Auburn Adventist Academy Trains Future Technology Professionals

The computer specialist position for Auburn Adventist Academy’s Associated Student Body (ASB) is proving to be a training ground for future professionals.

Courtney Rasmussen, 2001-02 ASB computer specialist, aspires to major in mass communications with a media concentration at Walla Walla College.

Rasmussen has worked to develop his talent of timing music to accompany videos produced for different departments at Auburn Adventist Academy (AAA). Rasmussen was not able to take the digital video editing class taught by Mike Kahler because this class, unique to AAA, did not fit into his schedule. Instead, Rasmussen worked on his own, using Kahler and his video-editing lab as resources. Kahler commented that he has “seen a lot of growth in Rasmussen in his ability to find music that fits, perfectly timed, to the video.”

All the details of choosing the right music to accompany a video are crucial, but the timing also has to be perfect. The last video project that Rasmussen created was the gymnastics home show video, on which he worked nine hours in three days.

Michael Waymire, 2002-03 ASB computer specialist, aspires to major in computer engineering or software programming at Yakima Valley Community College before transferring to Walla Walla College.

Waymire took Kahler’s digital video editing class this year, then built his own digital video editing equipment, enabling him to work on projects from his dorm room. Waymire has produced an ASB video and the end-of-the-year ASB slide show. He was already trained to run a soundboard, so he has spent a lot of time running sound for AAA programs throughout the year.

As an ASB sponsor, Kahler has worked with Waymire, critiquing his projects. Kahler described Waymire as “a hermit while editing video productions.” But working 15 hours in a week on one video project is not unusual.

Video production generally takes 20-25 hours of detailed work for each project. Both Rasmussen and Waymire have used their talents to benefit AAA, while concurrently training for service in computer technology as professionals.

Featured in: July 2003

Author