College of Letters and Science Faculty Document No. 732
December 15, 2005

Certificate Program in Digital Arts and Culture Annual Report
2004-2005

1. Committee structure/function
   1. Members of the Digital Arts and Culture (DAC) Advisory Committee: Sandra Braman, Lane Hall, Tasha Oren, Mat Rappaport, Peter Sands, Marc Tasman, Rob Yeo. Marc Tasman was elected chair of the committee; he also serves as the coordinator of the certificate.
      
      
   2. The committee met once during the academic year, in May. In attendance at the May meeting were Lane Hall, Jon McKenzie, Tasha Oren, Mat Rappaport, Marc Tasman, and Rob Yeo.
      
      
2. Major Issues
   1. Recommendations included streamlining requirements and providing links on the DAC website to the Timetable (Schedule of Classes).
      
      In an effort to streamline and make more consistent the course offerings for DAC, the committee approved a change in the core requirements as indicated below:
      
      OLD: Courses Required of All Students - 10 credits minimum

      Art 118 Digital Arts: Culture, Theory, and Practice

      English 431 Information Architecture

      Fine Art 407 DIVAS Forum

      At least one of the following:

      ArtHist/English 111 Entertainment Arts

      Commun 313 Communication and Technology

      JMC 101 Introduction to Mass Media
      
      

      NEW: Courses Required of All Students - 12 credits

      At least four of the following:

      Art 118 Digital Arts: Culture, Theory, and Practice

      ArtHist/English 111 Entertainment Arts

      Commun 313 Communication and Technology

      English 431 Information Architecture/English 439 Document Design

      JMC 101 Introduction to Mass Media

      JMC 336 Media Graphics
      
      

      The structure of the other Course Categories will remain the same; 6 credits of each practicum and conceptual courses are required. The lists of courses that satisfy the practicum and conceptual requirements, however, will remain fluid and current. With the help of the DAC faculty members, the coordinator will update the lists on the website each semester.
      
      The website also will be updated to include a more comprehensive list of faculty members (see list below) who are regularly teaching DAC courses and/or whose research and/or future courses fit within the DAC paradigm. The coordinator will prompt this group of faculty to keep him apprised of new courses that fit within the DAC rubric. In addition, he will seek consent from these individuals to link them to the DAC website. Suggested additions to the list are welcome.
      
      

      Johannes Britz	Melanie Marino	Elana Levine
      Lisa Moline	Alison Rostankowski	Stephen Pevnick
      Max Yela	Ben Schneider	Ed Mabry
      Kyle Talbott	Barbara Ley	Peter Paik
      Dirk Von Sloten	Thomas Malaby	Karundapuram Supriya
      Bill Van Pelt	Dave Clark	Cecelia Condit
      Luc Vanier	John Jordan	Rob Danielson
      Chris Burns	Jon McKenzie	Portia Cobb
      Carl Bogner	Patrice Petro	Leslie Bellavance

3. Certificate Program Data: On August 29, 2005, the Coordinator, Marc Tasman, prepared a report for Dean Richard Meadows and Associate Dean Rodney Swain. It included the following information:
   
   

   DAC Students (32) by School/College:
   Letters and Science	17
   Peck School of the Arts	9
   Business Administration	2
   Information Studies	2
   Architecture and Urban Planning	1

   History of DAC Enrollments
   
   Fall 03 - No students officially enrolled; 5 interested student names presented.
   
   Spring 04 - 15 students enrolled as DAC advisees; DAC has its first graduate, who gets a job as Media and Outreach Specialist for the Wisconsin environmental organization, WasteCap Wisconsin.
   
   Fall 04 - 25 DAC advisees are pursuing the certificate; more students graduate, including the first DAC student to pursue an MA in College Communication at the University of Texas.
   
   Spring 05 - 5 more students graduate. DAC/BLOG begins posting relevant UWM, local, national, and international news, conferences, speakers, and calls for papers and work. The site attracts hits from around the world; the National University of Ireland (NUI) asks to have a call for entries posted on DAC/BLOG. Founding members of a DAC Student Organization meet during spring and summer to create charter.
   
   Fall 05 - 30+ students are enrolled in the program. The DAC Student Organization (DACSO) is launched. A DAC graduate from Spring 05 describes the following job: "I'm the newest copywriter for an advertising agency in Brookfield called Bader Rutter."
   
   Digital Arts and Culture Student Organization
   
   The DACSO was founded and approved by the Student Senate over the summer. The approval of this organization will allow it to apply for funds for curating exhibitions, bringing speakers to campus, and traveling to conferences.
   
   Expansion Possibilities
   
   The program's enrollment goal for Fall, 2006 is 60 students. As of December 9, 2005, 37 students are enrolled.