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Students provide innovative support for nonprofits

April 28, 2005

Students in the E-Projects in Community Service (EPICS) course at UW–Madison will showcase the final products on May 2 of their work supporting numerous nonprofit organizations.

All semester, the student teams have been designing Web sites, building Web-based information systems, creating logos and developing marketing materials at no cost on behalf of the civic groups. Those projects will be on display and students will be on hand to discuss their work at the spring 2005 EPICS Expo on Monday, from 4:45-6:30 p.m. in the Engineering Centers Building, 1550 Engineering Drive. The event is open to the public.

EPICS is an innovative UW–Madison course that creates partnerships between teams of undergraduate and graduate students and nonprofit organizations. Students in the EPICS program work with clients to solve design, marketing, engineering and information systems problems. The interdisciplinary course brings together students of diverse skills and backgrounds from fields such as engineering, art, business and journalism.

“We know these services are much needed by nonprofit organizations,” says Fred Bradley, a professor in materials science and engineering. “We think it’s a great match between the needs of the community and the skills of UW–Madison students.”

Projects this spring include:

  • A Web project for the National Voting Rights Museum and Institute (NVRMI) in Selma, Ala. This project grew out a partnership between UW–Madison students and the museum that dates back several years. The museum’s Web site hadn’t been updated in more than four years, so students rebuilt the site and launched it just in time for a 40th anniversary celebration of the signing of the Voting Rights Act of 1965.
  • A new Web site and marketing materials for the River Alliance of Wisconsin, a group devoted to protecting and restoring Wisconsin’s rivers and streams. The Web design was a complete overhaul and marketing materials included and online invitation and display board.
  • A complete marketing campaign for the Even Start Family Literacy program, which offers early childhood, adult education and parenting programs aimed at breaking the cycle of poverty and illiteracy. The students designed a Web site, build a staff and volunteer scheduling database, created new graphic identity materials and produced a video that will help parents teach children to read.

EPICS invites applications from prospective client organizations for the fall 2005 semester. Applications are due by May 27 and can be obtained by contacting Katherine Loving at (608) 263-5714, kaloving@wisc.edu