Stevens Elementary goes to Creative Academy, gets Pez account

The fifth-graders from Stevens Elementary have assumed near-total control of the fifth floor of Seattle Central Community College by the time I arrive. There are 42 of them, but it seems like more.

They really are in charge--they're visiting the Creative Academy at SCCC to play the role of creative directors on a team including a graphic designer and photographer. Each of the fifth-graders is in the catbird seat, directing the creation of a poster or ad or whatever. All feature a different Pez dispenser. They had one hour to brainstorm, and have three more to produce.

It's the idea of Marc Salverda, who runs SCCC's graphic design department. He has an in with Stevens Elementary--his wife teaches there. They have been collaborating the last few years on smaller projects; Salverda has visited Stevens a few times with PowerPoint shows.

Last year they were talking about careers. Each of the students got a letter of the alphabet corresponding to a profession, and Salverda got the idea to show them what a graphic designer and photographer actually do. Only a few had even heard of the terms, he explains, but even they didn't know what design involves.

Salverda proudly surveys the creative chaos. "We're supposed to print out the finished work," he says. "But it's 12:30 now...." He trails off. Creative work never arrives before the deadline, so this is par for the course. Besides sending prints to Stevens Elementary for display at parent/teacher conferences, he has plans to hang the works in a local cafe.

Down the hall, the college students and fifth-graders are taking snack breaks, painting ideas in the air before they return to the computer lab.