Degree Project Timeline

Degree Project Timeline [Amanda Laffoon]

WEDNESDAY 2/16

update process book with form ideas and book experiment

begin brain storming for branding elements (webs)

set up temporary blog

FRIDAY 2/18

use the webs to begin naming and logo concepts 3 logo concepts due

collect book from family

WEDNESDAY 2/23

4 other ideas for tangible tools that could go in this system

update process book

refinement on all 3 logo concepts

FRIDAY 2/25

have book thing refined/ with new tool

refinement on all 3 logo concepts

add elements to blog to add interaction

MONDAY 2/28 SR. SHOW SUBMISSIONS DUE

WEDNESDAY 3/2

update process book

add elements to blog to add interaction

all brand elements and begin flushing out all other attributes

FRIDAY 3/4 MIDTERM PRESENTATION

WEDNESDAY 3/9

collect booklet stuff

update process book

document blog process

refinement of brand direction

have interviewed the participated families for any last feedback about form and content

FRIDAY 3/11

Final pieces determined to start

artifact decision

SPRING BREAK

WEDNESDAY 3/23

3 directions for main page/ home screen

FRIDAY 3/25

2 directions for home screen + 2 pages

WEDNESDAY 3/30

initial iterations for advertisement pieces

update process book

tighten up layouts

FRIDAY 4/1

rework branding to meet current style

have all pages designed

WEDNESDAY 4/6

update process book

apply feedback from families to layouts

refinement to advertisement

FRIDAY 4/8

all layouts refined

all blurb spreads considered

print ad work

WEDNESDAY 4/13 1^ST PRELIMINARY PRESENTATION

refinement

update process book

print first round blurb book

FRIDAY 4/15

refinement to advertisement

feedback and refinement

show families my project-homework

WEDNESDAY 4/20 2^nd PRELIMINARY PRESENTATION

refinement, re work/ print ad stuff

send off blurb book?

FRIDAY 4/22

feedback and refinement

get my ad stuff off to production

WEDNESDAY 4/27 FINAL PRESENTATION OF PROJECT

relaxation

Degree Project Process

Amanda Laffoon

Degree Project

February 8, 2011

The quest to land a concise topic for my senior degree project has taken a few twist and turns. When I first began my initial research last semester. The main question I was trying to answer through my project was“How can help to raise awareness of cervical cancer among teenage girls ages 15-20?” With this question in mind I started doings some investigating–what causes cervical cancer? I was given some information from the educational director at Planned Parenthood, that girls are becoming sexually active around the age of 12. This information really sent me over the edge, I had no idea. I found, and most would agree, that if a 12 year is having sex she is in some desperate need of guidance and support. However the problem here is that the girls are not talking to their parents and they don’t know what is going on in their impressionable daughters lives. It was in this realization that my direction should be less on sexuality of teen girls and more towards helping that age group communicate more efficiently with their parents.

The relationship between a teenage girl and her parents is one of the most intense of all relationships. The teen is trying to find their identity apart from the family unit. This usually comes in the form of rebellion and a need for separation. While the parents are trying to protect their baby girl from the big bad world, putting a lot of pressure on the bond. This push and pull concept could be settled through communication. Which leads me to where my project is going, my plan is to create tools in which promote positive conversation between parents and their teenage daughter. This can be through both parties just talking more than they do currently, or maybe finding alternative ways for them to stay up to date on each others lives. Communications will not only help the specific relationship of the parents and teen but could also help the family stay close for years to follow.

So with the topic ironed out and the main problem of communication pin pointed. It is time to start considering what form these "communication tools" will take. One design solution could be a kit type of approach where a family with a teenage girl would receive (I am not quite sure how they would receive it yet.) But this packet could included an activity book for the parents and teen daughter to fill out together. As well as other items all with the same purpose of invoking conversations between the involved parties. My hope is that these activities would help the daughters get to know their parents more, in hopes of feeling more understood. Also this would involve some listening and some talking by both participants.

My second hypothetical design solution would be to take the same purpose as the kit, but use the abundant resource of technology in which to host it. I am imagining this becoming almost an online blog that can be accessed only by the parents and the daughter (or other family members if invited.) This blog could act as a “safe place” for the individuals to share stories, ask questions, and just all around communicate. I will need to see if teenage girls feel more comfortable talking one-on-one to their parents about sensitive topics such as personal issues. Or if they would feel more comfortable and less award writing it down or even typing in out in a post. I really like where the idea of this online blog is going. Not only because this would not only be useful to the parent teen relationship at the time, but will also help to stay in touch long after the teenage years have passed. This blog could even help them keep in touch when the teen girl goes off to college. This blog then become an archive of the relationship over the years to go back and remember the past all documented out.

