Pre-College/Youth Programs
ACADEMY
ACADEMY Course Descriptions 2009
SESSION C Classes for 7th and 8th graders
NOTE: Classes offerings subject to change. Course selections for each session will be sent out with the acceptance packets.
COMMUNICATION / LANGUAGE ARTS
JUNIOR CHEFS
Put on your chef hat and learn a variety of cooking techniques. Learn the science behind cooking with quick and easy ideas and recipes from a variety of world cuisines. You will measure and mix ingredients and use a variety of cooking tools and machines, not to mention taste the results! Instructor: Marilyn D. Moore is a Culinary Institute-Le Cordon Bleu Graduate and a Certified Culinary Educator for the American Culinary Federation. She is the owner of Creative Organic Catering.
STOP THE PRESS!
Come spend the week with the ACADEMY Press and you learn what makes a newspaper tick. You will learn how to report and write news as you write captivating headlines, captions, and copy-edit text. You will be assigned different jobs on a newspaper working on articles, comic strips and advice columns. You will get past writer’s block as you develop your individual writer’s voice. Instructor: Cynthia Hewitt has a bachelor’s in social ecology/child development from U.C. Irvine. She has over thirty years teaching experience and currently works with the home-schooling population.
WRITE ON THE WILD SIDE
Do you want to write a screen play for a home video or a rap song lyric? This class lets you open up and express what is on your mind and gain confidence by putting some words on a page and going with the flow. Find out that you have something important to say and that you can write about it and produce a work you never dreamed possible. Instructor: Herb Heiman has written a Young Adult novel entitled, First Across the Finish Line. He is co-publisher and critic for Ashland Theatre Review, a monthly critique of local play productions.
VISUAL ARTS
COSTUME AND FASHION ILLUSTRATION
Learn how to use proportion, shade and other essential art fundamentals to create costume and fashion drawings for the runway or for your favorite people and characters such as Harry Potter, Jessica Alba, Captain Jack Sparrow, and Corbin Bleu. You are bound to build your drawing skills, stretch your imagination and boost your creativity. Instructor: Craig Honeycutt has a master’s in education and is a local artist and art educator with more than twenty years teaching experience.
ECO ART WORKS
Learn about historical perspectives and current trends in environmental art while creating hands-on studio projects such as sculpture made with recycled materials, group paintings, handmade journals, onsite botanical drawings and much more. Instructor: Claudia Michelli has a Bachelor’s in Fine Arts and a master’s in teaching with over twenty years teaching experience.
SAY IT IN CLAY
Discover the art of Japan while you sculpt self portrait clay masks, hand sculptures or an oranina (clay flute). Learn hand-building techniques and the culture of Japan. Create beautiful pieces of art to be glazed and fired. Instructor: Wataru Sugiyama is an international sculptor and native of Japan. He has exhibited his work throughout the United States, England, Switzerland, Germany and Japan.
PERFORMING ARTS
ACADEMY IDOL MANIA
Take part in the popular world of musical performance. Bring your inner super star as you learn proper breathing techniques, pitch, harmony and diction. You will learn how to sing, dance, act, improvise and audition. Learn how to “sell” your song to the audience with proper interpretation and microphone technique. This class is a non-competitive confidence builder. No Simon here! Instructor: Robert Luaders is a SOU graduate and energetic computer guru who blends technology with the artistry of life. He is an award-winning vocalist, film composer, and song writer.
BALLROOM BESTS
Take your dance moves to a new level by learning the coolest and most popular ballroom dances—Tango, Salsa, Waltz, and Swing. Do you really have what it takes to dance at your school dances, parties or just while hanging out with your friends? You will learn step pattern variations and the lead and follow technique of these very popular dance forms. Instructor: Cori Grimm
DRUMMING TO A DIFFERENT BEAT
Step into this fun drum circle while you learn techniques that will enable you to create rhythmic patterns of traditional Afro-Cuban drum rhythms and learn new music concepts.This is literally a hands-on class at its best. Instructor: Sue Lundquist is a professional musician and teacher whose taught folkloric rhythms and songs of the Afro-Cuban tradition for over fifteen years.
FANTASTIC FENCING
En guard…ready…fence! Safe inside a mask and jacket you will be introduced to the exciting sport of fencing. Learn the skills of “touching” (scoring on) your partner while avoiding being scored on and learn the respect, ethics and comraderie involved in this sport. Instructor: Roxanne Miftahittina has fenced both foil and epee with the Southern Oregon Fencing Center for four years and has taught SOU-sponsored fencing classes.
SHAKESPEARE SHENANIGANS
Explore the stories and language of Shakespeare through theatre improvisation games and activities. Through the use of rhythm exercises and textual analysis you will exercise your creativity and your imagination while engaging in spirited action! Students will work with scenes from Shakespeare's greatest hits. Instructor: Tyrone Wilson has an MFA from Yale University and is in his 14th season at the Oregon Shakespeare Festival in Ashland.
SOCIAL STUDIES
ORDER IN THE COURT!
Take part in this exciting process of enacting trials while you experience the American judicial system. Learn what it takes to become a judge, jury, prosecutor, defender or witness. Learn to organize facts, develop your speaking and questioning abilities, and understand the concepts of justice through jury deliberation. This will be a courtroom drama you will never forget. Instructor: Cynthia Hewitt has a bachelor’s in social ecology/child development from U.C. Irvine. She has over thirty years teaching experience and currently works with the home-schooling population.
