When OTC East Campus instructor Andy Weeks attended an East Orlando Chamber of Commerce meeting last month, he had no idea a casual conversation would lead to an exciting real-world project for his Digital Media/Multimedia Design students. That chance encounter has now resulted in a professional logo design that will help The Salvation Army promote their annual charity golf tournament.
From Networking to Student Opportunity
At the chamber meeting, Weeks struck up a conversation with Debi Jones, Special Events and Promotions Director for The Salvation Army. As they talked about the Digital Media/Multimedia Design (DMMD) program, Jones mentioned that her organization was looking for a fresh redesign of their “Orange/Osceola Fore! Charity Golf Tournament” logo.
Weeks immediately saw this as a perfect opportunity for his students to work on a real project with a local nonprofit. He jumped at the chance to connect his classroom learning with community impact.
Students Dive Deep into the Design Process
Over the next two weeks, the DMMD students threw themselves into the project with impressive dedication. They didn’t just start designing right away – they did their homework first. Students researched The Salvation Army’s history, learned about their golf tournament, and studied other charities and tournaments to understand best practices in the field.
The students then sketched out their initial ideas on paper before moving to computer design programs. But they didn’t stop there. They field-tested their designs and made revisions based on feedback, treating this like the professional project it was.
Finally, each student packaged their work into a formal presentation to deliver to Jones and other Salvation Army executives. This gave them valuable experience in presenting their creative work and explaining their design choices to clients.
The Salvation Army expressed an enormous amount of gratitude towards all of the students who designed, and they were very impressed with not only the designs, but how the students explained their design process.
After a week of deliberations, The Salvation Army selected the winning design from student Natalya Donaldson. Her logo will be featured in promotional advertisements for the tournament as well as on promotional items like golf balls, shirts, and towels.
The Orange/Osceola Fore! Charity Golf Tournament is scheduled for this July, which means Natalya’s winning design will soon be put to work helping The Salvation Army promote this important fundraising event. Golf enthusiasts throughout Central Florida will see her creative work on everything from tournament flyers to the golf balls they’ll be hitting down the fairway, making this a lasting showcase of Orange Technical College student talent in the community.
The project shows how Orange Technical College connects classroom learning with real-world experience, giving students the chance to build professional skills while making a positive impact in their community. Congratulations to Natalya on her winning design, and to all the DMMD students who took on this challenge and impressed The Salvation Army with their professionalism and creativity!
Interested in developing your own creative and technical skills? Learn more about the Digital Media/Multimedia Design program and other career training opportunities at Orange Technical College.