OurBlood
A VR Sickle Cell Anemia Education Program
For those affected by the disease & the community that supports them. Developed as part of TAMU Coursework
Final Group Presentation
Individual Project Overview
Skills Developed
INTERVIEW & RESEARCH EXPERIENCE
This project benefitted from a more detailed research stage than I had encountered previously. I personally analyzed educational sites, medical journals, and various studies to become the team member with the most subject-matter expertise. I also learned how to interview field experts (medical doctors and hospital staff) to gather information for program development.
FLEXIBILITY IN UNPRECEDENTED TIMES
I had to respond to many daily situations in a way that pushed me to develop my flexibility. This was our coursework for the semester (Spring 2020) that turned virtual. The development of the take-it-one-day-at-a-time attitude I had to call upon to complete this project was a hard, yet highly valuable, lesson for a planner like myself.
LEADERSHIP: DELEGATION VS TAKEOVER
As the team lead on this project, I learned firsthand about balancing trusting your team with stepping in as needed to meet goals. A few weeks in, I realized a more junior teammate had volunteered for a role that was more than their current skillset. Through trial and error, I now have a toolbelt for providing support in continued delegation & knowing when to roll up your sleeves alongside your teammate to meet your goals together.
Turns out you can’t just google ‘How To Draw a VR Storyboard’ and get a standard answer…
Studio & Deliverable Specifics
Spring 2020 Interactive Media Studio - an on campus studio setup that moved to a virtual setup by mid-semester.
Our professors brought in real clients from different industries and areas, from inside Texas A&M and outside of university, too.
Groups of 3 students per project (2 juniors and 1 sophomore for our group - all other groups had a senior).
13 weeks of project work, minus class & project introductions and presentation days.
Fred Freeman from Thomas Jefferson University was our client and introduced us to his partnership with Nemours Children’s Hospital. Fred is working on developing medically-minded interactive media and digital environment programs for Thomas Jefferson and Nemours. So, while he was a client for our studio and had a project for us to develop, he was also learning how Texas A&M Visualization Interactive Media Studios worked and the process behind our undergrad student work. Our professors felt our group and project idea was the perfect showcase of the TAMU studio workflow.
< I really enjoy physical sketching in the beginning stages.
Using ink helps me to be definitive in what marks I make and to iterate instead of erasing. Wide swipes of oil pastels help me test the color ideas swirling in my brain, too.