Week 4 EOC: There's an app for that

Smart phone apps have become popular due to the fact that most apps help make every day life a little easier for all of us. There are so many apps out there that it seems like there is an app for everything! Some people wouldn't know what to do if their favorite app no longer existed. I recently got an idea for an app that is geared toward families that will make parents life a little more easier. It is a locator app that will show parents where their children are at all times throughout the day. Parents will no longer have to worry when they send their children off to school or when their children go out to play on their own. They can simply sync their children's phone to the app and you will have a 24/7 feed of where your children are thanks to built in GPS on each smart phone. It could also have a boundary feature that would alarm a parent if the child wanders outside of a designated route or allowed boundary. Now your child will never leave your sight or be out of reach!

Upon researching apps I have since found that this app is already in existence. The Footprints app lets you track your kids, spouse, and friends. "Before adding a user to your Footprints list of whom to track, you must first obtain the user's permission. Once you do, Footprints lets you see precisely where that user is on a map at any given time. The app can even provide information about how quickly the person is moving, a plus for parents trying to make sure their teen isn't speeding down the freeway."

Week 3 EOC: My Demographics

The Mellinial or Generation "Y" is the generation of people born between the mid 1970's to mid 1990's, although experts differ on the actual start date of the generation. Being born in 1988 puts me in this category. The Mellinial generation is described as the Echo Boomers, due to the significant increase in birth rates through the 1980s and into the 1990s, and because many of them are children of Baby Boomers. One of the characteristics of this generation is due to the late 2000's recession. Because of the downed economy, unemployment rates are higher in this generation than previous ones. Despite low employment rates, generation Y is the highest educated. "The most detailed study to date of the 18- to 29-year-old Millennial generation finds this group probably will be the most educated in American history. But the 50 million Millennials also have the highest share who are unemployed or out of the workforce in almost four decades, according to the study, released today by the Pew Research Center." This generation has also been called the Peter Pan generation because they have the tendency to delay certain rights of passage into adulthood. This generation begins working later in life, and typically continues living with their parents for longer than past generations. Generation Y has also seen the highest divorce rate of their parents, yet they have surprisingly close relationships with their parents. The generation Y voters seem to have a more democratic view when it comes to politics. "The "Millennial Generation" of young voters played a big role in the resurgence of the Democratic Party in the 2006 and 2008 elections, but their attachment to the Democratic Party weakened markedly over the course of 2009." This generation is considered to be the most open minded and free thinking. According to the Pew Research Center, they are confident, connected, and open to change. "They embrace multiple modes of self-expression. Three-quarters have created a profile on a social networking site. One-in-five have posted a video of themselves online. Nearly four-in-ten have a tattoo (and for most who do, one is not enough: about half of those with tattoos have two to five and 18% have six or more). Nearly one-in-four have a piercing in some place other than an earlobe — about six times the share of older adults who’ve done this. But their look-at-me tendencies are not without limits. Most Millennials have placed privacy boundaries on their social media profiles. And 70% say their tattoos are hidden beneath clothing."

I would agree to most of the statistics of this demographic and I would say that I fit this mold quite accurately. However, I began working at the young age of 16, moved out of my parents house at age 21 which isn't as late as most, and my parents did not divorce. I do not have tattoos but I do like to express myself in creative ways and especially through music.

Week 3 EOC: Making Money for Good

Large corporations and organizations have the power to make great changes in our world. Unfortunately, most of them are only concerned about making money for themselves and don't do as much as they should to have a positive impact on the world. However, there are some companies that make it their main mission to raise money for a good cause and make a big difference.



