PictureIt JMU

PictureIt!JMU | 1

PictureIt JMU!Fall 2006 - Spring 2010

Capturing the JMU experience through the eyes of students Office of Institutional Research James Madison University Harrisonburg, Virginia

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There is an old adage that says, “a picture is worth a thousand words.” Typical re-search on undergraduate students focuses on quantitative data gleaned from surveys, tests, interviews and other means. In fact, the research conducted by the JMU Office of Institutional Research for more than 35 years has focused on collecting and analyz-ing demographic and survey data about students and faculty. These data have been enormously useful in helping management make important decisions about JMU. The collection and dissemination of these data will continue. However, there is far more to be learned about the JMU undergraduate experience that numerical and survey data cannot show. The purpose of the PictureIt JMU! project is to gain knowledge through images and discussions about these images that can be used to improve the JMU undergraduate experience.

In 2005, JMU’s student affairs and university planning division (SAUP) first provid-ed innovation grants to division departments, totaling $150,000. In 2006, the division funded OIR’s PictureIt JMU! to learn about the Madison Experience through the eyes, images and comments of 18 freshmen. A sampling of freshmen were invited to partici-pate via e-mails sent to them during the summer prior to their first semester. Incentives included moving into residence halls a day early, a photo book of their first year, food, a generous stipend and listening ears.

In the first year of the project, during three two-week periods (Orientation and first week of classes, early November and mid-March), these students took pictures of what was important to them. They documented their personal, social and academic lives from their first day in the dorms as freshmen to their final semester as seniors. They uploaded the pictures to flickr.com, a picture-sharing Web site, and they joined OIR staff as well as other JMU faculty and staff members in conversations about their images. Through their pictures and discussions with them, OIR staff learned what it is like to be a JMU freshman, how they adjusted to college life and how they changed.

The project was so well received by these students and the university community that the project continued for four years. The project’s focus then shifted from explain-ing a student’s first-year experiences to showing how students change over the course of four years. OIR staff have seen the changes the participants have gone through, from having similar experiences the first year to having more specialized experiences in the following three years.

Many of the photographs from this project have been showcased in various galler-ies on campus and have been published in university publications. The photos have been shown in Festival’s Prism Gallery, Warren Hall’s Transitions and the Institute for Visual Studies Gallery, among others. Various photos have also been used by the Of-fice of Admissions in Sonner Hall. The photos have been printed in the Summer 2007 Madison Magazine, the official magazine of the university. The pictures also appeared on the Current Students section of the JMU Web site. The PictureIt JMU! Web site has been viewed more than 30,000 times.

The accolades and amount of data this project has amounted may seem over-whelming, but OIR wants to share the information from the project with prospective students and their families as well as university professors. Through this project, pro-fessors and staff hopefully can gain a better understanding of what freshman are going through their first year, aside from their coming into the classroom and learning. Fac-ulty and staff are encouraged to review the photos to see if their students’ experiences reflect the experiences shown in the project photos.

Doherty hopes to duplicate this unique project with a new class of freshman in the years to come. Until then, this project will enjoy the position of being the only project to Doherty’s knowledge that extensively documents the experiences of students through-out their undergraduate years using the dynamic medium of photography.

This publication will highlight the concluding sentiments of the core group of stu-dents who have remained with the project until its final year.

Some information from PictureIt JMU! wiki.

OIR & PictureIt JMU! Dr. Frank Doherty Director

Chuck DeHartAssistant Director

Peter De MicheleAssistant Director

Lou HedrickAssistant Director

Tina GraceInformation Technology

Elaine SmithOffice Manager

Lindsay MayberryGraduate Assistant ’09-’10

Whitney SmileyGraduate Assistant ’09-’10

Lauren KershnerGraduate Assistant ’07-’09

Julianna NemitzGraduate Assistant ’06-’07

Anna YoungPublication Intern

About OIR:The OIR assists the university in the pursuit of its mission by dynamically and efficiently supporting decision-making, accountability and planning.

Our primary functions are:n developing, collecting and communi-cating measures of institutional effec-tivenessn providing management information and policy analysisn promoting the university’s planning processn compiling and reporting mandated information

We value honesty, integrity, accuracy, time-liness, responsiveness, community, innova-tion, accountability and foresight.

Office of Institutional ResearchJames Madison University

Driver Drive Modular, MSC 3803Phone: (540) 568-6830

Fax: (540) 568-7846

What is PictureIt JMU!?

PictureIt!JMU | 3

CONTENTS04 Themes

05 Dr. Frank Doherty

06 Alex Concilus

07 Amanda Predel

08 Anna Young

09 Cassie Potler

10 Colin Greene

11 Dam Mallya

12 Danielle Garrigan

13 Danny Lanphier

14 Erica Claxton (Kuelz)

15 Julie Irizarry

16 Lianne Loizou

17 Lydia Porter

18 Michelle Loomis

19 Trevor Wilhelm

What is PictureIt JMU!?