THE POLITICAL APPRENTICE
Ronald Stump is searching for the perfect person to help him run his newly formed government. It could be you! Come test your creativity, intelligence and street smarts in a fast-paced competition to be the new chief of staff. You will learn business and policy making while you participate in the ultimate apprentice game. Instructor: Peter Voskes is a former ACADEMY student and counselor who teaches eighth grade U.S. History at Hedrick Middle School. He is also the cross country coach at North Medford High School.
SCIENCE
CRIME SCENE INVESTIGATORS
Take your forensic science skills to the next level as you analyze the evidence of a fictional crime scene. You will learn to study evidence that is commonly introduced in real cases such as blood type, identify and process fingerprints, analyze handwriting, and take hair and fibers samples. Work together, gather clues and see if you can crack the case. Instructor: Paul Hampton has two masters and bachelors degrees. He teaches AP and Honors Chemistry and Physics, and is currently teaching at South Medford High School.
DOUBLE HELIX
What is DNA? What does it look like? How can we use DNA to make products beneficial to mankind? How is DNA used to help solve criminal cases? This course will answer these questions and more! Instructor: Mark Geisslinger has been a high school biology teacher for sixteen years. He currently teaches at North Medford High School.
FRANKENSTEIN REVISITED: BIOETHICS AND THE FUTURE
As modern science explores the frontiers of the human genome, the question, “Can we clone?” has been answered. In this class you will examine another question, “Should we clone?” Explore the science and ethics of genetic experimentation as you ponder one of the twenty-first century’s most controversial debates. Instructor: Tim Dolan has a PhD and an MA in Political Science both from the University of Hawaii. He was the program director at the San Jose Conservation Corps' Youth Corps Program and SOU's Master in Management Program as well as an instructor for the JSA program at Yale University.
HOLLYWOOD MAGIC
Possible or impossible? The escaping car-jacker runs the red light and plows into the semi. They’re incinerated in a violent fireball. Come explore topics such as antimatter, space travel, crashes and explosions as you watch clips from popular TV shows and movies and learn to instantly recognize what’s real and what’s not. Instructor: Sarah Swanson has a master's of arts in teaching from SOU. She is currently teaching biology and chemistry at Crater High School.
COMPUTERS/VIDEO
GAME ON!
Explore the high-tech, fast moving world of video games and concepts. Create fun and easy-to-use video games while exploring the evolution of harnessing computers in the ever-growing global gaming industry. Explore software tools like Flash to learn game design elements of digital art, image creation, sound and their application to programming. Instructor: Robert Luaders is a SOU graduate and energetic computer guru who blends technology with the artistry of life. He is an award-winning vocalist, film composer, and song writer.
MAKING THE VIDEO
Learn the basics of finding the punch points in a song and making it into a music video. You will learn how to video record people and construct fun music videos complete with tricky special effects. Learn about the most popular video software such as You Tube, iMovie and more. Instructor: Rick Shaw is a teacher at Ashland Middle School. He teaches video production and chess classes.
RETRO TECH
Travel through time as you look at the history of technological devices and processes. You will learn about the relationship of technology to politics, economics, science, the arts and also the all too frequent misfires and the unexpected consequences of technology. Have fun inventing new technologies of the future. Instructor: Morgan Cottle is a talented and enthusiastic tech instructor and is a fourth grade teacher at Walker Elementary School.
MATHEMATICS/LOGICAL THINKING/ENGINEERING
GPS GALORE
Come explore the world of Global Positioning Systems (GPS) and its modern day uses from search and rescue operations to navigation. Know where you are on the planet by using problem-solving skills in finding landmarks and pin-pointing locations of hidden treasures on the SOU campus in a fun practice known as "Geocaching". This is definitely a get-out-and –use-your-hands kind of class. Instructor: Robert Luaders is a SOU graduate and energetic computer guru who blends technology with the artistry of life. He is an award-winning vocalist, film composer, and song writer.
HOVER-CRAFT DESIGN
Finding new and sustainable forms of transportation is a new global challenge. Get the research started in this class, where you will combine electronics with wind power and new age materials to design and construct a vehicle that will travel without friction on a cushion of air. Along the way, you will learn about soldering, electric circuits and principles of lift in this workshop-style course. Instructor: Paul Hampton has two masters and bachelors degrees. He teaches AP and Honors Chemistry and Physics, and is currently teaching at South Medford High School.
JUNKYARD WARS
Come learn math, engineering, and technology principles as you participate in this exciting challenge. You will use your imagination, scientific knowledge and a box of "junk" to create a variety of devices that perform an assortment of tasks. Whether building a super structure, a blaster, or a car-on-the-go, have fun as you take another persons junk and turn it into a winning combination. Instructor: Matthew Paradela was a VEX Robotics sponsor in California and currently teaches science at Crater High School.
MAG-LEV CARS
Design and construct a vehicle of the future which defies both gravity and friction. Explore and harness the forces of magnetic attraction and repulsion, electricity, and wind in this workshop-based project. Instructor: Paul Hampton has two masters and bachelors degrees. He teaches AP and Honors Chemistry and Physics, and is currently teaching at South Medford High School.
