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The Experimental Printmaking Institute (EPI) has hired three student interns this semester, starting a program that Curlee Raven Holton, professor of art and director of EPI, hopes will become a model for the future.
The program provides students with an experience that is both interdisciplinary and very “real world” in nature. The interns, who are not art majors, will not only learn about the art industry, but also will be in charge of EPI’s business management, marketing, public relations, and research and documentation.
Holton believes the internship program fits in with EPI’s student-centered mission. Since its founding by Holton in 1996, EPI’s visiting artist and artist-in-residence programs have introduced students to over 50 artists from diverse cultural and social backgrounds. The artists have provided students with talented, well-educated, and ambitious role models.
“What better way to celebrate creativity within the liberal arts experience than to center around the students who are doing it?” Holton says.
Ting Chiu ’11 (Bedminster, N.J.), a double major in English and psychology, will focus on business and marketing; Mildred Gonzalez ’11 (New York, N.Y.), also a double major in English and psychology, will work on research and documentation; and Elisabeth Wraase ’11 (Bethesda, Md.), an English major, will act as media coordinator.
“This program connects Lafayette and the students at a higher level,” says Gonzalez. “It’s a good merging of faculty and students, and it definitely puts students in the driver’s seat. Very rarely do students have the opportunity to not only impact their future but also the Lafayette community.”
For Chiu, the program gives her a chance to be more involved in business and build a portfolio for her future. Wraase is considering a career in public relations, and her internship provides her with a hands-on experience in the field.
“I truly value the opportunities I have been offered by the internship as I am able to learn, experiment, and apply my skills to situations that I am not afforded in a classroom,” says Chiu. “The internship program at EPI allows participants freedom to express, imagine, and create value in ways that enhance their liberal arts education.”