ON THE COVERTop: The final group portrait, taken Fall 2009 by Dr. Frank Doherty by the James Madison “Big Jimmy” statue outside the ISAT/HHS building

Bottom left: The first group portrait, taken Fall 2006 by Dr. Frank Doherty outside Taylor Hall after the group’s first orientation meeting

Bottom right: Taken Fall 2007 by JMU alum (’05)Casey Templeton inside the ISAT/HHS building

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n Orientation was a very important part of becoming a part of JMU: Most of the pictures from the first couple of weeks were about orientation. The students were kept very busy during Orientation and, for the most part, en-joyed it thoroughly. n Developing relationships: From

the very first day of the project, the overarching concern of virtually all students was to develop relation-ships. Very few of our students had friends from their high school who came to JMU. The students were very concerned about adjusting to roommates and finding new friends with shared interests. n Reassessing significant others:

Most of the students had boyfriends or girlfriends either at home, at an-other college or in the military. There were significant challenges to these relationships due to distance. n Academics: The most obvi-

ous thing about academics the first several months was the absence of discussion (and pictures) about academics. Students acknowledged going to classes and doing school-work, but the need for friendships so overwhelmed everything else that academics took a backseat. n New relationship with parents:

The students recognized that the relationship with their parents was changing, but were uncertain at first how to manage it. Some were looking forward to going home, but uncertain how it would be. Negotiating lifestyles at home such as curfew, room clean-liness, eating times, etc. had to be renegotiated. n Dealing with conflict: Not all

roommate and hallmate relationships were positive. Conflicting lifestyles, work habits, sleep habits, etc. were sources of conflict that had to be ne-gotiated. n Finding their place: Most of the

students welcomed their new free-doms, but it was a challenge to find groups and organizations that were compatible with their interests. The variety of choices were sometimes overwhelming, but most eventually found their place.n Harrisonburg community: Virtu-

ally all the students found Harrison-burg to be an inviting and warm place to attend college. They spoke often of the friendliness of the faculty and staff. n Seeing the need for, and becom-

ing more responsible: No one was

THEMES:What Was Learned in PictureIt! JMU

there to wake them in the morning, wash their clothes, fix their meals, etc. Gradually they became more confident in handling these chal-lenges.n Thinking about college careers:

The college class schedules and faculty were very different from high school. The workload was signifi-cantly harder and students had to be proactive in studying and asking for help from faculty. Some struggled academically during the first semes-ter, but appeared to have adjusted by the end of the year. n Keeping in touch: These students

are very connected with each other and friends via cell phone, text mes-saging, Facebook, e-mail, instant messaging, etc. Each student had a cell phone. This ability to have almost instant communication was a bless-ing and a curse. The ease with which they could take pictures and upload them to flickr.com contributed greatly to the success of the project. n

n More focused on academics: Each student talked about the op-portunities and challenges they face academically. Some are progressing quite well academically while others have experienced significant chal-lenges.n Focus changed from the campus

to the larger community: About half lived off-campus the second year and discovered the benefits and challenges of living off-campus. n Greater maturity in their own

eyes: During the large group meet-ings they viewed a slideshow of im-ages from the first year. They were amazed at the differences between the two years. n Dealing with stress: Students

had to deal with more stress than the first year, and most of them felt they had increased wisdom and self-con-fidence to deal with increased stress. Several had to pay for their entire un-dergraduate experience, so finances can be very stressful.n Real-life experiences: Students

believed their classes were more useful and related to their future than the first year. Several had on-campus jobs or activities similar to intern-ships. Students also admitted that the first year was more about finding friends and their “place” at JMU.n Finding their passions: Whether

it be the radio station, politics, pho-

tography, their majors, etc., many were extremely involved with these passions.n Harrisonburg no longer over-

whelming: Many have gotten out of the “JMU bubble” to experience the community. For several students Harrisonburg and JMU are now “home.”n Leaving JMU: Two of the stu-

dents left JMU after the second year. One did not get into the nursing pro-gram and other student was married in May. n

n Students understood how they were changing: They reflected on events when discussing their photos and the impact/significance of the im-age and associated subject. n Becoming more aware and delib-

erate when they take pictures: Stu-dents knew they wanted to capture experiences to include in the project. They know how to capture the “ordi-nary” and make it extraordinary.n Most students recognized they

are more than halfway through their undergraduate experience: These students felt pressures concerning their futures after college. Students also seemed to want to hold on to the experience and continue to make new memories at JMU.n A sense of place: Students cap-

tured personal experiences, showing that they had established their sense of place and now look out and toward the future.n Students still busy: Time man-

agement was cited as a challenge. Weekends became extremely impor-tant for relaxation and socialization. For some students, grades were not as important as before, whereas per-sonal experiences were surfacing as priorities.n Growing responsibilities: As stu-

dents continued to get older, they were aware of the level of responsi-bility and independence increasing too. Living off campus, but still in “student housing,” some experienced and were annoyed by irresponsible neighbors.n Social lives: The student’s pic-

tures captured what students do in their spare time, like visit downtown and go to the Obama Rally.n Impact of the ’08 financial crisis:

