'Dear Mr. President' Project Gives CSUN Community a Voice

Thursday, 23 October 2008

Do you have something you want to say to the next president of the United States of America? Do you have a personal story or concern you want to share about this historic election? Faculty, staff, students and community members have until Thursday, Nov. 6, to visit Cal State Northridge's own version of the MTV-styled "confessional" booth. The confessional booth is part of cinema and television arts lecturer Geri Ulrey's project: Dear Mr. President. The project involves the use of a mobile video booth located in a miniature house that travels around campus. Faculty, staff, students and visitors to campus are invited to record a video message addressed to the next president of the United States of America. Participants are encouraged to share personal stories, feelings and thoughts about their lives.The video messages will be organized, streamed from the project's Web site and mailed to theWhite House. "My desire is to engage with young people regarding the political process," said Ulrey, who collaborated with the Art Department and several student organizations in designing the project and the house. "I believe that it is really important for people to hear themselves speak." Geri Ulrey, Cinema and TelevisionArtsDepartment lecturer, instructs student Kemi George on how to balance the lighting for the camera used to record Dear Mr. President project letters. The project will be recording messages on campus at various locations untilNov. 6. Geri Ulrey, Cinema and TelevisionArtsDepartment lecturer, instructs student Kemi George on how to balance the lighting for the camera used to record Dear Mr. President project letters. The project will be recording messages on campus at various locations untilNov. 6. The video house is open now through Nov. 6 at various locations on campus. Ulrey, the project producer and director, said the project is nonpartisan. She plans to send the footage to the campaigns of both Sens. John McCain and Barack Obama, no matter who wins on Nov. 4. The project was funded through a grant from CSUN's Judge Julian Beck Learning-Centered Instructional Projects. Beck grants are awarded to faculty to provide students with opportunities to actively engage in and ultimately become responsible for their own learning. Projects must be completed in one year and all faculty and staff are eligible to submit projects, either individually or as a group. Ulrey said students are involved at all levels in the project, from inviting visitors to taping messages and editing and uploading the messages. "This is an opportunity to bring art to large numbers of people who wouldn't ordinarily have the opportunity, and to involve students on all levels," said Kim Abeles, professor of art. She said art students helped design the Victorian style miniature house as an on-campus public art piece. The idea for the house design came out of the notion that individuals are most comfortable talking about issues in cozy chairs in their own home, she added. "It's portable, yet it's also a cozy place,"Abeles added. So far, nearly a hundred students, faculty and staff have taped messages with themes ranging from concerns about the economy to health care. During his tapedmessage, student Shahar Aframian said he was concerned about taxes, gas prices and the economy. "I think those issues are more important than Iraq and the war," he added. For more information about the project, visit www.dearmrpresident08.org.