They make a way. - Maryland Institute College of Art

President Fred Lazarus speaks at the first MPS in the Business of Art and Design program graduation ceremony. / MICA places emphasis on health and wellness with “Old School Recess.’
16
ENGAGEMENT
MICA graduates are natural leaders because they
are taught that, to bring their artistic vision to
reality, they must often marshal people to inform
their work or as collaborators, and gather the
resources to create the work itself. Involvement in
student organizations on campus is an important
part of growth as a creative leader’s and often
blends a student’s creative passion with their
intense desire to make an impact in their community.
“Yes, studying art or design involves technical skills,
but it also causes you to learn to think differently,”
said Michael Patterson, Associate Dean of Student
Life & Judicial Affairs. “MICA students can bring
to the table the ability to approach problems and
solve them in a way fundamentally different than
anyone else. We work with students to help them
understand how they can apply what they know
inherently in a way that is much broader.”
Student resident advisors, peer counselors, and
program managers are taught how to use their
creative problem-solving ability to, for example,
maximize a budget, get the supplies needed,
secure desired talent, or develop financing for a
project by working with various constituencies.
“I would argue that involvement is as important
as academics,” says Karol Martinez, Director of
Student Activities. “As a result of participating
in campus activities, students say that they have
improved their communication skills, teamwork
skills, and ability to manage projects. Later we
hear alumni talk about how they are leveraging
their previous experience as a program manager
now in their current jobs. Students learn how
to think creatively about how to make their
passions happen by thinking out of the box.”
Patterson adds that working as a student
organizer helps students build the presentation
and agenda-setting skills they will need throughout
their careers. According to Patterson, when
meeting with students majoring in engineering,
business, liberal arts, or other areas from other
schools, MICA students are often not initially
recognized as the natural leader. Soon, however,
they become the most popular person in the
room because of their different approach to
problem solving.
Just as students are encouraged to make a
difference on campus, they actually compete for
the opportunity to make a difference in the
greater Baltimore community. Grants awarded by
the offices of Community Engagement, Student
Affairs, and Community Arts Partnership provide
$500- $2,500 to students who have proposed
in great detail a project that will have a positive
community impact. As part of their grant application,
students must explain how their project will empower
others, identify the resources they will need, and
show how they will manage its implementation.
During the 2011-2012 academic year, more than
$50,000 was awarded to students engaged
in work with children, families, nonprofit
organizations, and other community-based groups.
“It gives students the opportunity to apply their
talent and work in a real-world situation in its
broadest and most exciting sense, and on a more
nuts-and-bolts level, prompts them to articulate a
vision, develop a proposal, and create and manage
a budget,” says Director of the Office of Community
Engagement, Karen Stults. “It’s one slice of what
it means to be an artist, a business person, or an
entrepreneur because you have to know how to
pitch an idea and how to ask for support if you
want to succeed.”