UNG Department of Visual Arts Video Transcript

Dr. Pamela Sachant, DoVA Department Head:
The creative environment here is something that we've always encouraged as having the ability for students to feel at home.

Stacy Koffman, Professor:
The University of North Georgia's art department is unique in my opinion mainly for the diversity. Diversity not only of students and faculty but also of facilities and spaces, because we have five campuses, three of them with studio arts offered. Each one has a different emphasis, and I think students benefit from these choices.

Theresa Kim, Student:
Everyone has come from different backgrounds, and the class environments are great. The teachers really care about what you're doing, and the critiques really help you grow as an artist.

Paul Dunlap, Professor/ Alumni:
I went to this university when it was North Georgia College, and graduated as an undergraduate in art. And that experience was really transformative for me. And I wanted to pay back somehow, so I knew when I left to go to graduate school that I was gonna come back here and teach.

Charles Mitchell, Alumni/ Professional Photographer:
I've worked with Erykah Badu, Lil Wayne, Janelle Monáe, Ne-Yo, Allen Iverson to name a few. What I enjoy most is photographing people and the interactions between myself and the subjects. And I've always loved photographing people, ever since my first photography class here.

Ryan Knowles, Student:
We really have a tight-knit community here, and it allows us to bounce ideas between peers and teachers.

David Clifton, Professor:
The most important thing I think students will leave with is, of course their education, but I hope they also leave understanding that the community of artists around you and your peers are just as important as any piece of equipment, any technique, any knowledge.

Paul Dunlap, Professor/ Alumni:
Students in our department have an opportunity to study a lot of different media, and I think this gives them a good, hands-on experience. The department is small enough that we get to work very closely with our students, and I think that creates a wonderful learning environment for them.

Erin McIntosh, Professor:
Students in DOVA have a wide range of opportunities, and I think part of it comes from working with faculty with really diverse interests and visual sensibilities.

Theresa Kim, Student:
The faculty is extremely supportive of what you do. They're always willing to help, and in different ways too, which is great.

David Clifton, Professor:
We've recently added my area, which would be digital art, and we'll be getting into gaming and virtual reality, and things like that.

Dr. Pamela Sachant, DoVA Department Head:
We also have moved forward into areas of animation and 3D printing, so students can move in a wide variety directions.

Paul Dunlap, Professor/ Alumni:
The Department of Visual Arts recently got accredited with the National Association of Schools of Art and Design, and that is going to bring more credibility to the degrees and value to the degrees our students are getting. And I think it's going to increase their opportunities for success in their field.

Charles Mitchell, Alumni/ Professional Photographer:
Professors around North Georgia always made it feel like a family environment for me.

Stacy Koffman, Professor:
I feel like there's a tremendous amount of passion behind the faculty teaching in the classroom, and the students receiving that instruction. The connections are very important.

Paul Dunlap, Professor/ Alumni:
I've had students go on to work with Annie Leibovitz in New York. I've had them go on to create their own businesses doing wedding photography, event photography. As well as move on to become college professors.

Dr. Pamela Sachant, DoVA Department Head:
One of the really exciting things that's going on right now is, we were contacted by MakerBot, the 3D printer company, and they would like to open a MakerBot Innovation Center here.

Theresa Kim, Student:
I think the difference between art in a college classroom versus art in a high school classroom is, in college, there's a degree of professionalism, and a lot of people are more serious about what they do.

Dr. Pamela Sachant, DoVA Department Head:
One of the things that we emphasize here is students taking what their creative skills are and in some sort of entrepreneurial way building upon them.

Paul Dunlap, Professor/ Alumni:
The most fulfilling thing is definitely the students, watching them evolve, watching their work evolve, and watching them grow as budding artists.

Ryan Knowles, Student:
It's really cool to see my dreams really coming to fruition.

Dr. Pamela Sachant, DoVA Department Head:
You will learn how to paint, or print, or photograph, whatever it is that you're interested in doing, but you're going to learn how to use those skills in the directions, in the ways, that you want to use them. So you're going to be a creative thinker. You're going to be a designer. You're going to be an artist in that well-rounded sense of what an artist is.