ENMU - Promotional Trailer | Return of the Hounds: Alumni Masterclass+ Festival 2024
WHAT ARE ASSIGNMENT UNIVERSE “Masterclasses+ Festivals?”
“This was an absolutely a ‘not to be missed’ event. It brought outstanding artists and experts to ENMU and our community. Students benefited immediately from the masterclasses and mentorship.”
Assignment Universe is a New Mexico based production company that creates educational and entertaining “Masterclasses+ Festivals” for underserved university communities.
Assignment Universe produces “Masterclasses+ Festivals” for specific education institutions and the wide ranging communities they serve. A crucial aspect of Assignment Universe’s production model involves partnerships with university alumni organizations in the planning and presentation of festival events that support a university’s academic mandate. Similar collaborations are designed to enhance masterclasses, workshops, clinics, and performance events for university students, faculty, patrons, and the general public. Assignment Universe is the talent buyer that secures world renowned presenters and performers so that the resulting mixture of professionals makes “Masterclasses+ Festivals” unforgettable.
SUCCESSFUL CASE STUDY: EASTERN NEW MEXICO UNIVERSITY Return of the Hounds: Alumni Masterclass+ Festival 2024
Eastern New Mexico University and the ENMU Foundation hosted an inaugural music, arts, film, and masterclass festival on the Portales, New Mexico campus September 10-12 2024. Billed as the “Return of the Hounds: Alumni Masterclass+ Festival,” the event brought back some of the university’s most notable alumni for a 3-day event aimed at inspiring a new generation of artists, musicians, and journalists. ENMU is located on the High Plains of New Mexico and serves the remote region of eastern New Mexico.
ENMU alumni participants included Diné jazz musician Delbert Anderson; Native American Veterans Affairs advocate Thomas Bandzul; pianist Valerie M. Trujillo; and film/music producer Mike Dawson. Radio/television historian Dr. Donna Halper, LA Philharmonic President Kim Noltemy, and award-winning Mexican magical realism artist Jade Levya attended as special guests. The “Return of the Hounds: Alumni Masterclass+ Festival.” took place at the ENMU campus and featured both live and webinar presentations. In addition to all the masterclass presentations and keynote events, a virtual film festival took place. And as the festival finale, a free community concert featured 2-time Grammy-winning musical artist Robert Mirabal of Taos Pueblo.
Community and ENMU student involvement was a vital component of the festival’s success. A robust publicity campaign was implemented by Assignment Universe and ENMU to ensure on and off campus involvement. Assignment Universe’s film production partner, Dreamers2Makers Films, worked as the event archivist with the close support of university students and faculty. The “Return of the Hounds” festival was the setting for a successful concert film and recording production where ENMU students took part in the production and the subsequent post production process. Another key result of the event was the extensive mentoring sessions provided to students and faculty.
"Carl Sagan - The Baloney Detection Kit" Narration and Music by Mike Dawson.
The Baloney Detection Kit is to be used by educators and students in order to learn how real science works and how to distinguish "real science" from "pseudo science."
Gene Kranz - Mission Control: Tough & Competent
The phrase "Tough and Competent" was created by NASA Flight Director Gene Kranz and became the rallying cry of NASA and the Mission Control crew after the Apollo 1 disaster that killed NASA astronauts Ed White, Gus Grissom and Roger Chaffee on January 27, 1967. Gene Kranz said in the NASA History Office archives: "I tend to be maybe one of the more emotional of the controllers. I believed that that's part of a leader's responsibility, to get his people pumped up, and I gave what my controllers came to know as the "tough and competent" speech, and concluded the talk identifying that the problem throughout all of our preparation for Apollo 1 was the fact that we were not tough enough; we were avoiding our responsibilities, we had not assumed the accountability we should have for what was going on during that day's test. We had the opportunity to call it all off, to say, "This isn't right. Let's shut it down," and none of us did. So basically the toughness was from that day forward we would stand for doing everything right, literally being perfect and competent." Gene Kranz served as NASA Flight Director until his retirement in1994 . He is the recipient of the Presidential Medal of Freedom