Personally, students did not spend as much money. Students felt JMU budget cuts through clubs and orga-

nizations and research opportunities. As a result of the economy, some students are reconsidering graduate school or other avenues to postpone the job search.n Money concerns: A topic that

every college student knows well... This semester, students took pictures of their financial frustrations (speed-ing ticket) and ways they are trying to save (not using the heat in the winter and wearing lots of layers of clothes instead).n Anxiety a daily occurrence: Defi-

nitely as a result of academics—the tests, papers and huge projects, but also at their jobs. n Religion and faith: From a trip

overseas to a particular book in Car-rier Library, students experienced their religious beliefs in many ways. For two students in particular, their church was a large source of support and leadership opportunities. n

n Preparation for the next step: Through classes and extracurricu-lars, students became more special-ized and focused in what they want to do after graduation.n Very packed schedules: Students

maintained hectic work and class schedules, while some volunteered and participated in multiple extra-curricular activities, a pattern seen throughout the four years, yet these activities seem to be more functional to their pursuing their future goals.n Wandering further and further

from the JMU bubble: Many students participated in international trips through study abroad programs or religious groups.n Filling in holes: Students were

encouraged to document any and all people, places or things they haven’t portrayed in their pictures from their college experience.n Financial responsibility: Some

students were trying to figure how to pay off college and bills and become financially independent from their parents.n Closest friends from college:

From their photos, students indicated that they wanted to capture the wan-ing time with their closest friends and “significant others.”n Very few academic pictures: As

in the first year there were hardly, if any, photos focusing on the aca-demic side of their undergraduate experience. n

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Dr. Frank DohertyTHE Man WITH THE PLan:

n Bachelor’s degree in elementary education from the University of Richmondn Master’s degree in counseling from the College of William & Maryn Doctorate in program evaluation from the University of Virginian Has been involved in Institutional Research since 1984.n Came to JMU in 1987 after be-ing the Institutional Research Coor-dinator at Lord Fairfax Community College in Luray, Virginian Taught undergraduate classes at James Madison Univeristy in the College of Education and the School of Communication Studiesn Has been the JMU Director of the Office of Institutional Research since 1992

T he only picture OIR Director Dr. Frank Doherty has from his college years is a dog-eared, faded ID card. Such is

not the case for the handful of students who participated in Doherty’s unique photojournalism project, PictureIt JMU!. These students now have hundreds of photos documenting their time spent at JMU.

More than a decade ago, Doherty traveled across the country to attend a conference for the Association of Insitu-tional Research in Seattle. While there, he heard about a project where students took pictures to document their experi-ences in certain classes.

“I thought it was neat idea but I didn’t know when I was going to do it, so it just kind of dropped out of my head, so to speak,” Doherty said.

In 2006, Doherty went to a meeting of the JMU directors of student affairs, where innovation grants were being dis-cussed. He immediately thought of the project he had heard about years earlier. The core of the PictureIt JMU! project was realized in about 20 minutes, when Dr. Doherty stopped listening to the presentation and starting scrawling his brainstorms. He had no doubt the project would be approved.

Two months later, Doherty was giv-en the go-ahead to pursue this unique project. Originally, Doherty envisioned recycling freshman classes through mul-tiple cycles. But when two students con-

vinced him to keep studying the same students, he decided to continue with the same freshman and document their time at JMU for four years.

“A lot of the initial thoughts for the project was to be able to tell the uni-versity community, through the eyes of a student, what it’s like to be an under-graduate,” Doherty said. “We wanted you to learn how to tell your story, create memories, to learn something about how to take photos, to become more self-aware of how you are changing.”

Thanks to this project, OIR has many photographs and personal statements to enrich their understanding of what it is like to be a student at JMU.

“Until this, all the research that we had done had been surveys, you know, quantitative,” Doherty said. “I have enough data sitting in our databases to do an incredible amount of studies, but it’s all numbers-based.”

Using photographs as qualitative data provides a much richer storyline to the mounds of data OIR has collected on student experiences. The regular small- and large-group interviews also provide depth to the photographs. The inter-views “definitely give substance behind the pictures to help us understand,” said Doherty, adding that interviews have been very genuine partly because of the warm and welcoming environment the OIR staff has created for the students.

Doherty would like to start this project again with a new class of freshman be-fore he eyes retirement. Since the Class of 2010 was the guinea pig group, there are still details to be ironed out, such as possibly adding assessments and being more deliberate in pushing the photo-journalism aspect of the project.

The photographs of these students have been gained campus-wide and even national notoriety. Arguably more important, however, are the memories that these students created throughout their time spent at JMU, thanks to the initiative of Doherty and his OIR staff.

Dr. Frank Doherty’s student ID card from the University of Richmond in 1973.

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ALEX CONCILUS

Future career plans: As of right now I want to move

down south and open my own break-fast restaurant at some point down the road.

What were your reasons for get-ting involved in the Pictureit! proj-ect?

I wanted to get involved early at JMU and I also had a previous inter-est in photography.

How have you changed since your freshman year?

I think I’ve opened up a lot more as far as meeting people and have really enjoyed getting off campus and exploring the surrounding area.

How have your pictures portrayed the changes you’ve gone through?

My pictures started out being mostly around campus and have since primarily been focused on things I have done outside of the “JMU bubble.”

How has PictureIt! helped you better understand or explain your college experience to yourself or others?

It has helped me see that I enjoy being on the road and going to areas outside of Harrisonburg rather than sticking around campus.

How do you think PictureIt! has affected your experiences in the past four years?

