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A PARTNERSHIP IN PRINT WITH CAMDEN HIGH SCHOOL

At the Camden (NJ) High School print shop, the quality of the work speaks for itself.

But first, a word from one of the shop’s customers – Volunteers of America Delaware Valley.

“We’re very pleased with the promotional materials the students are producing for us,” Development Director James Wynn says. “We have a great partnership with Camden High.”
 
Ja’Nell  McRae, who oversees the print shop and teaches printing and graphic arts, is likewise proud of her students – and very pleased to partner with Volunteers of America Delaware Valley. She notes that funds generated by the printing the shop does for outside organizations goes into a scholarship program for students who want to pursue careers in printing and graphic arts. “Volunteers of America is one of the major contributors to the scholarship,” Ja’Nell says.

The partnership began after Kelli Wright, Volunteer Coordinator at Volunteers of America Delaware Valley, privately contacted Ja’Nell regarding a family printing job. Like James (and Ja’Nell as well), Kelli is a Camden High graduate, and the connection   ultimately led to the shop producing materials for our Oscar Night 2009 event.

“They did a great job,” James says, noting the school has since done ‘save the date’ cards for our Pro-Am Golf Tournament and Operation Blessing.

One reason for the quality of the material is certainly the creativity of Ja’Nell and her students; another is the state-of-the-art technology in the shop, which comes courtesy of Xerox. The company has furnished technology to schools in Philadelphia and Atlantic City as well.

“What we have is comparable to what you find in smaller commercial print shops,” Ja’Nell says. “The kids work hard. We all work in teams, the same as at a business…We sit around the table and toss ideas around. We lay them out. Then we bring the client in and sit down with the client. We run the job and check for quality and proof it out and run it.”

Doing work for actual clients means “we see our work out in the world,” Ja’Nell adds. “It’s rewarding for the kids, because not only do they get the opportunity to raise money for the scholarship fund, but various clients spotlight the students at events, and they get to meet the students who produced the material…For someone else to say ‘wow’ at what my kids do makes me smile.”

It’s gratifying for the students as well.

“It’s kind of great working on projects because you get to see other people user your work,” says Bria Epps, a junior. 

Ashley Watson, a junior, enjoys the opportunity to “show how creative we are. We do a lot of brainstorming.”

Bashima Murphy, a senior, says the outside printing jobs “are a lot of fun, and since I know what I’m doing, it’s not that hard.”

Printing “takes a lot of thinking,” observes Vincent Graham, a junior. “I like to figure out what new idea can I do.”