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Twenty-five students, ages 14-17, will spend the day at the Milton J. RubensteinMuseum of Science and Technology (MOST) at 500 South Franklin St., Syracuse, on Thursday, Aug. 29, to explore the world of science and technology through game creation and design. The students participated in the CNY Works Summer Youth Program. At five exhibitions throughout the museum, teams facilitated by a Game Designer’s Guild volunteer will create non-digital, game-based experiences, learning 21st-century skills in the process. Science and technology-based information about the exhibition will be provided by MOST subject matter experts throughout the day.

Scott Nicholson, associate professor at the School of Information Studies (iSchool), and the director of Because Play Matters game lab, will lead the event. Nicholson says the pressure of creating a game in a short time frame forces participants to develop communication and teamwork skills while using a rapid prototyping and redevelopment model that is valuable for many careers.

“In order to create a game, participants will have to combine creativity, design, art and storytelling with logistical thinking, technical writing, probability and the development of resource management systems,” he says. “For game experiences in the MOST, participants will also have to take into account the constraints of creating a game that can be learned quickly and completed in a short period of time while also being meaningful and scientifically sound.”

The project is the initial pilot program in a larger strategic plan to encourage educational and career attainment through game development and game play. “The goal of the game jam is to positively impact the participants’ interest in science and science careers by actively engaging them in this innovative and constructive event,” says Karen DeJarnette, director of Syracuse University’s Talent and Education Development Center.

Larry Leatherman, president of the MOST, adds, “Piloting this program supports the mission of the MOST and helps to build interest in science in our region’s youth. We are excited to bring this program to our venue.”

Information about the MOSTGame and teams’ progress will be posted in the museum so visitors can learn about the process. During the award ceremony at the end of the day, groups will present their games to participants, staff and visitors who can play the games that were created.

The MOSTGame is collaboration between the MOST, the Game Designers’ Guild, the iSchool and the Talent and Education Development Center of University College. The program was funded by a grant from CNYWorks.

For additional information about the program, contact DeJarnette at ksdejarn@syr.edu or 315-559-6634.

The Syracuse University Summer Dance Intensive Program will hold a free dance performance at Syracuse Stage on Saturday, July 27, from 1-2 p.m. The performance showcases the talent of students who have completed three weeks of vigorous study with world-renowned faculty.

The program will open with a new classical ballet choreographed by its artistic director, Danita Emma, and set to the work of the French impressionist composer Claude Debussy. Other works on the program include “Fiddle, Faddle,” an energizing ballet from guest choreographer Marcus Galante, a pas de trois and a guest performance from Syracuse native Evelyn Kocak. Kocak is currently a soloist for the Pennsylvania Ballet. Other works on the program include a character piece, student-choreographed improvisational work, and a modern and a jazz work.

The program is administered by University College.

