Author Archives: Heather Stafford

Early Childhood Resources for Residents of Addison County

Did You Know…?

Early literacy is a strong predictor of a child’s future academic and economic success.

Addison County Readers is devoted to promoting early literacy in our county. We work in partnership with Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library to register children in Addison County — from birth to age 5 — to receive a FREE age-appropriate book in the mail every month.

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You can help us reach more children!

Register your child today, and invite other Addison County preschoolers to join. Currently 69% of eligible children in Addison County are enrolled in the program and we’d love to see that number increase!

If you don’t live in Addison County you can check availability of the program in your home county here. If your home county does not have a program – you can start one!

I Know What You Did Last Summer! – Alex

Alex Brockelman '18

Alex Brockelman ’18

I Know What You Did Last Summer! This is part of a series of posts highlighting the work of the Summer 2017 Digital Media Tutors (DMTs) from the Wilson Media Lab found in the Davis Family Library Room 220. Meet Alex!

Hometown:  Tempe, Arizona

Year at Middlebury:  3 years / Rising Senior

Major: Political ScienceMinor: History

What’s a DMT and what you drew you to this job on campus?

A DMT is a Digital Media Tutor, a student hired to train in the uses of media for academic purposes and then aid students/faculty bolster their research/projects with a media presence.

What type of training have you received?

I have received a comprehensive training on media and web tools, including audio, video, web site, and graphics editing.

Do you have a strong talent with any particular software?

My strongest talent lies where I began my “media journey,” with sound editing.  I began working with sound when I was in high school as an amateur DJ and producer, and have always found the process interesting and rewarding.

What software tool would you like to learn better and why?

I would like to become better at video editing, because I see video (the confluence of audio and visuals) as the most versatile digital media tool.

Tell me about some of the projects you worked on this summer. Were there any that were especially interesting or challenging?

I have worked on a web site to help athletic teams at Middlebury communicate as a group, as well as do film study and perhaps even recruit.  My other big project has been a French Grammar Website (essentially an online grammar book).  That project has been a great way to practice my French, and an interesting exercise in understanding language pedagogy.

What advice would you give to any other Midd student interested in becoming a DMT?

Do it!  It is a fun and low-pressure environment which provides you with crucial skills.  Be prepared to be wrong sometimes, or struggle through complex problems.  In the end, those are the moments which will hold the most valuable lessons.

Click here to view more information about Alex’s projects. For more posts like these, like our Facebook page.

I Know What You Did Last Summer! – Rachel

Rachel Kang '19

Rachel Kang ’19

I Know What You Did Last Summer! This is part of a series of posts highlighting the work of the Summer 2017 Digital Media Tutors (DMTs) from the Wilson Media Lab found in the Davis Family Library Room 220. Meet Rachel!

Hometown: Atlanta, Georgia

Year at Middlebury: 2

Major: Computer Science + Political Science

What’s a DMT and what you drew you to this job on campus?

DMT stands for “digital media tutor” and the DMT program on campus is a great resource for both students and faculty. This job focuses on tutoring services for media editing programs, including Adobe Suites. I have some experience using these softwares, but I wanted to learn more and become more proficient in them.

What type of training have you received?

We went through each software on the iMacs in the Wilson Media Lab and created simple projects to better understand its functionalities.

Do you have a strong talent with any particular software?

Going into training, I felt that I understood Adobe Photoshop well, but quickly realized there was much more to the program than I thought. After a couple months into the job, I feel confident navigating both Adobe Photoshop and Premiere Pro CC the best.

What software tool would you like to learn better and why?

While Photoshop is a great tool for modifying images, Adobe Illustrator is a vector-based software that emphasizes creating graphics with precision. I’d like to take on a project that heavily uses Illustrator one day.

Tell me about some of the projects you worked on this summer. Were there any that were especially interesting or challenging?

One of the projects I worked on was a nature-based film series I made for a professor, using both Audacity and Adobe Premiere Pro CC. Starting from scratch, with only raw footage and some rough audio, I created short 4-6 minute films which turned out to be more challenging than I thought. Because I had no prior experience with film editing and Premiere, taking on this project really helped me understand how to navigate Premiere quickly and efficiently.

What advice would you give to any other Midd student interested in becoming a DMT?

An important part of this job is to have the drive to understand these softwares—you get out what you put into it! Pushing yourself to learn what some of these complicated softwares can do will not only be helpful for tutoring purposes, but also useful for any basic media-related needs you may run into in the future.

 For more posts like these, like our Facebook page.

I Know What You Did Last Summer! – Dan

Dan Klemonski '19

Dan Klemonski ’19

I Know What You Did Last Summer! This is part of a series of posts highlighting the work of the Summer 2017 Digital Media Tutors (DMTs) from the Wilson Media Lab found in the Davis Family Library Room 220. Meet Dan!

