Monday, October 3, 2011

Weeks 3 & 4 Meetings with Prof. Zamary & Research
August 5 & 12, 2011

I was introduced to an organization that is local,
relevant, has a very moving story, 
and needs assistance in many areas. 

I have met with Professor Zamary three times during these weeks. He introduced me to a very touching story, that since the first moment I heard it, I really felt connected to it and began thinking about life in another way. The "Pedal with Pete" Foundation was created by Pete Zeidner in 1993 and it is focused in raising funds to sponsor cerebral palsy research in different institutions in the United States. Their mission is the following:


Mission- "Pedal-with-Pete is a philanthropic organization, dedicated to raising funds for research to improve the quality of life for persons with cerebral palsy.”

Pete was born with cerebral palsy condition but that didn't stop him from gaining an extraordinary physical condition, converting him into a professional cyclist, and most importantly, to obtain his College Degree in Business Administration from Kent State University. 

People involved in the research process:
Pete Zeidner Inspiring personality and organization founder
Craig Zamary @KSU Entrepreneur-In-Residence  
Victor A. Newman @KSU Undergrad student from Entrepreneur School
Simon Husted @KSU Journalism and Mass Comm Student YT video
Christopher Lintner @KSU Entrepreneur Coach

I learned that Pete was a Kent State Alumni, I also was introduced to the Pedal-with-pete foundation and their goals. I saw an interview that was made to Pete earlier in the year, as well as their websites in facebook, twitter, youtube, etc.

Website: http://pedal-with-pete.org/donate/
Facebook fanpage: https://www.facebook.com/pages/Pedal-with-Pete-Foundation/89520332657
Twitter account: http://twitter.com/#!/pedalwithpete
Picassa Albums https://picasaweb.google.com/101097907538110183316 


After deciding that I was going to work for the Pedal-with-fundation, I began my basic information from the aid of Arturo Lara MD and Marcelo Brito MD and also began planning how my design process could help the foundation to get students actively participating in the cycling and fundraising events. I began by writing a list of research topics that are going to be vital for me to start my primary and secondary research project. Also I saved all web presence that Pete Zeidner and the Pedal-with-pete foundation presently have.

Sunday, October 2, 2011

Weeks 1 & 2 of Studio class.August 29, 2011

I have to admit that I did not know
what the "Studio" class actually meant
nor how was it going to work.


I knew that we were going to be guided in various specific tasks to bring design ideas to life. Professor Sanda Katila threw her first pitch straight ar us the first week! and it was great:

- "...in this class, you need to so something, you have to find a problem...  and solve it through design... and in two weeks, (Labor day vacation made us miss our second week of class) you need to tell me what you are doing. By the sixth week I expect models..."
- Sanda Katila


I had some experience in being left by myself to work. By working as a freelance Graphic Designer for over 10 years I knew how to work by myself. I also have had great bosses that left me work for myself just expecting something after a few weeks. And most recently working for TACA Airlines, I learned how to produce without being pushed, since my bosses just expected weekly reports and I worked for over six months literally with no one to report, but still I had tasks that needed to be done or if not, I looked for work (there is tons of it out there).

So Sanda's speed ball seemed fine (but I actually felt some pressure) because I had no clue on what to do. Nevertheless, she told us that our project should be: 1- Specific  2- Relevant  3- Local. And it needed to fit into one or more of the following 4 buckets:
A- Healthcare
B- Public Polices
C- Social Entrepreneurship
D- Sustainable Development
 



So, my first step was to understand was 1- what each of the four buckets really meant and 2- Which local (Kent State University, and Kent City, OHIO) organizations, institutions, schools, colleges, areas, departments, companies, etc presented these qualities.


I then made a list of all the local possible "Partners" or "Clients" I could reach narrowed down the possibilities according to my own personal interest in research. I realized that in Kent State, the Entrepreneurial school was always developing sustainable projects and decided to reach that school. I asked my Professor of Marketing Management Dr. Eileen Bridges if she could recommend someone to talk to. She sent me over to Prof. Julie Messing, Director of the Kent State Center for Entrepreneurship. She recommended me to talk to Prof. Craig Zamary who has been coaching students in developing new businesses at Kent and other areas. (Follow Craig's tweets)


I then met with Prof. Zamary and explained what my reasons for reaching him were. He told me he would contact me with some of his students so that I could find the project that was right for me.

On September 12 we had our first review session...

Friday, September 23, 2011

Welcome to brito's 3)
Graduate College Experience blog


Since August I have been working on getting my mind together. I have been in graduate school at Kent State University for a little more than a month studying to obtain my Master of Fine Arts degree in Visual Communication Design and it has been great! I have met great professionals, professors, peers, and friends. Likewise with my experience as Fulbright grantee from El Salvador, I have met great friends from all over the world.

I will be sharing my experiences with anyone that is interested in three ways:



Professional Development  >  Through a LinkedIn group
College and Graduate School life  >  Through this blog
The United States of America  >  Through my Flickr photo stream


Please feel free to post on any or all of these channels:


Phone:                      +1 (516) 724-6381
Skype:                      britodiego

My gmail and G+:       britodiego@gmail.com
My Yahoo pulse:         britodiego2012@yahoo.com
My Youtube channel:   youtube.com/britodiego

My home site:            britodiego.com
Facebook:                 facebook.com/britodiego
Twitter:                    twitter.com/britodiego        
StumbleUppon:          stumbleuppon.com/britodiego

Cheers!!! brito





Friday, August 20, 2010

... GAP & Co. now ships to El Salvador +50

More than a curious fact... Gap , Banana Republic , Old Navy , Piperlime , and Athleta now offer shipping to more than 50 countries worldwide. This means that... you know what this means...




Have a great shopping day!


Diego Brito