Bowie State University’s Visual Communication and Digital Media Arts program is quickly becoming a hub for aspiring creatives, blending traditional artistry with cutting-edge digital techniques. Offering five distinct concentrations—Advertising Design, Animation and Motion Graphics, Digital Cinema and Time-Based Media, Digital Media Arts, and Fashion Design—the curriculum provides students with a comprehensive foundation to excel in various creative industries.
The program is continuously evolving to stay at the forefront of the industry. Tewodross “Teo” Melchishua Williams, Chair of the Department of Fine and Performing Arts, highlights the faculty’s dedication to innovative and competitiveness. “We are upgrading the Visual Communication and Digital Media Arts curriculum to remain current in the field,” Williams said. “We are developing more partnerships and are working toward accreditation from the National Association of Schools of Art and Design, which will raise the profile of our program even further.”
Exciting updates are underway, including new courses in animation, fashion, and apparel design. The department is also collaborating with the Computer Science department on a new academic program that will integrate augmented reality, virtual reality, artificial intelligence, extended reality, visual effects, and motion graphics. “We also want to plug in entrepreneurship, encouraging students to create businesses.”
Technology remains a priority. Students can conduct collaborative research to broaden their technical expertise in the visual and media arts. They are encouraged to study the artists, innovators, filmmakers and designers who have contributed to the design, media arts and evolving technology. “We want our students to work with artificial intelligence instead of against it,” Williams said.
Industry connections further enhance the program. A new agreement with Laika Studios offers Bowie State students intensive internships in Portland, Oregon, providing hands-on experience in stop-motion animation and motion capture. The department is also pursuing interdisciplinary opportunities with major brands. “We are building partnerships with companies like Coach, Under Armour, Kate Spade, and Adobe,” Williams said.
On campus, students access advanced technology through the MOCAVI XR Lab, located in the computer lab. The department is also expanding beyond campus. “We are looking to build an arts-based study abroad program across all Fine Arts disciplines,” Williams said.
Bowie State’s Visual Communication and Digital Media Arts program is distinctive among Historically Black Colleges and Universities, offering rare concentrations in animation and fashion design. Its affordability, strategic location between Baltimore and Washington, and commitment to diversity and inclusion attract students from all backgrounds.
“Our program is very unique,” Williams said. “We are one of the few Historically Black Colleges and Universities that teach animation and fashion design. Our graduates have become executive producers, teachers, graduate students, and animators at major studios. This is a robust program that truly prepares students for the future.”