RED - Designed to help eliminate AIDS
RED is an organization that partners with retail companies like clothing stores to allow some of their proceeds to go directly to the effort to fight the spread of AIDS. A store will mark some of their products as "RED" products and when a costumer purchases one of these items, a percentage is given to RED. RED sends their profits to The Global Fund. "The Global Fund uses 100% of this money to finance HIV health and community support programs in Africa, with a focus on women and children."
http://www.joinred.com 

Live Strong - We fight to improve the lives of people affected by cancer
Livestrong is a non profit organization founded in 1997 by cancer survivor and champion cyclist Lance Armstrong. "We believe in life. Your life. We believe in living every minute of it with every ounce of your being. And that you must not let cancer take control of it. We believe in energy: channeled and fierce. We believe in focus: getting smart and living strong. Unity is strength. Knowledge is power. Attitude is everything. This is LIVESTRONG." When a patient is diagnosed with cancer, the Livestrong foundation steps in to help the individual with fertility preservation information and assistance, financial, insurance and job concerns, counseling and local resources, cancer diagnosis and treatment concerns.
http://www.livestrong.org/

The Invisible People - Homeless Has A Name
"I once heard a story about a homeless man on Hollywood Blvd who really thought he was invisible. But one day a kid handed the man a Christian pamphlet. The homeless guy was shocked and amazed, “what! You can see me? How can you see me? I’m invisible!” Mark Hovath the founder of the invisible people organization uses a camera to broadcast the lives of homeless people and give them a voice, a name, and above all an identity. "I not only feel their pain, I truly know their pain. I lived their pain. You’d never know it now but I was a homeless person. Fourteen years ago, I lived on Hollywood Blvd. But today, I find myself looking away, ignoring the faces, avoiding their eyes — and I’m ashamed when I realize I’m doing it. But I really can feel their pain, and it is almost unbearable, but it’s just under the surface of my professional exterior." The American motor company Ford has teamed up with this inspired man by providing him with a vehicle and funding a road trip across America to broadcast the lives of homeless people.
http://invisiblepeople.tv

Week 1 EOC: Great Customer Service

I cannot think of a time where i have received exceptional customer service. However, I can recall numerous times where customer service has been terrible. Customer service can have a large and immediate impact on a business. In this one case I think it did. A friend and I went to a restaurant called Qdoba for lunch. The store had always seems empty and business seemed slow. The food there was great, but the employees were unpleasant and did not care much about customer service. When I payed for my food I used my debit card. I could tell the cashier was new at his job because he seemed nervous and didn't know how to work the computer very well. When he finally rang up my order and swiped my card, he seemed to have trouble. My card did not go through the first time. Without explaining to me what was going on he rang up the order one more time and swiped my card a second time. He gave me a receipt with the correct total printed on it so I didn't question the double swiping of my debit card. Later on when I got home I checked my bank statement online and notice there were two identical charges made at Qdoba. When I called the restaurant to tell them of their mistake, they asked if I had my receipt. I told them that I threw away the receipt with my lunch but I was there less than an hour ago and they should recognize me with how slow their business is. I told them who was working at the register and what he did. They offered to give me a gift card with the total in which they charged me extra. I told them that I did not want a gift card because I didn't plan on eating there anymore. They still refused to refund my money without a receipt and in the end, they got away with stealing an extra $9 from me.

Needless to say I decided to never go to that restaurant again. When I drove past the place a couple months later I saw that they were closed and out of business. I was not surprised. My experience with this restaurant resulted in me not wanting to revisit. I figured that was the case with all of their customers. They simply went of business because of poor customer service

Week 1 EOC: My Voice

Since I was a child I have always been creative and expressive. I grew up learning how to draw, write, paint, build, even sing and play music. I believe our main purpose in life is to create and innovate. As I grow older I hope to never lose sight of my inner child. I hope I will continue to create into my adult years and beyond. Today I consider myself a musician at heart. I play guitar in a band and love music more than anything. Music is what inspires me to create and to venture into other areas of study. One day I hope to be a successful musician and follow my dreams, but my background is leading me to pursue other professions as well. My interests and talents growing up have led me to make the choice to pursue a degree at The Art Institute. Prior to coming to school, my passion for art had been just that. Art has always been merely an amateur passion or a hobby. I am finding that this school is taking my passions and hobbies and turning them into professional skills. The Art Institute is helping me to take what I love, and turn it into a career.