It has given me a great mentor in Dr. Frank. He has helped me a lot, especially freshman year when

he told me I should try applying for SMAD when I decided I didn’t want to be an art major.

Do you think your college experi-ence would be different if you had not been a member of the project?

I think it would have been different indeed. There would be certain people that I didn’t meet that probably have changed who I have become.

What kinds of pictures are the most meaningful to you?

The ones where I am out with people are the most meaningful for me because it makes me think of who I was with and what we are doing and that generally makes me happy.

How are your experiences different or similar to others in the project?

Based on the pictures I have seen I would say my experiences have been different from people in that I spend a lot of my time away from JMU. That has especially been the case this year.

Describe your overall experience as a member of PictureIt!.

It’s been a lot of fun. I’ve really en-joyed learning about other people’s experience and seeing how different they are from my own. I always enjoy meeting as a group and the GAs have been great all four years. It’s been a good excuse to go out and do things and take pictures of the things I do. It will be nice years down the road to have these photographs to remind me of the fun times I had.

Hometown: Yorktown, Virginia

Major: SMAD

Spring semester 2008

Fall semester 2008

Fall semester 2008

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Future career plans: I plan to get my Master of Science in Accounting and CPA licensure and go

into public, corporate or governmental accounting.

What were your reasons for getting involved in the Pictureit! project?I thought it would be a fun way of documenting my time at JMU.

What do you think of your involvement in PictureIt! over the past four years?

I’m extremely proud to be part of PictureIt!. Our pictures have been on the JMU Web site, in the Prism Gallery and Madison Magazine, and it’s kind of gratifying when people have heard about the program and seen your pictures.

How have you changed since your freshman year?I’m pretty much a completely different person from freshman year! I

changed majors, I’m much more focused on my schoolwork and future plans than I was before.

How have your pictures portrayed the changes you’ve gone through?My pictures freshman year were mostly of all the new friends I made and

all the changes I was going through and they slowly progressed to being more about schoolwork and trying new things in Harrisonburg.


I have a really bad memory, so when I look back at the pictures it sort of reminds me of what was going on in my life at the time. It’s also fun to show family and friends back home what I’ve been up to here!


It’s made me more reflective of my life and how I choose to spend it. I look at things a bit more carefully as I’m trying to set up what I want my pictures to be.

Do you think your college experience would be different if you had not been a member of PictureIt!?

Absolutely—I’m not the kind of person who normally remembers to take pictures of anything, so without PictureIt! and having that motivation, I probably wouldn’t have as many great pictures of my time here.

What kinds of pictures are the most meaningful to you?The most meaningful ones are the ones that include my family and friends.

At the end of the day, it’s the people that you really remember and they’re the most important subjects of my pictures. I wish I had included more pictures of some of the activities and organizations I participated in over the years.

How are your experiences different or similar to others in the project?I can’t really speak for them, but it seems like we all sort of went through the

same experiences but in our own way.

Describe your overall experience as a member of PictureIt!.I’ve really enjoyed being a part of PictureIt and the OIR staff has been so

supportive and great!

AmAndA Predel

Hometown: Austin, Texas

Major: Accounting

Fall semester 2007

Fall semester 2006

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ANNA YOUNG

Hometown: Manassas, Virginia

Major: SMAD and Sociology

Future career plans: Peace Corps, freelance magazine writer, photographer, graphic designer

What were your reasons for getting involved in the PictureIt! project?

I was interested in photography and was looking for an avenue to learn more about photography and meet new people.

What do you think of your involve-ment in PictureIt!?

It has been really great and has led me to learn a lot about myself and the rest of the student population. It’s interesting to hear what other people say about themselves and JMU in general and determine whether it corresponds with my own experi-ences and perceptions.

How have you changed in four years?

I’ve really expanded my knowl-edge, both in and out of the class-room. I’ve also become more cre-ative and open to new experiences, and I think I’ve prepared myself to take on the next chapter in my life. I’ve really been able to shape who I am through all of the wonderful op-portunities I’ve taken advantage of while at JMU.

How have your pictures por-trayed the changes you’ve gone through?

I’ve become a better photojour-nalist, and now I’m able to tell a great story with my photos while still cap-turing an aesthetically pleasing shot.

How has PictureIt! helped you bet-ter understand your college expe-rience?

It’s made me a lot more thoughtful about my own experiences in relation to the experiences of those around me. It also allowed me to open up to others and be able to articulate what I was experiencing in ways I probably wouldn’t otherwise. I compared and contrasted what others saw and did

with my own actions. I also applied what I’ve learned in my classes and look through a “sociological lens,” so to speak, to help me better explain my time at JMU to myself and others.


It taught me to appreciate every experience I had, even if it didn’t seem so significant at the time. It also made me realize that my time at JMU was finite so I attempted to capture as much as my time here as I pos-sibly could and live in the moment a lot more.

Do you think your college experi-ence would have been different if you had not been a member of the project?

I don’t think I would have consid-ered the experiences of others as much. I would not be as knowledge-able about photography or publishing or photo sites. I also would have not gotten to know Dr. Frank, who has been an inspiration and a great help in the past four years!


All of the once-in-a-lifetime snap-shots that I probably wouldn’t have taken had it not been for this project.


