Around GC
Maddy Fritz ‘14 with a new walking tour sign featuring her winning design.
Student, Faculty, Staff collaboration results in updated campus Historical Walking Tour By Juilee Decker
Faculty Cliff Wargelin and Juilee Decker, along with Greg Decker who took this photo, led the team creating the updated walking tour.
Can’t make it to campus? View the markers on TigerTrax. tigertrax.georgetowncollege.edu
Your support is welcome. Learn more 502-863-8173 Juilee_Decker@georgetowncollege.edu
INSIGHTS • 9
In March 2013, a new campus historical walking tour was launched to provide visitors with a broader perspective of the College’s history and traditions. Sixteen new markers focus on the buildings, locations, people, and events historically significant to our campus. Their design distinguishes them from other campus signage and includes QR (quick-recall) codes which provide additional information when scanned by a smartphone or tablet with a camera. Three faculty authored the text and served as the design team: Prof. Greg Decker, cataloguing librarian and adjunct faculty; Dr. Cliff Wargelin, professor of history; and me, Juilee Decker, associate professor of art history. We covered themes and concepts like co-education, traditions, celebrations and the college’s legacies. For instance, the Female Seminary is celebrated through the marker positioned at the corner of Jackson and Mulberry Streets—within a stone’s throw of the site where that seminal institution was established. For the visual component, three art majors (Maddy Fritz ’14, Lynsey Jordan ’14 and Elizabeth Metcalfe ’13) were selected to present potential designs. The design by Maddy Fritz, a junior from Henderson, Kentucky, was chosen due to its use of the historic Georgetown seal and the color palette, which mimicked the appearance of bronze. Maddy was also responsible for editing the design and laying out the text for each marker. “I actually looked forward to working on the historical markers more than I looked forward to doing my homework. Just the thought of being able to create something that would have a lasting impression on the Georgetown community gave me the motivation to put in the extra hours to really make something that people would notice and enjoy,” Maddy noted. This project was a collaboration among the Art and History Departments, the Ensor Learning Resource Center and Archives, as well as ITS and Grounds. Plans for enhancements, including a permanent visitor map near the Cralle Student Center, extended online content on TigerTrax and an audio walking tour of campus, are underway.