The Borough of Manhattan Community College (BMCC), WNET Channel 13, Chelsea High School (CHS) and its partners are developing a cohesive digital media program to address the major challenge facing technical education today, namely the need to fully integrate rapidly developing government mandated and industry-wide high definition and digital technology standards into their curricula and media labs. This multidisciplinary program in Digital Media Technology addresses the competency gaps cited by industry professionals and capitalizes on the college's expertise in the areas of advanced technological education.
The project has three major objectives:
-- To design and implement a pilot academic program in video technology with an emphasis on serving women and underrepresented minority students that begins with the senior year of high school, continues in the BMCC's Video Arts and Technology (VAT) program and is articulated with participating four-year institutions of higher education;
-- To review, revise and create, as needed, VAT courses to prepare nontraditional students to understand and master skill sets required for successful film and television industry employment pending the industry-wide implementation of High Definition video technology as per the FCC mandates for 2006; and
-- To design and implement a collaborative professional development program (for STEM high school teachers, college faculty and other working professionals) in the field of digital media technology to serve as a regional and national model for other institutions seeking to implement a similar program of study.