This is still a little rough but it is a start and I am really happy with my new direction towards communication.

DP:Degree Project Thoughts

My degree project has been quite a topic of conversation since I first selected my topic back in December. Over the winter break I did alot of research about cervical cancer and the gardisil shot. I talked to many girls and their mothers only to learn that most girls in my target audience have received the Gardisil shot. So my assumptions that girls where not getting the shot due to its association to teen sex was false. Parents are all about prevention and the shot has been made available to these girls at their pediatrician as just part of their typical vaccinations. This makes since on why I was effected and alot of my friends because when we were in my target age group the shot was new and non of us got it. However that seems to no longer be as large of an issue than I originally thought. But what I learned from this is that parents are all for prevention. So this may be a way to word my campaign as to not attract negative attention from the parent force.

I have also spoke with 2 people from planned parenthood Tammy Allensworth, and Sarah XXXXX. Tammy passed along some general information about who attends the clinics and their basic views on teen sexuallity. Also I wondered what most patients are getting treated for. I however was able to talk alot with Sarah how is the midwest chapter educational leader for Planned Parenthood. I confronted her about some of the information I found on their educational web site.

Where it stated that "Teens dont need to attend the gynecologist until they are 21 or three years after their first sexual encounter."

She said she was unaware that is what the site said, and she would look into it. She told me the average age of urban girls to become sexually active it 12...12...OMG!

So with learning this information I decided that girls really would not be the ones best reached by my campaign because if they are making those sexual decisions at such young age they are problaly not mature enough to approach their parent or take the initiative to get themselves checked out. I dont even think that age group is aware of the consequences of their actions. This leads me to believe that parents are how I need to speak to. I need to open parents of teen girls's eyes was to what is really going on with them or their age group. Parents need to become more proactive in the protection prevention and safety of their teens.

Being a girl/women is heard work we have many difficult things to deal with not only each month, but every day. Puberty is a very gross and confusing time when with you are adding things like having sex it gets alot more complicated. If things like this are ignored thats when health issues like stds, hpv, and cervical cancer can arise.

I still believe that my key insight is that the average age for teen girls to become sexually active is 15.5 while the average age to attend the gynecologist for the first time is 18. That leaves 2.5 years where the girls could be infected and has no idea!

DP:Assumptions

As I have been doing my research towards my degree project I have developed a healthy list of assumptions that I can use to as potential experiments to further my project. I am assuming:

-while the age range of teen girls to become sexually active is 12-18 I assume 16 is typical

-most teen girls are not attending the gyno until they are 18

-teens first gyno visit is because of a problem not just for general check-up

-teens are not talking openly with their parents

-teens are not using protection

-teens are not always with a steady partner, no more the 6 months

-not fully informed/ in-tuned with their bodies

-not on birth control

-have not received their gardisil shot

-parents are out of touch with their teen girls

-girls are uncomfortable talking about sex

- not fully developed

-not being carful with their bodies

-not talking to their partners about their sexual health

-parents dont want to know what their girls are doing

I will be adding to this list as I go along in my research. These assumptions need to be turned into facts!!!

Senior Degree Project

The 2 different direction I am really wanting to focus on and start to learn more about for my senior degree project are.....CERVICAL CANCER and CYBER BULLYING.

With the topic of Cervical Cancer there are many different avenues in which I could approach this issue and frame my degree project. First there is awareness that this is effecting 1 out of 8 teenage girls. Also there is understanding what it means and what effects if can have on your health and future. Then there is the whole issue of treatments. Cervical cancer is a very controversial topic in the medical world right now. Many doctors have very conflicting views and opinions was to the best method for helping it. Then having this invasive issue really is a lot for these young girls and women to cope with so they need to feel a sense of community and compassion to get them through this challenging time. There are so many different problems and ways that graphic design can make this very prominent yet rarely understood cancer understood a its victims addressed........also for those of you who did know I was diagnosed with cervical cancer cells in February of 2007 then again in June, I am cancer free now I still have to worry about it all the time and the stress that comes along with it.

from here I would want to see if there is an organization I could pair up with to make meaningful and implementable work towards this cause I care so much about.

The next ideal I am wanting to work with the hot topic of bullying. But my mom is an elementary school teacher and she was talking with some parents about my project ideas and she came in contact with a man from the Raymore Optimist Club and they were wanting to do some type of work with the issue of Cyber bullying because there has been an outbreak of it in out middle and high schools. I really like the ida of doing this because it is a real type of client and it would be helping kids from my hometown and in my brothers grade. The only problem is this project is not going to be one anytime soon so I will need to check with them on what they are wanting and the timespan in which they will want it completed. Also I dont want to run into the problem of them having preset things that they want, I need to be able to determine the corse of the project.