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Clemson University’s new Adobe Digital Studio sparks creativity, collaboration

CLEMSON — The opening of a new digital studio in Clemson University’s R.M. Cooper Library moves the school forward as a flagship institution for developing new applications for digital publishing and content creation.

“The opening of the Adobe Digital Studio, truly a ‘maker space’ for digital creativity, is a landmark event for Clemson,” said Jim Bottum, vice provost and chief information officer at Clemson. “The studio will be transformational, and I am proud of the effort between our team at Clemson and Adobe that made this possible.”

Students can upload their work and display it on the Behance wall, one of only three in the country.
Students can upload their work and display it on the Behance wall, one of only three in the country.
Last spring, Clemson became the only university in the country to allow all students, faculty and staff full use of the Adobe Creative Cloud. The new studio gives the Clemson community a place to work together, using technology powered by the entire Adobe Creative Cloud and Digital Publishing Solution, the industry-leading solution for creating engaging mobile apps.

Jan Holmevik, associate professor of English and co-director of the Center of Excellence in Next Generation Computing and Creativity, sees it as another step forward for 21st century education.

“The big differentiator is creativity, and the studio fits into that larger vision of injecting creativity into the learning process at all levels,” he said. “I hope great ideas will emerge out of the collaborative efforts and sheer inspiration, because seeing what is possible can spark invention.”

The studio features a soundproof audio production studio, a video production studio, collaborative workstations, a high-resolution scanner and a nine-display Behance wall that serves as a focal point for inspiration.

The Behance wall — one of only three in the country and the only one outside of Adobe headquarters — streams projects from Adobe’s Behance eportfolio site based on the current search criterion.

The Adobe Digital Studio in R.M. Cooper Library gives students and faculty a place to collaborate on creative projects.
The system finds all the examples and distributes them across the displays. Clemson students also can upload their work to Behance so it will be displayed on the wall, something Holmevik said is appropriate for its library location.

“Seeing your colleagues’ work portrayed in an artistic display is not only satisfying, but it helps spark creativity and make you want to do better,” he said.

With a focus on working together, Holmevik likes to call the studio “a collaboratory.”

Users have the opportunity to create works that will pay off in the long run.

Wesley Smith, manager of the studio, said, “In today’s job market, it’s not ‘what you know’ as much as ‘what you can do.’ We want to give people the skillset and knowledge to allow them to set themselves apart in the job market and flourish in their careers.”

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Clemson University collaborates with Adobe to support next-generation creativity

Clemson University and Adobe will work together to enable campus-wide access to Adobe’s world-class Creative Cloud tools for all Clemson faculty, staff and students, effective immediately.

In addition to the Creative Cloud software, Adobe will invest in an innovative, state-of-the-art Adobe Digital Studio to be housed in Clemson’s R.M. Cooper Library. The studio will serve as a teaching, training and collaboration environment to support next-generation learning and creativity.

This collaboration, the first of its kind between Adobe’s education division and a university, began when some Clemson faculty and staff visited Adobe’s headquarters in San Jose, California, this semester. This joint effort includes training support for Creative Cloud tools, access to the Digital Publishing Suite platform to enable academic and professional publications, and on-campus student internship programs sponsored by Adobe.

“It is becoming increasingly more difficult for tools and services to keep pace with the growth in mobile computing,” said Jim Bottum, Clemson’s CIO and vice provost for information technology. “Our program with Adobe embraces mobile technologies and collaboration by providing direct access for Clemson’s students, faculty and staff to the complete set of Creative Cloud applications and enables them to be more competitive in today’s knowledge economy.”

Adobe and Clemson will integrate Creative Cloud applications into the curriculum to allow seamless access for faculty and students in all disciplines. This innovative program serves the dual purpose of inventing new learning opportunities and transforming communication practices across many disciplines while enabling all Clemson students to be more competitive in the workforce.

“As humanities students, we haven’t had the same opportunities as STEM (science, technology, engineering, mathematics) students with regard to cutting-edge learning technologies,” said senior English major Katie Flessas. “With access to Adobe Creative Cloud, we’re leveling the playing field.”

Through this collaboration, Adobe will help Clemson become a flagship institution for using Adobe tools and developing new applications for digital publishing and content creation across campus. Adobe Creative Cloud is a platform for making, sharing and delivering creative work, and it includes industry-leading software packed with innovation across design, Web, video, collaboration and digital-imaging tools.

“Ubiquitous access to Adobe’s Creative Cloud will transform and elevate the quality, innovation and creativity of our communication practices at every level and across all media,” said David Blakesley, Campbell Chair in Technical Communication and professor of English. “Clemson is already known as a leader in communication across the curriculum, so this new implementation raises the bar for everyone.”

Jan Holmevik, associate chairman of the English department and chairman of the Academic Technology Council, agrees. “Providing this unprecedented access to all of Adobe’s industry-leading creative tools is going to open important new opportunities for innovation that will ultimately position Clemson University and its faculty and students at the very forefront of the invention of next-generation learning,” he said.

The Adobe Digital Studio in the Cooper Library will serve Clemson faculty and students as they develop projects and publications using Adobe tools. With the goal of facilitating student and faculty digital literacies in the context of courses, research and creative inquiry, the studio will serve everyone on campus and deploy technologies that supplement and enhance the Clemson experience.

“Today’s students want to make a difference in the world, and they want to do it using the technology tools they’ve grown up with,” said Jim Holscher, Adobe’s vice president of education field operation. “Through our work with Clemson University, we are providing faculty, staff and students with the right tools to successfully create and communicate their ideas while mastering essential communication skills that will increase their marketability to potential employers.”

Kay Wall, dean of libraries at Clemson, said, “As the physical center of campus and the second-most frequented student gathering place, Cooper Library is the iconic cornerstone of Clemson University. Our students use this space to collaborate on course projects and other learning experiences. Today’s students are moving from consumers in education to creators through their learning experiences and the Adobe Digital Studio will provide the tools and support to develop and prepare these creators for the challenges in their chosen careers. We are genuinely excited to be a partner in facilitating that experience with Adobe and our innovative faculty at Clemson.”