It was really beneficial and enjoy-able at the same time. I looked for-ward to every meeting to catch up with acquaintances, see other photos and hear about how each semester was going for everyone else. It was really enlightening to learn how ev-eryone was different yet slightly the same in many cases. It was also nice to get to know the OIR staff and all of the GAs were so friendly and helpful. Spring semester 2007

Fall semester 2006

PictureIt!JMU | 9

What were your reasons for getting in-volved in the Pictureit! project?

I thought it sounded interesting. I al-ready liked taking pictures all of the time...it was something easy to get involved in.


I have learned a lot about myself and about how others have enjoyed their col-lege experiences. It’s been fun and inter-esting.

How have you changed in four years?I’ve matured and learned a lot through

the very different experiences I’ve had.


They’ve shown all of the different ex-periences I’ve had and the variety of plac-es I’ve been in the past four years (living in NYC, going to Israel, going to Ireland, Dominican Republic, Amsterdam, etc).

How has PictureIt! helped you better understand your college experience?

It gives me a way to remember the most important moments. I was forced to pick the top pictures each year, so I auto-matically have a quick way to look back

on the past four years.

How do you think PictureIt! has af-fected your experiences in the past four years?

I am more likely to have my camera out at all times and to really take each moment and evaluate its importance in my life.

Do you think your college experience would have been different if you had not been a member of the project?

Not too different but I would definitely not know as much about the other routes people could have taken in college.


The ones that are off campus, show-ing the different adventures my friends and I had. I think I’ve included all the ones I needed to.

How are your experiences similar to others in the project?

I think we all took completely different paths through college in what we got in-volved in, who we hung out with, etc. ... But we all have explored JMU and its sur-rounding areas thoroughly!

CASSIE POtlErHometown: Glenwood, Maryland Major: SMAD

Future career plans: Teach for America, working for a magazine


Fall semester 2008Fall semester 2007

Fall semester 2007

10 | PictureIt!JMU

What were your reasons for getting involved in the Pictureit! project?

To enable people to see my pictures and to force myself to be conscious of their content and composition.

What do you think of your involvement in Pic-tureIt! over the past four years?

It had been a good experience.

How have you changed in four years?I have learned a lot from my college classes.

How have your pictures portrayed the chang-es you’ve gone through?

As I’ve grown closer to my friends I take more pictures of them.

How has PictureIt! helped you better under-stand your college experience?

It has forced me to consciously document my experience.

What kinds of pictures are the most mean-ingful to you?

The pictures of my friends.

How are your experiences similar to others?We have very similar experiences since we

are all in college and are the same age.

Describe your overall experience as a mem-ber of PictureIt!

I took pictures and explored how they repre-sented my college experience.

COLINGREENEHometown: Charlottesville, Virginia Major: SMAD and Philosophy


Fall semester 2008

Fall semester 2007


PictureIt!JMU | 11

DaM MaLLYa

Why did you get involved in the Pictureit! project?

I enjoy photography from my classes in high school, and the ap-plication looked simple.

What do you think of your involve-ment in PictureIt! over the past four years?

It’s been fun to do and I never would have taken as many pictures as I do if I was not involved with this project. Also, I have appreciated some parts of college more because of this project and also my photog-raphy skills have naturally improved.


I don’t know if I can truly verbalize all the ways I’ve changed over these four years in college, but I know I’ve changed. My perception on life, how I view friendships and relation-ships, how I treat my family, how I

treat school, how I view my unique experiences in my past, what I am passionate about, what my strengths are, what my weaknesses are, what my priorities are and now embrac-ing who I am... these are just a few things that have changed a lot over the years or I have come to realize or acknowledge these things.


I show what I am grateful for in my pictures. I show what I am inter-ested in now when I may not have been beforehand.


I don’t know if it has, but it shows what I can take visual representation of. There are a lot of things I never have captured and some things are

hard to, but there are things that are able to be shown through photogra-phy and show some parts of my life to others.


I don’t know how much it has af-fected me besides opening my eyes to learning to capture moments in life. It has translated into my desire to journal my thoughts and days throughout the last four years.

Do you think your college experi-ence would be different if you had not been a member of PictureIt!?

Probably. Everything you do will influence you in some way.


Pictures of people are meaning-ful to me because I realize friend-

ships I treasure, but I wish I took more pictures of certain people and also of my surroundings.

How are your experiences differ-ent or similar than others in the project?

I do notice that certain kinds of people apply for a project so we all have some kind of mentality to life and college and what not. However, my experience as a male from out of state is different obviously at JMU.

Describe your overall experience as a member of PictureIt!

I enjoyed being a part of this proj-ect and how it has made me grateful for what I’ve experienced over the last 4 years of life. High school and college is 8 years and could poten-tially be about a tenth of your life and a pretty exciting time. Why not cap-ture those memories and learn more about this experience of life?

Hometown: West Chester, Pennsylvania

Major: Philosophy and Religion

Future career plans: High School Outreach Ministry

Fall semester 2009 Fall semester 2006Fall semester 2006

12 | PictureIt!JMU

DANielle GArriGAN

Future career plans: Working for a nonprofit called Parent Proj-

ect Muscular Dystrophy in Fort Lee, NJ


I love taking pictures! It’s one of my favor-ite things to do.


