Georgia Site Helps Flood Victims

Victims of this week’s flooding can turn to www.georgiadisaster.info for assistance in dealing with the emotional, mental and physical toll of the catastrophe.

One of the most comprehensive of its kind in the nation, the site links to a wide range of organizations including the American Red Cross, Centers for Disease Control and Georgia911.org and is available in Spanish.

Georgiadisaster.info is designed and maintained by University of West Georgia faculty, staff and graduate students and is sponsored by the Georgia Department of Human Resources using federal funds from the Community Health Preparedness Program.

In addition to meeting the needs of the general public, www.georgiadisaster.info offers resources and information for veterans and military families, schools, persons with disabilities and the elderly.

The website has nearly 3,000 links to weather radar, coping and recovery strategies, a disaster plan and many other resources.

For more information, go to www.georgiadisaster.info.

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Students Develop New Web Site for AIDS Resource Council of Rome

Berry communication students recently had the opportunity to step outside the classroom and put their skills and knowledge to use for the benefit of the AIDS Resource Council of Rome (ARC). The result is a new interactive Web site featuring videos, photography, interviews and an updated logo.

“The students who did the work were just marvelous, and the end product is something that we are very pleased with,” said Jeanne Cahill, ARC executive director and a 2007 Berry alumna.

The ARC’s new Web site was developed by 11 students in Dr. Brian Carroll’s “Digital Storytelling” class, which cross-trains students in multiple media. After classroom discussions, the students decided to work with the ARC to redesign their Web site, picking up where a previous class had left off.

“They really wanted their Web site to be more user-friendly, to be as interesting and engaging as possible to get more traffic,” said Dustin McCormick, a visual communication major who graduated in May. “We wanted a good quality resource for the people in Rome.”

While catering to the needs of the organization, the students developed story ideas that incorporated their interests in video, writing and photography. Student teams attended ARC events throughout the spring to gather content for the Web site, observing the ARC staff in action at AIDS testing days, health fairs, fundraisers and board meetings.

“With today’s interest in media and electronic connections, we felt we needed a good Web site; the one we had was established in 2004 and was never changed or updated,” Cahill explained. “What the class did was completely revamp the Web site. The result is a very interesting and evolving resource for the local community.”

Through the experience of collaborative Web site creation, students were given a real-world understanding of how to successfully meet the needs of the organization.

“The class was one of the best teaching experiences I've had at Berry simply because of the teamwork and collegiality of and among the students. They really came together to make it happen,” Dr. Carroll said.

The new ARC Web site can be viewed at http://www.aidsresourcecouncil.org.

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