Fashion Winner
Six $1 sweaters purchased at a thrift store have brought in big bucks for a Harper College fashion student. Sabina Ajdinovic of Hanover Park deconstructed the black and grey sweaters and crocheted them together for a new look – a design that scored her two top titles and $5,000 in scholarships at Fashion Group International’s annual fall competition in Chicago. Ajdinovic’s eco-friendly creation, a patchwork-effect sweater that also incorporated bright blue yarn and an asymmetrical design and used key chains for clasps, took first place in the contest’s Contemporary Sportswear/Wearable Art category and Best of Show. The project also earned Ajdinovic an invitation to study at the American Intercontinental University in London for 10 weeks to further hone her design talents. She’s now in her second year at Harper, and hopes to someday have her own store or merchandise line. The Fashion Group International contest, held in conjunction with a fashion industry career day, drew more than 1,000 students from across the Midwest, many from four-year colleges. Only the top 50 student-submitted designs were featured in the day’s fashion show and judged in the competition. Twelve Harper students, including Ajdinovic, were among the finalists. They created 19 of the show’s garments.
Media Note: A photo of Sabina Ajdinovic and her winning garment is available. Contact Media Relations Specialist Erin Brooks, 847.925.6159 or [email protected].
Graphic Arts Tour
Enrollment in Harper College’s Graphic Arts program is up nearly 40 percent this fall, and Program Coordinator Patricia Bruner says the department’s newly expanded Imaging Lab and state-of-the-art equipment could draw even more students. Harper’s rejuvenated Graphic Arts area will be on display at a public open house from 4 to 6 p.m. Monday, December 7 in Room Y128 in Building Y, part of Harper’s Avanté Center. Prospective students and others interested in careers in the industry are invited to attend. The expanded laboratory and classroom, built into Avanté space that had been left purposely empty to accommodate growing programs, added 3,600 square feet to the Graphic Arts area. The rooms boast state-of-the-art technology, including a digital press that provides students a chance to learn the industry’s latest techniques. “This open house allows us to showcase the tremendous technology and learning opportunities Harper offers,” Bruner says. “Our students have always learned through hands-on projects, and this new space and equipment will allow us to expose them to the latest skills and trends in the industry. It’s good for prospective students to see that firsthand.” Harper’s four-year-old Graphic Arts program served nearly 350 students last fall and spring semesters. More than 240 students are enrolled this fall, up nearly 70 students from fall of 2008. The College offers associate Graphic Arts degrees in both design and production; many certificates also are available.
Press Contact: Erin Brooks, Media Relations Specialist, 847.925.6159, [email protected].
Speech Success
Members of Harper College’s award-winning Speech Team will take the stage for a public performance at 7 p.m. Monday, December 7 in the College’s Drama Lab, Room L109, Building L. The six-act event will showcase students in the areas of persuasive speaking, impromptu speaking, prose interpretation and more. Harper’s Speech and Debate Team recently took the Community College Division title at the 62nd annual L.E. Norton Forensics Tournament at Bradley University in Peoria – one of the largest tournaments in the nation, drawing nearly 40 colleges from across the United States. Harper’s squad earned awards in eight categories in its division. Tickets for the group’s Fall Speech Team Spotlight are $6 for general admission. For tickets or more information, call 847.925.6100 or visit www.harpercollege.edu/boxoffice.
Press Contact: Erin Brooks, Media Relations Specialist, 847.925.6159, [email protected].
Winter Music
Harper College’s vocal and instrumental ensembles will stage a host of winter concerts this month, offering the public everything from steel drums and big-band jazz to a capella vocals and the classic wind symphony version of the holiday favorite “Sleigh Ride.” All concerts will be held in the Performing Arts Center on the College’s main campus, 1200 W. Algonquin Road in Palatine.
Concerts Include:
Festival Chorus Christmas Concert, 3 p.m. Sunday, December 6
Steel Bands, 7:30 p.m. Tuesday, December 8
Jazz Ensemble, 7:30 p.m. Wednesday, December 9
Wind Symphony and Chamber Winds, 7:30 p.m. Thursday, December 10
Concert Choir and Camerata Singers, 7:30 p.m. Friday, December 11
Piano Ensemble, 7:30 p.m. Saturday, December 12
Symphony Orchestra “’Tis the Season” performance, 3 p.m. Sunday, December 13
Tickets for the Festival Chorus are $15 for general admission; all others are $10 for general admission. Discounts are available for students and seniors, and children ages 12 and younger are admitted free. For tickets or more information, call 847.925.6100 or visit www.harpercollege.edu/boxoffice.
Press Contact: Erin Brooks, Media Relations Specialist, 847.925.6159, [email protected].
Animal Food Drive
As part of her work to help the homeless this holiday season, Jennifer Pitek again is asking for donations of canned food – and collars, leashes and chew toys. The beneficiaries of her annual Harper College-based effort, dubbed “Santa Claus for Paws,” are the four-legged residents of Illinois animal shelters, and gifts like those help keep them going. With many shelters strapped for cash amid the downturned economy, Pitek, an administrative secretary in Harper’s Center for New Students, says this year’s donations are even more important. “Because of the recession, shelters are finding themselves really in need of basic supplies,” Pitek says. Reports indicate increasing numbers of former homeowners are leaving animals behind as their homes go into foreclosure and money gets tight, putting added pressure on shelters. In addition, fewer families are adopting shelter pets. Pitek has been heading up Harper’s cats and dogs food drive for seven years, inspired after seeing donations from Harper faculty and staff pile up during routine campus drives for the homeless. “I’m an animal lover,” she says, “and I had an understanding of the needs the shelters face.” The effort has yielded good results in previous years, with Harper employees, students and community members stepping up to donate everything from grooming supplies and cat beds to monetary gifts in memory of a beloved pet. Donations will be accepted through Wednesday, December 23, and again after Harper’s campus reopens on Monday, January 4. Needed items include dry and canned foods for cats, kittens, dogs and puppies; dog and cat toys; towels and bedding; biscuits and treats; and leashes and collars. Pet supply store gift cards also are welcome. Donation drop boxes are at the Center for New Students, Room C104 in Building C; the Building A main entrance; the Liberal Arts Office in Building L; the first floor of the Library, Building L; the first floor of Building H; the Math Lab, Room D105 in Building D; and the first floor of Building X in the Avanté Center. All buildings are on Harper’s main campus, 1200 W. Algonquin Road in Palatine.
Press Contact: Jennifer Pitek, Administrative Assistant, 847.925.6314, [email protected]; Erin Brooks, Media Relations Specialist, 847.925.6159, [email protected].