It has been an amazing experience cap-turing my four years at JMU. Looking back, I know how much I am going to miss this place.

How have you changed since your fresh-man year?

I think I have become more confident and have found myself, so to speak. ... I can’t be-lieve how fast our four years have gone.


As a freshman, all I wanted to take pictures of were people. Now I have been trying to do landscape as well as my friends. My pictures have broadened since I was a freshman.

How has PictureIt! helped you better un-derstand or explain your college experi-ence to yourself or others?

It is really easy to say to someone, “Oh, just look at the Web site and you can see ev-erything that has been going on in my entire college career!” I love it.

How do you think PictureIt! has affected your experiences?

It has definitely opened me up to trying new things so that I don’t always have the same pictures of the same things. I have been taking some new ones, which is great. I just want to go back to the beginning when I first got here and take pictures all over again.

Do you think your college experience would be different without the project?

Yes, I probably would not have taken the same types of pictures. I probably would have just taken my friends and not gotten the pic-tures of the campus or other things.


Definitely the action shots. I love taking pictures of my friends doing funny things.


Because I’m taking pictures all the time, I’m recording all my favorite moments to share later on in my life. Many people don’t always have a camera on them, but I do!


This experience has changed who I am as a person and has shown how I have grown throughout my four years at JMU. I’m so glad I got to have this opportunity to share with ev-eryone my college experience.

Hometown: Clifton, New JerseyMajor: Organizational Communication; minor in Human Resource Development


Fall semester 2008 Fall semester 2006

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Danny LanphierFuture career plans:

I would like to either work for government, state or county level law enforcement or become a firefighter/paramedic. I plan on using my major when I retire from one of those forces to work in not-for-profit sports.

What do you think of your in-volvement in the project?

I’ve seen myself grow into the person I am today. Looking back I would have never laid out the path I have followed. But the experiences I have had and the lessons I have learned from my pictures and the group meetings have given me appreciation for the steps I have taken and the choices I have made.


How haven’t I? I have got-ten more independent and have learned to handle problems on my own. I also learned that I have a passion for helping peo-ple and have paved a path in my life today to fit for a career in those fields for the future.

How have your pictures por-

trayed the changes you’ve gone through?

They are a unique look at the things that I enjoy or the things that affect me. They are all of great importance to me and each one has a good amount of mean-ing. From experiences that I nev-er want to forget, to the people who have built me up to be the man that I am now, the pictures show what mean the most to me.

How has PictureIt! helped you better understand your col-lege experience?

Every one of us follow a dif-ferent path. My pictures prove that statement, and in compari-son to others show that each one of us are truly different, each student is their own person. We are widely diverse in our experi-ences, and I believe that is what helps make us one of the pre-miere universities in the nation.

How do you think PictureIt! has affected your experiences?

It has allowed me to appreci-ate the experiences more and realize that this is only a portion of my life. The years that I had here will map me out to become

the person that I will be forever.

Do you think your college ex-perience would be different if you had not been a member of PictureIt!?

I probably would have taken a lot of things for granted and wouldn’t have learned to appre-ciate a lot of the little things in life that make life great. I guess if I wasn’t in PictureIt, college wouldn’t have meant as much to me as it does.


The pictures of the foot-ball games, the fire station, the friends from the fire station and the ones of my roommates. Those are the experiences I will always remember and those are the people I never want to forget.

Describe your overall experi-ence as a member of PictureIt!.

It’s been surreal. The group allows you to see yourself grow literally in front of your face. ...It has been very interesting to share my life in college with oth-ers and see how my peers are experiencing college as well.

Hometown: Fairfax, Virginia Major: Kinesiology


Fall semester 2007Fall semester 2007

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ErICA ClAxtONFuture career plans:

Graduate school at the University of South Florida in the fall to begin a Doctorate in Audiology. I will then become an Audiologist with a focus on early intervention in international underserved people groups.

What were your reasons for get-ting involved in PictureIt!?

I loved photography and looked forward to the opportunity to have an excuse to walk around campus snap-ping pictures at people.

What do you think of your involve-ment in the project?

I have absolutely loved it and would do it all over again if I had the opportunity. I have grown as a pho-tographer and have visually docu-mented my time at JMU in such a way that my college experience really tells a story about my life. The Pictu-reIt! project also gave me confidence in my photography and made me more willing to share it with others.

How have you changed since your first year?

Where to begin... since my first year at JMU my life plans have changed almost completely. Not only did I change my major, my occupa-tion, my relationships and my hob-bies, but as an individual I matured greatly. I came to understand the diligence that it took to succeed in my courses and that asking for help is not always a sign of weakness. Over the years though I have most importantly

learned how to prioritize my time and how to see life in the big picture and that sometimes life lessons are more valuable than class lessons.

How have your pictures por-trayed the changes you’ve gone through?

My pictures have shown changes in my life during my time at JMU both literally and figuratively. ...My world in the beginning of PictureIt! was more based around my friends, what I wanted to do and what I did for fun. Gradually the images started to rep-resent how I volunteered, what I did in the community and off-campus, what individuals I poured my time

into most and the aspects of life with which I wanted to define my life. I started to see my PictureIt! photos as a reflection of what I viewed as im-portant and I began to realize that I wanted my pictures to reflect bigger and greater things... so I did some-thing about it.

