Convergence.umwhistory.edu or explorehcc.umw.edu
Mission:
The purpose of our project is to document the history of the Convergence Center and to bring awareness of this amazing building’s features to both the UMW community and those interested in joining our community. To accomplish this goal our team intends to build a website that will serve as a repository of documents and facts about the building, and interviews (most audio, some video) with the individuals primarily responsible for its construction and development. In showcasing the building’s features, the website will have pages dedicated to the various ‘centers’ and resources contained in the building (writing center, DKC, special collections archival tools). Our site will differ from the convergence.umw.edu website in that it will serve as an advertising and recruiting tool, in addition to an informative source for existing students, faculty, and community members.
We have discussed opportunities for advertising the HCC’s full value with Kyle Allwine of the Admissions Office, as well as options to provide for the future care of the final website. In addition to other great ideas Kyle has provided, he has discussed the likelihood of hosting the final project on the main UMW site as well as the possibility of modest funding for advertising the website, and by extension, the Convergence Center.
The website, as currently pictured, will be a series of interactive pages that include video, audio, and text content. A home page will include links to secondary pages, each secondary page will be a showcase for a particular ‘center’ or aspect of the building and one secondary page will be an extensive archive of interviews and documents relating to the building’s construction. Each secondary page may have, if needed, one or more tertiary pages to provide context, etc. A typical secondary page will have a video walkthrough of the ‘center’ or feature conducted by a member of that center’s staff, a transcript of the video available on a tertiary page, a summary of the center’s features, the names of prominent and permanent members of staff with their university emails, and a link to the center’s appointment site if applicable.
The archive will feature a timeline of the building’s history through the various stages of development (first conception, early ideas, planning, construction, grand opening, new name, etc.). On the archive’s main page will be a series of interviews (about six or seven) with faculty and staff deeply involved with the project in an effort to lay the groundwork for an oral history. Tertiary pages will include downloadable copies of physical documents related to the building, unabridged versions of any and all interviews (regardless of their use in the final project), and any other documents or data collected for the project but ultimately not used.
Provisional List of Interviewees:
- John Morello- Associate Provost
- Jerry Slezak- Director, IT Support Services
- Martha Burtis- Director of the Digital Knowledge Center
- President Hurley- University President
- Cedric Rucker- Dean of Student Life
- Jack Bales- Librarian
- Cartland Berge- HCC Building Manager-will also give us a tour of the HCC
- Hall Cheshire- Acting Chief Information Officer
- Nina Mikhalevsky- Interim Dean of Education
- Special Collections
- Director of the Library
- Professor McClurken?
- Development Office
Centers for Video Walkthroughs:
- Writing Center- Gwendolyn Hale
- Speaking Center- Esther Yook
- Digital Knowledge Center–Martha Burtis
- Special Collections/Digital Archiving Lab–Suzanne Chase/Carolyn Parsons
- Digital Auditorium-Cartland Berge
- Multimedia Production and Recording Studio- Jason Robinson/Jesse Stommel
Tools:
- Audacity- An open source audio editing tool that will be used in the process of editing the interviews before uploading them online.
- Soundcloud- Website that hosts audio and will be the site where we host all audio interviews.
- Youtube/Vimeo- Websites used for hosting video. Will be used for hosting the video tour and possible video interview of President Hurley.
- Sony Vegas and Final Cut Pro- Video editing programs that will be used in the process of editing the video tour and interviews before uploading to a video hosting site.
- TimeLineJS- Digital tool used for creating detailed timelines. This will be used for documenting the history of the Convergence Center from the planning stages to opening day.
- WordPress – Website builder that will be used to create the HCC/ITCC website.
- Cameras and Microphones- Tools that will be used for recording the interviews. Checked out from the front desk of the Convergence Center.
Milestones:
- Week ending 2/12: Contacting all necessary committee members. Walkthrough of the building. Choosing a provisional website layout. Discuss the future of our website with Kyle Allwine from Admissions.
- Week of 2/19: Exploring options of mobile optimization. Develop a basic layout for interviews/set of basic questions that can be modified when/if necessary. Begin working on the Timeline. Acquire architectural plans from the construction company/public archives. We have contacted John Morello who indicates he has numerous documents in his possession.
- Week 2/26: Finish working on the Timeline. Finalize arrangements for website hosting (umwhistory.edu or umw.edu).
- Week 3/11: Half of the interviews completed.(3-4 people). Begin Video and Audio editing.
- Week 3/18: Home page finalized, Secondary pages established.
- Week 3/25: All Interviews completed.
- Week 4/1: Video and Audio editing finished. Videos and Sound Cloud files linked to their appropriate pages.
- Week 4/8: Finalizing the website. Working out any possible bugs. Testing it with students.
- 4/19: Completed website due
Individual Roles:
I will be contacting interviewees, organizing content gathered from interviews and personal research and sifting through what will go on the website and how the information will be displayed/presented, attending Interviews, and conducting individual research of what is already online about the HTCC. -Marissa Feldman
I will be using Sony Vegas, Final Cut Pro, and Audacity to edit and piece together the interviews that we will be doing. I will also be attending the interviews to record the sessions using the microphone and camera checked out from the Convergence Center. I will also be aiding Andrew Steele with the website by making sure there aren’t any bugs and that the website works well on mobile. -Andrew B.
We will all be conducting individual research on the ITCC to find any kind of hidden or not well known features connected to the building. I will be looking at the organization and layout of the text and web design, providing feedback for improvement and quality. Filming and or hosting, attending interviews and group meetings, with the wide range of video and audio interviews and videos we are planning on creating it will be important for content and production to be available and flexible. – Jonathon B.
Developing a basic set of interview questions, become familiar with Sound Cloud, contact construction/architectural firms involved with the project, locate copies of initial and finalized building plans and layouts, Construct a basic outline for Secondary pages and develop the history page in particular. – Andrew S.
