When I saw them for first time several years ago, I wondered how it would feel to draw with a tablet. I thought that only fashion designers used them… I was wrong.

Luckily, a few weeks ago, I had the chance to try one BAMBOO Wacom tablet that the Keck Center has, in companion with Illustrator, the well know drawing program for graphic designers.

I can only say good things about it and here I am sharing with you some tips in case you want to try this wonderful tool. Since abstract thinking when talking about this kind of tools can get very tricky, I will do it while I design a poster for The Keck Center Short Film Festival hosted by the language interns next semester.

First of all, open a new document and make sure you choose the adequate size of paper.

Before you start your design, I would recommend you to show the rulers, the background grid and the guides. (Click the bottom on the pen and the menu will show up) None of them would appear in the printed version and they will help you with the composition.

Drawing with the tablet is a piece of cake, especially if you have the drawing already done in paper since you just have to literally draw on it with the pen on the tablet.

One of the coolest things when drawing in Illustrator is that the lines have two main qualities: the stroke and the interior. (Obviously only a closed line has an interior) And we can change these properties selecting our element/piece of drawing with the Black Arrow.

As I just named it, here are two main editing tools:
The Black Arrow aims to change just the proportions and properties of the whole selected element, and the White Arrow would just change the position of the selected part of the whole element. (Which means that if you want to move just a corner to make a shape different, you will need the white arrow, whereas if you want to change the position of the text box, you would need the black arrow.)

Adding text it’s easy as well, just select the tool Text and draw the size of the text box you want to write in. Once you have introduced the text, it can be edited.

For the design of this poster, I decided to draw a few lines on the figures of the image, and I would them to look like a water color print, so I had chosen the strokes that look like water color and I will chose a bluish color for them.

The easiest way to do it was by drawing the lines first and then, with the Black Arrow, edit their stroke and color. With the white arrow we can also change their dimensions.

Hoping this post will be helpful for those students interested in graphic design, I encourage you to come to the Keck Center and try this amazing tools and apps.

There are many things we can do with Illustrator: logos, covers for theses, posters for our events, flyers, birthday cards or just turn your hand drawings into a digital reality, easy to modify, reproduce and share.

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With support from the Lampert Institute, students can apply for scholarships to support intensive summer language study. These scholarships are meant to support current Colgate students in one or more of the following ways:

• Students who are interested in an intensive and immersive language study over the summer;
• Students who want to study a language not currently taught at Colgate;
• Students who would like to advance their language study in order to participate on a language-based Colgate study group;
• Advanced students who wish to study beyond the levels currently offered at Colgate or to conduct independent research in a foreign language;
• Students whose language study at Colgate has been interrupted by course conflicts or illness;
• Students who would like to participate in a language and cultural immersion program abroad.

Language programs located both within the U.S. and abroad may be supported. Students should work with Colgate professors to determine a reputable language program, and one that fills an important curricular need for the student. Funds can be made available to cover the program fees and travel costs associated with participating in the program.

Students can request up to $3,000 to support the costs of the intensive language summer program and/or travel to the program. Priority will be given to students on financial aid at Colgate. Requests by students studying languages that are consistent with the mission of the Lampert Institute are especially encouraged; the Lampert Institute promotes language study and travel in the following regions: Africa, Asia, the Middle East, or South/Central America. However, students studying languages from other regions will also be considered.

The Language Council at Colgate will review student proposals and make funding decisions. For more information, interested students should contact Aaron Solle, program coordinator for the Lampert Institute and Center for International Programs, by email (asolle@colgate.edu). Applications should be submitted by email to Aaron Solle by February 4, 2016.

Applying for a Summer Language Scholarship

Please include:

1. A personal statement describing the program in which you would like to participate and the reasons for doing so. Please provide specific details, including the name and description of the program, dates of participation, the level of language instruction offered at the program, and the estimated costs of the program (including travel costs). Feel free to list an alternative program as a back-up. Also discuss your goals for participating in the program, and how the program will supplement your academic plan. Please indicate in the statement if you are on financial aid. Limit your personal statement to one page. If relevant, please indicate the other sources of Colgate funding that you are applying for to support your summer language program (e.g., Career Services. summer research).
2. One letter of recommendation from a Colgate faculty member that provides a rationale for participating in the language program and an assessment of the student’s ability for successfully completing the program. The letter should be emailed directly to Professor Simpson.

If you are considering transferring the credit back to Colgate, you must work with the registrar’s office to get pre-approval for the credit well before the program begins. The transfer credit will follow the transfer credit policies at Colgate. Transfer credit that is not pre-approved by Colgate will not be considered after the program is complete. Upon completion of the intensive summer language program, students will be asked to write a brief report about their experience.

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