New Apple Video Lab Dedicated
The video arts program at Huntington High School has gained a glowing reputation throughout the metropolitan area as teacher Heather Swan continues to bring it to even greater heights. A sparkling new video lab, which was dedicated last week, is expected further the ascent.
The lab features cutting edge equipment, including 20 new iMacs with Final Cut Studio 2 for video editing and digital effects, Adobe Suite CS 4 for graphic design and a new XServe to manage the student accounts and software.
“The students are now able to work with multiple layers of video footage and a smooth work flow without lagging,” Mrs. Swan said. “The students are working with the industry standard software and hardware. This helps keeps the students engaged in the classroom and competitive if they were to get a job in the industry.”
A group of school officials, teachers, students and representatives from the Huntington Foundation for Excellence in Education, which awarded a $10,000 grant to help underwrite the project, gathered last week for the ribbon cutting ceremony.
The district worked with BOCES to helped make the new lab a reality. A three-year lease will cost $57,198.81, which includes the BOCES coordination fee of 10 percent, according to Assistant Superintendent David H. Grackin. The district will receive some of the money back through state aid, reducing the final cost.
The project entailed the purchase, setup and support of the new top-of-the-line iMacs and an Xserve Quadcore-Intel Xeon server. “BOCES was responsible for the ordering, installation and coordinating the support from Apple,” Mr. Grackin said. Huntington computer technician Hugo Guardado worked with the contractor who set-up the new equipment.
At grand opening ceremony Mrs. Swan demonstrated aspects of the hardware and software and played some student video work. She beamed when speaking about the video program and lab and said the new equipment will lead to even more exposure at film festivals for students submitting entries.
Huntington Foundation members expressed pleasure with how the project has turned out. “Actually seeing the equipment in operation and watching students use it helps put a grant such as this one into much clearer perspective,” Foundation officer Karen Dwyer said at the dedication ceremony.
The new lab puts Huntington at the forefront among Long Island high school video arts programs.
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