Stephanie Mayne is the human resource manager at M.S. Kennedy, a Liverpool company that has been designing and producing high-performance analog microelectronics for 40 years. She receives a flood of resumes for every job opening. It’s easy for Mayne to determine what type of work ethic potential candidates possess; however, finding workers with the specific skills that will fit well with M.S. Kennedy’s requirements is sometimes a challenge. “We can assess whether or not a candidate has the basic capability to do the job,” says Mayne. “But it’s harder to gauge whether or not a person is going to be able to expand on those basic skills and adapt them to our unique processes.” The Talent and Education Development Center (TEDCenter) at University College (UC) helps M.S. Kennedy and many other businesses in the Central New York region match qualified workers with job openings. The TEDCenter is dedicated to improving the quality of the existing and emerging workforce in the Central New York region by bringing regional education, economic development and workforce development sectors into closer alignment. Its goal is to ensure that the education and training delivered to students, incumbent workers and career changers provides them with the skills they need to achieve economic self-sufficiency. Michael Prockup was an unemployed worker over the age of 50 who knew he needed to sharpen his skills to compete in a struggling job market. Prockup heard about the Unemployed Worker Training Program being offered at UC and was anxious to have his skills assessed. The Certificate of Workplace Competency tested Prockup in three key areas: reading, mathematics and locating information through reviewing graphs, flowcharts and diagrams. “Having graduated with a B.S. degree more than 35 years ago, I was curious about how I would perform in the areas tested,” says Prockup. “In the 1970s, there was no Internet and the method of instruction I received was very different than it is today.” The Certificate of Workplace Competency shows employers that job candidates have the skills they need and is an excellent way for potential employees to showcase their abilities. “Michael came to us with purchasing experience. By taking the skills assessment, he demonstrated that he wanted to keep up,” says Mayne. “He is pro-active and took charge to ensure us that he would stand out as a strong candidate.” Mayne says that as a human resource manager, her job is to find employees who will be successful. “If there are tools like those offered at the TEDCenter out there that can increase the level of employees we bring in, it makes us more competitive and successful. It also saves us money and time in the hiring process—interviewing, advertising, etc. It just makes good business sense,” she says. Prockup was impressed that the staff of the TEDCenter assisted him with his job search by contacting prospective employers to endorse him as a candidate. “This was a major selling point to me as an unemployed worker over the age of 50 who had an uphill climb,” he says. For more information about the TEDCenter or the Certificate of Workplace Competency, contact Karen DeJarnette at ksdejarn@syr.edu or Andrea German-Willis at ajgerman@syr.edu, or call 315-443-5241.

Troy Powell, artistic director of Ailey II American Dance Theater, and Diana White, artistic director at the Scarsdale Ballet Studio, will be teaching dance classes at the Summer Dance Intensive Program at Syracuse University. The dance intensive is offered through the Summer College Program for High School Students.

Powell, a native New Yorker, began his dance training at the age of 9 as a scholarship student at the Ailey School. A member of Ailey II and Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater since 1991, he toured throughout the United States, South America, Europe and South Africa before becoming a master teacher at the Ailey School and resident choreographer of Ailey II. Powell has choreographed ballets for Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater, Ailey II, the Ailey School, Dallas Black Dance Theatre, National Dance Company of the Bahamas and Alaska Dance Theater, as well as three episodes of “Sesame Street.” Powell will work with students Thursday, July 11.

White had a 20-year career with the NYCB and worked closely with George Balanchine and Jerome Robbins. Her repertoire included principal roles in works by both masters, including Balanchine’s “Apollo,” “The Four Temperaments,” “Western Symphony,” “Serenade,” “Liebeslieder Walzer” and “Jewels,” as well as Robbins’ “Dances at a Gathering,” “The Cage,” “Goldberg Variations” and “Moves.” White toured internationally with the New York City Ballet and as a guest artist with other companies. She has appeared several times on public television’s “Live from Lincoln Center” and “Great Performances.” She now is a private coach and a repetiteur with the George Balanchine Trust. White will work with students Monday, July 15.

 

Syracuse University representatives Karen Bass, Susan Corieri, Geraldine de Berly, Andrew Horsfall and Nancy Rothschild will participate in the fourth annual EducationUSA Forum in Washington, D.C., from June 26-28.

Sponsored by the U.S. Department of State’s Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs, the EducationUSA Forum will bring together 500 college and university recruitment and admissions professionals with almost 60 EducationUSA regional educational experts and advisers from around the world to discuss strategies for helping international students to study in the United States and U.S. students to study abroad.

Colleges and universities, including Syracuse University, play an important role in strengthening ties between the United States and countries around the world. Not only do higher education institutions connect future global leaders with the American people; foreign students also have a positive economic impact on the United States. As the premiere study destination for international students, the education sector represents the fifth largest U.S. services export and added nearly $23 billion to the U.S. economy in 2011-12.

The EducationUSA Forum offers practical information and strategies to help internationalize U.S. campuses. Workshop sessions, presented by international education experts, U.S. higher education representatives and government officials, will offer unique and valuable information on recruiting and enrolling international students.

For more information, contact Karen Bass at Syracuse University at 315-443-3846 or the Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs, 202-632-6454, ECAPress@state.gov