ComMentor - Spring 2021 - Flipbook - Page 5
Wrapped in Pride
Mentor High School student Olivia Indre wins Laketran design contest
Olivia Indre on a Laketran bus wrapped with her winning design
R
esidents who see a snazzy new
Laketran bus on the streets
with the “For a Greener Future” theme can be proud to
know a Mentor High School
student designed the vehicle wrap.
High school senior Olivia Indre’s design
was selected by a panel of transit employees, graphic artists and community leaders
from multiple entries to Laketran’s Design
a Bus Wrap art contest. Her design will be
displayed on one of Laketran’s local route
buses for six months.
“The first time I saw my bus, I was sitting
on my living room couch. My parents were
home, and I just yelled, ‘Look out the window, look out the window,’” Olivia says. “It
felt so surreal, I would never imagine my art
to just be passing by my house, you know?”
Olivia worked on her masterpiece as
part of the Digital Arts and Design class at
Mentor High School. This is a new course
that was developed to help students make
real-world connections to available careers
in art and technology fields as part of the
district’s push to increase offerings for students that amplify its focus on college and
Olivia’s full design
career readiness pathways.
By working closely with community partners, the district is learning more about the
workforce development needs that currently exist in Mentor, identifying skills gaps
and working to provide unique opportunities for students to learn and grow in fields
where careers are available. A lot of this is
done through the district’s Career Technical Education programs, but also elective
courses such as Digital Arts and Design can
help students gauge interest without the
time commitment of a career tech course in
their schedule. Additionally, many of these
courses help students develop skill sets that
can lead to industry recognized credentials
or even earn such credentials while they’re
still in high school.
When Art Teacher Heidi Toot learned
about the Laketran contest, she knew it
would be a perfect fit for the Digital Arts
and Design class and assigned the bus wrap
project to her students. The goal was for
students to showcase a Lake County Pride
theme. It was a fantastic way for students
to demonstrate their creativity along with
what they were learning in class through
this real-word experience. Another student
in the class, Erik Shelstad, placed third
among high schoolers in the contest.
Olivia says her bus design highlights
public transit and the environmental benefits it brings, especially Laketran’s efforts to
cut down on fuel dependency and air pollution, helping to create a better future for the
local community. The new artistic wrap was
very much a community effort, too, with
Avery Dennison Graphics Solutions donating the vinyl material used to wrap the bus.
Laketran was kind enough to bring
the bus to Mentor High School so Olivia
and her classmates could see it up close
and personal.
The contest made a huge impact on Olivia, who was able to create a design that was
not only functional, but also something
professional that could go on a future resume to start her design career.
“I’m very honored to have my art on a
bus, and I never thought that my art would
be on something so big,” Olivia says. “It’s
a great opportunity, especially as someone
who’s aspiring to go into graphic design in
the future.”
Congratulations, Olivia!
Your portfolio is off to a
great start!
You can hear more from
Olivia by visiting Cardinal
TV YouTube or following
the QR Code to the right.
Spring 2021 / Mentor Public Schools
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