Opening Letter

As a graphic designer, mentor, friend, and gentle soul, Ira Yarbrough has left an impeccable legacy on CATS. Having respect for each and  every component of CATS, Ira offered his friendship, time, and wisdom to Directors and a plethora of former student  workers. Unknowingly, Ira’s time and efforts have helped cultivate leaders and define what CATS is today. Ira has set an atmosphere conducive to hopefulness...

IHEC and CATS Multimedia Collab for The Motivational Intervention

David Closson filming on set in WEIU's green room. Over the summer, CATS Multimedia and IHEC (Illinois Higher Education Center) had the chance to  collaborate on The Motivational Interventions for College Drinkers  DVD. This project composed of an introduction, first section, and second section. The premise of this project is an interaction between a college counselor and a student seeking help with his drinking habit.  The...

New Learning Module Implemented into Multistep Problems on D2L

Aiming to enhance the way students have learned multistep problems, Dr. John V. Cabage, an assistant professor in the school of technology, has developed a method he believes will accomplish this goal. Using randomized variable problems (each student receiving a different homework problem), he believes that he has a  cheat-proof and a highly interactive way for students to learn mathematical problems.  Despite the constraints,...

Technology and Biology Go Hand-in-Hand

For Dr. Gary Bulla, Professor and Associate Chair of the Biology department, research has never been about reaching an end-point but obtaining as much knowledge as possible. His most recent research project, titled The Genomic Analysis of Liver Function, has proven this idea to be true. Lasting over four years, Dr. Bulla, with the help of graduate assistants and student workers, has worked diligently to understand what makes the liver...

Reflections of Ira By Michael Babcock

 I had the privilege of sharing an office with Ira for eight years. We shared a lot. We shared stories, thoughts and feelings about everything from the disheveled squirrel outside our office window to confidences I have only shared with a handful of good friends in my life.   Ira had a pleasant calm about him, a warmth and ease. He had a great sense of humor and loved to laugh. If i were to do the math (and i just did), I...

Tempestas and CATS Multimedia Rejoin for Expedition Taiwan

This past summer, CATS Multimedia and Tempestas et Caelum production team once again collaborated for  Expedition Taiwan. The expedition lasted 15 days and was lead by Mr. Cameron Craig, documentarian and  instructor within the Geology-Geography department. The intention for this trip was to document and capture intimate moments in hopes of exposing raw, true experiences while in Taiwan. Mr. Craig and Tempestas Production...

Web Office Gives EIU Homepage a Facelift

The Fall 2015 semester brings with it a new look for Eastern Illinois University’s website as the Web Office launches the latest iteration of its homepage. “A redesign is necessary to keep things modern and continue to meet the ever-changing expectations of our prospective students,” explains Ryan Gibson, CATS director of web services. The university website’s last  redesign came in 2012. “We’re also using all the most recent...

Michael Babcock: A Man With a Vision by Dustin White

There’s no such thing as “downtime” for CATS videographer Michael Babcock; his work is always in demand, and the past few months have been no exception.  “Over the last two years, we’ve averaged over a video per week out of this office,” said Babcock, whose  award-winning work is featured all over EIU’s website and is also used for  recruiting purposes when prospective students are on  campus for visits. Babcock...

CATS Alumni Spotlight: Jamie Kemp

Coming from Springfield, Ill., Jamie Kemp has proven herself to be a valuable component of the Center for Academic Technology Support for quite some time.  Beginning her student worker position in 2009, Jamie worked for Michael Babcock. With Babcock, she engaged with the world of video editing  along with minor graphic design projects. Through the close relationship with Babcock, she then was introduced to Antoine Thomas, the...

Role of CATS in Cooperation with High School

One of the most satisfying projects that one can accomplish is when we face a new, exciting situation while stretching our skills to deliver quality work. Mr. Mark F. Johnson, assistant to the Dean for  Academic Technology for the College of Sciences, talks about his experience of taking photos and filming in the chemistry lab at EIU.  The "Chemistry: The Central Science" textbook Customized Edition for EIU The project...

Student Disability Services Intends to Change Learning Techniques with Captioning

With the aid of CATS Multimedia, Student Disability Services has cultivated what they intend to be a universal design that helps meet all the needs of students. Through captioning classroom videos, movies, lectures, and other various visual materials, they are able to accomplish a goal that  predominately serves few but provides assistance to all. According to Kathy Waggoner, the Director of Student Disability Services, the captioning...

A Collaboration to Bring Campaigns to Life for Illinois Premier Boys' State

“Advertisement for this organization [was] key.” Over the summer, Gabriel Grant, an instructor in the school of technology and coordinator for Digital Printing Laboratory, had some assistance while filming the campaigns used for the Illinois Premier Boys’ state. With the helping hand of CATS Multimedia, the young men were able to learn  post-production editing and how to utilize video equipment.  While the young men were...

The Proliferation of Social Media Platforms within the FCS department

From the birth of the centennial celebration to the emergence of Pinterest within classrooms, there has been a drastic change in the manner of communication to promote various ideas and content on and off campus. Dr. Michelle (Mikki) Sherwood “What I notice is that through our Pinterest post, a gateway is opened that allows people to explore Eastern Illinois University” says Dr. Michelle Sherwood, an Interim assistant chair and...