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Student Work

Free IT Support at Tech Effect for Meadows Students, Faculty and Staff

SMU tech effect
Mark Valenzuela, left, with Tech Effect coworker Michelle Del Rio.

Meadows community finds free and effective solutions to tech woes

By Ari Platz (B.A. Corporate Communication and Public Affairs, B.A. Art History ’18)

Computer trouble? Wi-Fi not working? Need to borrow equipment? Meadows Tech Effect provides year-round effective solutions to these problems, helping students, faculty and staff operate at the highest level.

Student workers Mark Valenzuela and Michelle Del Rio work at the Tech Effect desk, fielding a variety of questions and requests. “Typically, students come by to check stuff out like a camera or tripod, that kind of thing,” says Valenzuela.

“All they have to do is present their SMU student i.d. card.” 

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Photos We Love

16 Photos from the 2018 SMU Meadows Graduation Ceremonies Guaranteed to Make You Smile

All photos by Kim Leeson

As faculty and staff at SMU’s Meadows School of the Arts, it’s one of the most joyous days of the year: The Meadows Spring Commencement ceremonies. It’s a feeling of unbridled accomplishment, unmatched by events that have unfolded before it. On a warm day, no matter how warm, we sit in the grass of the Boulevard, and hear the passionate words from our friends and classmates–like “arts and communication inform, uplift and challenge”–and our friends and family cheer as we walk the stage. 

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Photos We Love Student Work

The SMU Meadows 2017-2018 Academic Year in Photos

smu opera
Costume Shop Manager Melissa Panzarello readies her work for SMU student Alissa Roca–one of the stars of the Opera Theatre’s production of Alcina.

There were awards, electric blue lights, and tears of nostalgia. In the final hours of the 2017-2018 academic year at SMU Meadows, as Dean Sam Holland delivers his commencement speech, we will reflect on the events of a challenging and rewarding year. Jazz dance artist retires in May after 13 years of teaching at SMU. Ignite/Arts Dallas, our community engagement movement, celebrated its third year. There was swing dance. We talked the future of the word “entrepreneurship” at an event called MPower. We saw Frankenstein’s monster. This was the year in photos. All photos by Kim Leeson unless noted.

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Dance Ignite Arts Dallas Student Work

Alumni Spotlight: How Dance and Business Major Kelly Zitka Masters Her Fears

Kelly Zitka
Kelly Zitka’s gigs once included dance numbers, not acting or singing. These days, Zitka is focusing on all three to extend her reach in New York City.

By Diamond Victoria

Launching from the classroom to the Big Apple, Meadows alumna Kelly Zitka knows that perseverance and a little spontaneity can help to find footing in the world of performance art.

The dance and business major now calls New York home, and is learning more about the world of dance theater through rigorous training and auditioning. Staying in New York for good, however, was never part of her original plan. But with growing insight into her art, Zitka is betting that risking uncertainty can pay off. 

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Ignite Arts Dallas Student Work

SMU Meadows Scholar Angelica Reisch Knows The Importance of Community Involvement

Women Galore – Celebrating Women’s Words
Angie Reisch ’18 (sixth from right) plays a key role in planning the month-long feminist cultural festival Women Galore, founded by SMU Journalism Professor Lauren Smart (first from left)

by Diamond Victoria

For some busy students, finding time for meaningful community engagement is hard.

But for others, it’s second nature – par for the course in getting the best education possible before venturing into the professional world. And it’s just the beginning for Angie Reisch, who knows the importance of community involvement – it’s obvious in her work outside of the classroom. The studio art major and Dallas native graduates this spring, but not before turning her attention to some of the most important and timely cultural events taking place in the city.