Hometown: East Hampton, Connecticut

Year at Middlebury: 2

Majors: History, Economics

What’s a DMT/What drew me:

DMTs are the first line of defense for multimedia-related technical issues, and one of several layers of support for technological literacy on campus. The opportunities to aid in content creation and work on topically diverse projects drew me to this job.

Training:

As a DMT, I’ve been trained in the Adobe Suite, WordPress, Scalar, iMovie, Audacity, Panopto, and Canvas. I’ve also been acquainted with digitizing tools and the plotter.

Talents:

I’ve become quite familiar with Illustrator and iMovie, and have worked a fair amount with digitization (video capture and scanning).

Software to learn:

I’d like to learn Premier better, because I find myself a little too willing to give up its added functionality for the enticing simplicity of iMovie.

Projects:

One particularly fun (and, at times, frustrating) project this summer involved the seemingly basic task of digitizing analog tapes. What I expected to be a straightforward click-and-drag affair turned into a week of hunting for the right cords, ports, and video capture software. The experience let me see the library basement I never knew existed, and left me rather thankful that easy-breezy digital storage is the norm among modern video cameras.

Advice:

No amount of prior training will guarantee that you always know the solution to a problem. A DMT-to-be should be prepared to fill in the inevitable gaps of their technical knowledge on the fly.

Click here to view some of Dan’s work. For more posts like these, like our Facebook page.

I Know What You Did Last Summer! – Fayza

Fayza Rahman '20.5

Fayza Rahman ‘20.5

I Know What You Did Last Summer! This is the first of a series of posts highlighting the work of the Summer 2017 Digital Media Tutors (DMTs) from the Wilson Media Lab found in the Davis Family Library Room 220. We’ll begin with Fayza!

Birthplace: Dhaka, Bangladesh
Current Residence: Oberlin, Ohio
Year at Middlebury: 1
Major:  Film
What’s a DMT and what you drew you to this job on campus?
A DMT is a digital media tutor in the Wilson Media Lab who is knowledgeable about an array of softwares in order to help others with their digital projects.  As an intended film major, I love editing softwares and was inspired by the tutors that helped me through many of my film projects to take this job.

 

What type of training have you received?
I have received training in InDesign, Photoshop, Illustrator, Premiere, iMovie, Audacity, WordPress, Panopto, Scalar, and so much more, it’s awesome!

 

Do you have a strong talent with any particular software?
I love video editing and working in Adobe Premiere! I love combining Premiere with AfterEffects or Character Animator to give my movies more variety.  I could edit films all day.

 

What software tool would you like to learn better and why?
I really want to further master Adobe Aftereffects because that software is an endless pit of editing opportunities.

 

Tell me about some of the projects you worked on this summer. Were there any that were especially interesting or challenging?
I am currently working on developing a website for a first year seminar based on Dan Brown’s upcoming novel Origin. Working on that project has been really fun because Professor Beyer is passionate about the books Brown has written and I can 100% relate as someone who has read most of his work myself.
I will be starting another project where I am creating instructional lab videos for the physics department.  I am excited to do camera work for that project and it’s also cool because the lab works with lasers!
What advice would you give to any other Midd student interested in becoming a DMT?
I think the main thing is self motivation, if you want to make the most of this job, you need to be willing to dive into new softwares and familiarize yourself with them when you get the chance.  Self teaching during the slower days in the lab and becoming well versed in as many programs as possible will make you a better tutor.

 

Click here to read more about Fayza’s projects. For more posts like these, like our Facebook page.

Summer Assistance for your Digital Media Projects

During the summer, the library employs, trains, and mentors students who assist faculty with various digital projects. Digital projects that students have helped with in the past include the creation of:
  • a website for a course or a lab
  • a video or other multimedia materials
  • animated maps
  • image databases
  • online tutorials
  • online quizzing and assessments
  • animations
You can submit a project proposal for this summer by filling out this form. Because resources are more limited this summer, we will have an easier time evaluating your request if you can provide as much information about your project goals as possible.
 
While the tutor will work with you during the months of June, July and August, I’ll be in touch with you towards the end of the spring semester to set up an initial meeting and connect you with your student tutor if we have the capacity for your project. We look forward to hearing from you!
 
In order to match your project with a tutor, we need to hear from you by April 15th. If you would like to discuss your project in advance, feel free to reach out to me.
 
I look forward to hearing from you!
Heather Stafford – hstafford@middlebury.edu
Multimedia/Curricular Technologist

 

Using Multimedia Resources to Personalize Historical Perspective

When working with historical artifacts students try to relate to the piece from within the context of its time. This can be challenging to do, however C3 Post-Doctoral Fellow in Theatre, Nathaniel Nesmith has come up with a unique way to help students view artistic work with the aid of the artist’s point of view.

In this article Nathaniel describes to Librarian Amy Frazier how he utilized multimedia resources to help students relate to and study playwrights by listening to audio interviews. Using this method Nathaniel was able to help students build a connection to an individual living in a different historical context in an engaging way.

You can read the full story here.

American Libraries page on the Internet Archive

American Libraries page on the Internet Archive