Learning the creative and invention process is most often seen within specific majors on a college campus. It is not unusual to find new venture courses within a College of Business or courses focused on the creative process within a School of Art. However, higher education institutions often lack the opportunity for students to cross-collaborate among disciplines as they work in multidisciplinary teams.
The Computer Graphics Technology program is offering a first-of-its-kind course focused on the process of invention that will allow not only its’ own students to learn the process of invention but do so with students from multiple programs. Students will have the opportunity to not only learn the process of invention but will have the opportunity invent themselves as they learn techniques in ideation to non-disclosure agreements and patents. Denise Chapman Weston, primary instructor of the course is a respected inventor in the entertainment industry with multiple patents and inventions such as MagiQuest and Magic Campfire. Students will not only have the opportunity to learn from Weston but will also have the opportunity to learn alongside guests such as Sir Richard Taylor, owner of Weta Workshop and many others.
While the Spring 2022 course is considered a pilot the program plans to expand use of the curriculum to multiple courses across the IUPUI campus. Christian Rogers, Director of the Computer Graphics Technology stated “This course allows IUPUI to be set apart as a leader in multidisciplinary learning which is truly unique to higher education.”