How has PictureIt! helped you bet-ter understand or explain your col-lege experience?

PictureIt! allowed me to take a “snapshot” of the key areas of my life that I would want to share with some-one. I started to view my year-end book of pictures as a timeline of valu-able events that took place during my

school year. When I was able to look at my pictures in one place through our year-end books or my flickr ac-count of images I was able to make connections and form patterns from my images.

Do you think your college experi-ence would be different if you had not been in PictureIt!?

My time at JMU would not have been the same without the PictureIt! program. Although I am certain that I would still take a camera wherever I go, I wouldn’t have had the bold-ness to take the pictures that I did or the confidence to share them with anyone else. I also really valued the times that we spent as a group dis-cussing and reflecting on our year... Being able to look at pictures from early in the semester and pictures that you had taken earlier in the pro-gram really helped to drive home the point that time in college flies by.


My most meaningful photographs consist mainly of the “whos” and the “wheres.” I say this because when I look back on my time at JMU and want to share stories with someone else, I cherish the ability to actually show them who I am talking about and where the event took place so that they can build a better mental image. ...I love the images that I have captured of my friends and our home together or our favorite places to spend time.

Hometown: Vinton, Virginia

Major: Communication Sciences and Disorders

Fall semester 2008 Fall semester 2010Fall semester 2009

PictureIt!JMU | 15

JUlie iriZArrY

What were your reasons for getting involved in the PictureIt! project?

I love taking pictures and I thought the idea behind the project was tight.

What do you think of your involvement in the project over the past four years?

It was fun and I enjoyed sharing my pictures. I wish we could’ve gotten to know each other bet-ter.

How have you changed since your first year?I’ve matured, and grown up a great deal. I’m

definitely more responsible now and not as “wild.”


They’ve gotten more “artsy” and more detail-oriented, while my freshman year they were all over the place.

How has PictureIt! helped you better under-stand or explain your college experience to yourself or others?

It kind of forced me to document things I would’ve probably looked at later and wished I would’ve documented.

Do you think your college experience would be different if you had not been in the project?

Maybe I wouldn’t have taken as many pic-tures.

What kinds of pictures are the most meaning-ful to you?

The ones that capture great moments or the way I felt are probably the most meaningful ones.

Describe your overall experience as a mem-ber of PictureIt!.

I had a lot of fun and I definitely wish I would’ve gotten to know the group members on a more personal level.

Hometown: Leesburg, Virginia Major: IDLS, minor Elementary Education Future career plans: Going to grad school at JMU, Peace Corps

Fall semester 2008

Fall semester 2009

Fall semester 2006

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How did you get involved in the project?I joined my sophomore year… [Dr.] Frank sent

out an e-mail to everyone in the project the first year saying some people were leaving and they needed to find replacements.

What did you think about coming in the second year of the project?

I jumped right in. …I felt like we all had different experiences yet we experienced kind of the same thing. And everyone is really friendly and nice and I didn’t feel like I missed out.

Have your reasons for being in the project changed in your three years?

Yeah, it’s really a sweet deal. You come in and


Hometown: Springfield, Virginia Major: Math; Master’s of Art in Teaching

Career: Secondary education math teacher

Lianne Loizou

talk about your semester, you talk about your pic-tures. We’re highlights of the class of 2010. I had a great experience my first year and I just wanted to stay with it.

How do you think you have changed?From year to year, progressively I might have

changed a little bit…I know from freshman year to senior year I definitely changed. As a freshman I tried everything and throughout my years I tried to focus it more on what I wanted to do.

How do you think your pictures have changed?If you look at my first pictures they were me in

a group of people. I definitely remember the first year all my pictures were like: “This is what I do! These are my friends! This is me and my friends!” And then they were kind of more like: “this is an experience I had” or “this is me and somebody who meant a lot to me this semester.” They be-came a little more narrow…they showed me fo-cusing more on what I wanted to do.

How do you think your pictures were reflective of the changes you’ve gone through?

I thought they were all kind of purposeful be-cause while someone else might be like, ‘well, what is the point or purpose of that picture?’ to me there was purpose and to me that represented my semester. I always looked for pictures of what represented my semester.

How do you think PictureIt! has helped you

better explain or better understand your over-all college experience?

PictureIt! has made me reflect on my experi-ences on my pictures of what represents me. It gives me an opportunity to revisit my pictures more often...it gives more purpose to my pictures.

How are your experiences similar or different than others in the project?

Living on campus, everyone had different dorms, everyone had different friends, everyone had different interests. Yet we all experience liv-ing in a dorm. ... And then we moved off-campus and we all had bills to pay, we had roommates—maybe some of us had good situations, maybe some of us had bad situations. Even though we all started doing very different things, especially junior and senior year, we all were going out into the community, we were all focusing in on our ma-jors even though they were all very different. We are a very diverse group of people—personality-wise, interest-wise, major-wise, we cover a huge spectrum.

Describe your overall experience in PictureIt!.It got me to think what was purposeful each

year and I got to reflect on how I’ve changed throughout the years. I probably wouldn’t sit down and think about that. It gives me an opportunity to notice the small differences that I wouldn’t re-ally have noticed between year to year and how my experiences differ from others or if there are underlying things that are the same.

