you can take into the real world.”
The Interactive Digital Media (IDM) Lab serves as HawkInteractive’s hub, where all the technology students need for workshops and other creative endeavors lives. According to Monmouth’s website, the IDM Lab features a seminar area for classes to be held, collaboration areas, and technology that students can use both in and out of the classroom.
It “allows for in-depth student-faculty collaboration in areas such as robotics, augmented and virtual reality, artificial intelligence, and more,” the website states. Classes held in the Lab also utilize these technologies during instruction.
“My favorite aspect of HawkInteractive is how many opportunities I get to be creative without having to take a specific class,” Chamberlain said. “All of the programs, specifically the Adobe ones, are programs that I wouldn’t have access to outside of the Lab.”
Overall, students should take advantage of the workshops presented by HawkInteractive because, according to Piroso, “Students will gain knowledge of skills that they bring with them into the professional work world. This program is utilized much more than the average person would think and having a basic knowledge of this program will make them stand out as candidates when applying for jobs.”
HawkInteractive meets on Wednesdays at 2:50 p.m. in Plangere Center’s IDM Lab.