Fall semester 2009

Fall semester 2007

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lYdIA Porter


It sounded like fun and I wanted to learn more about photography.


I have enjoyed it and learned many things about photography and about myself.

How have you changed since your fresh-man year?

I have grown to be more confident in myself and more comfortable as a leader.


They began to reflect my associations with others, i.e. more people in the photos.

How has PictureIt! helped you better under-stand your college experience?

It has helped me notice things around me that influence my decisions and helped me notice the things I do that may be different or similar to others.


It has made me more aware of what I do and thus given me a stimulus to think about what I am doing and what I want to change about my experience.

Do you think your college experience would be different if you had not been a member of PictureIt!?

I think it would have been different. I defi-nitely wouldn’t have as many pictures to record my experience. I also may not have made as much effort to be involved in some things on campus.


The pictures that reflect the small things around me that made me smile and the pic-tures of people that are important to me are the most meaningful. Sometimes there were activities in some of my classes that I wish I had included.

How are your experiences different or simi-lar to others in the project?

A lot of my experiences are a result of my association with my church which is different than many others. I also have not taken trips through JMU which many others have. My program of study has allowed my opportunity to work with children. Similar to many others I had the experiences of living on campus.


I have enjoyed getting to know and working with the people associated with PictureIt! and I have enjoyed the opportunity to look outside myself and observe myself and my interactions with the world around me.

Hometown: Buena Vista, Virginia

Major: IDLS

Future career plans: I would like to teach in an elementary school and then take a break to

be a mom and perhaps do some tutoring.

Fall semester 2009


18 | PictureIt!JMU

MICHELLE LOOMISHometown: Alexandria, Virginia Major: Nursing


I had always been involved with photography projects in high school, from yearbook staff to competitions, and wanted to continue in college. When I received that first e-mail from Dr. Frank I thought that this would be a great opportunity.

What do you think of your involve-ment in PictureIt! over the past four years?

I think that it has caused me to take a closer look at my surround-ings. It also was interesting to see how everyone’s pictures and talents changed and developed over the past four years.

How have you changed in four years?

I think that I have definitely learned the importance of family and friends. I also have discovered how important and therapeutic it is to have a creative outlet in your life like PictureIt!.


These past four years have re-ally allowed me to become more in-trospective, and as that has happened I have noticed that my pictures are more detail-oriented or are more “up close”.

How has PictureIt! helped you bet-ter understand your college experi-ence?

I don’t know that it has better helped me understand my experience, but it has made me appreciate it more. Also, the group meetings are interest-ing in that all of us were going trough very similar things even though we all

had different majors and interests.

How do you think PictureIt! has af-fected your experiences in the past four years?

It has made me do more activities and see more things in the Valley. It also has opened up some other op-portunities to further develop my pho-tography.

Do you think your college experi-ence would have been different if you had not been a member of the project?

I don’t think that I would have gone to so many sporting events or seen so many parts of the Valley if I hadn’t been a part of Pictureit!.


The most meaningful pictures are the ones that evoke memories or that have a story behind them.

How do you think your college ex-periences are different or similar from others?

I think that my college experience has been very similar to most people’s aside from my nursing experiences. Being in clinicals and traveling to vari-ous conferences isn’t part of every-one’s college experience, but it has definitely been a favorite part of mine.


I really enjoyed being able to ex-press my artistic side (however small it may be) in PictureIt!. Also, being able to get to know all of the members of the project through their photography and through meetings has been a wonderful and gratifying experience.


Fall semester 2007

PictureIt!JMU | 19

TrEvOr WILhELm


It’s an awesome opportunity to take photo-graphs and have a substantial documentation of ideas throughout my time at JMU, not just a record of places I’ve been to.

What do you think of your involvement in Pic-tureIt! over the past four years?

Freaking amazing.


They show the focus that I developed through-out my time here. They also serve as semester-

long essays of my mental development, where I was, what I found value in and how I expressed that value.

How has PictureIt! helped you better understand or explain your college experience?

A picture is worth a thousand words. But a picture and a thousand words are worth an Ultra Ball.


I’ve looked at a lot of my four years through one eye shoved against a viewfinder. That’s not a bad thing, just a pretty cool and different way to see the world.

What kinds of pictures are the most meaning-ful to you?

Pictures that include either my friends or re-flect the work that I’ve done over the past four

years are the best. I kind of wish I had take photos of every project that I’ve worked on since 2006.

Do you think your college experience would be different if you had not been a member of PictureIt!?Probably. Where else would I have awesome pizza parties and talk about photography?


I’m not sure, but I’d be surprised if someone just had an absolutely miserable time.

Describe your overall experience as a mem-ber of PictureIt!

It was interesting. I felt a cool connection to the other members of the project, even though I rarely saw them outside of meetings and the times I did resulted in a nod or wave, I feel like I know everyone involved. ..I feel lucky to have been a member.

Hometown: Roanoke, Virginia Major: Theatre

Future career plans: Hopefully working with a close friend to start a new theatre company committed to creating new, important pieces.

Spring semester 2007Spring semester 2009

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PictureIt JMU! throughout the years

© James Madison University Office of Institutional Research, 2010

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