Rikke Van Johnson San Bernardno City Councilman and Boys and Girls Club Board Member examines a mural participants created for the Boys & Girls Club of San Bernardino for Summer Studio 2007.
(SAN BERNARDINO, Calif.) — The Art Institute of California-Inland Empire is opening its doors to local residents interested in a college degree or a career in the creative arts.
Monica Jeffs, senior director of admissions, said the open house will be held from 9 a.m. – 1 p.m. Saturday, April 26 at The Art Institute of California-Inland Empire campus located at 630 E. Brier Dr., San Bernardino.
“Guests will learn why we are America’s leader in creative education,” Jeffs said.
“ We are presenting information about all of the majors we offer such as our new fashion and retail management program, as well as game arts and design, culinary arts, interior design, graphic design, web design and interactive media, and media arts and animation. We hope many of our guests will want to apply for our next term, which begins May 8 with day, evening and weekend courses.”
The open house will also serve as an introduction to Summer Studio, a program The Art Institute of California-Inland Empire offers during summer for high school students starting their junior or senior year in the fall.
In this program, students work with a non-profit organization selected by The Art Institute of California-Inland Empire. They help the organization with design needs, thus experiencing what it would be like to work in a particular design field.
Also at the open house, there will be hands-on workshops in all of the programs, and a more extensive introduction to the new Fashion & Retail Management program.
The open house is also an opportunity to meet The Art Institute’s faculty, many of whom are also working in the industry, Jeffs said. These include Robert Delgadillo, who instructs both graphic design and fashion courses at The Art Institute, and also designs ads that have appeared in In Style and Vogue.
Jeffs said members of the public can tour the facility and meet with representatives from the university’s academic, student life and financial aid departments.
“Get the facts on how financial aid works, how you qualify and what you could be eligible for,” she said. “You may be surprised at how much is available for students with the desire to succeed.”
The Art Institute of California – Inland Empire is one of The Art Institutes (www.artinstitutes.edu), with 40 educational institutions located throughout North America, providing an important source of design, media arts, fashion and culinary arts professionals. For more information, call The Art Institute of California – Inland Empire at (909) 915-2100 or visit www.artinstitutes.edu/inlandempire.
(COLTON, Calif.) Greater Faith Ministries, a church focusing on community outreach, hopes within the next three years to do even greater things than now with its newly purchased property in Colton.
The church of approximately 60 members raised enough money recently to purchase about five acres near Interstate 215 off the Washington/Mount Vernon exit.
“I am so proud of our congregation for what it has accomplished,” said Pastor Kermit Brazier. “It was through church offerings and community contributions that we were able to purchase this land.”
Eighteen years ago, Greater Faith Ministies was born. For the last seven years, it has met at the San Bernardino Hilton on Hospitality Lane in San Bernardino. It is starting to outgrow its current meeting place, and the congregation also feels having a Sundays-only place limits what it can do.
Ideally, Greater Faith Ministries wants a place that can be a resource for those in need. It already considers helping the less fortunate its greatest ministry, Pastor Brazier said.
“The community is the church,” he said. “Our mission is to feed, clothe and shelter the community, and to teach them the principles of the word of God; to care for those who have nothing until they are able to function on their own.”
The church has helped a number of people on a case-by-case basis. But when it moves to its own building in Colton, Pastor Brazier would like to be able to add to that ministry. He won’t develop any specific projects until he meets with Colton city leaders to discuss his ideas, but knows he’d like the new ministry to include creating jobs for people.
He also will have to discuss the church building itself with Colton officials. Now that the property is purchased, the next step is for the church to hire an architect who will work with the city to develop plans for the new church. Only after the city approves these plans, and the church raises money to cover building costs, can construction begin.
But if all goes well, by 2011 the growing and faithful congregation will be blessed with a beautiful new church, and Colton will be blessed with a great resource for helping the area’s less fortunate.
For more information, call Pastor Brazier at (909) 354-1276.
Alejandro Martinez, the outgoing state vice president of California FHA-HERO, gives a plaque of appreciation to Chef Eyad Joseph, academic director of the International Culinary School at the Art Institute of California-Inland Empire. The International Culinary School hosted the Professional Food Cooking portion of the FHA-HERO state championship competition Sunday, April 13.
(SAN BERNARDINO, Calif.) FHA-HERO, an organization for high school students interested in careers in home economics-related fields, will hold a state level competition in commercial food preparation Sunday, April 13 at the International Culinary School at the Art Institute of California-Inland Empire.
The California Association of FHA-HERO will hold this competition from about 9:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. This, and 20 other competitions being held the same day in Riverside, is part of the 2008 California Association FHA-HERO State Leadership Meeting scheduled for April 12-15 in Riverside.
“FHA-HERO provides students with the opportunity to gain leadership, citizenship and career skills,” said Janice DeBenedetti, state FHA-HERO advisor. “We are pleased to have the assistance of the staff of the Art Institute of California-Inland Empire in showcasing and rewarding the talents of some of the top high school chefs in the state.”
Students who will be competing in the Commercial Food Event at the Art Institute of California-Inland Empire are enrolled in either Culinary Arts or Food Service and Hospitality programs at their high schools, DeBenedetti said These programs introduce them to careers in the food service or hospitality industry, and they could further their training at a college such as the International Culinary School.
Student competitors will demonstrate their knowledge and skills using appropriate food service procedures and tools, as well as work habits measuring up to industry standards.
The other state final competitions being held Sunday take place at the Riverside Convention Center, Marriott Hotel and the Mission Inn. These include other food-related competitions, as well as competitions in clothing, child development, hospitality, tourism and recreation, interior design, and other areas.
Also to be held in Riverside, at the Convention Center, are a banquet on Monday, April 14 and an awards ceremony/installation of officers on Tuesday, April 15.
FHA-HERO is the co-curricular leadership and career development component of the Home Economics Careers and Technology (HECT) educational program in California. More than 300,000 students are annually enrolled in HECT programs throughout the state. FHA-HERO provides students with the opportunity to gain leadership, citizenship and career skills. FHA-HERO is coordinated and sponsored by the HECT Education Staff of the California Department of Education.
The Art Institute of California – Inland Empire offers Bachelor of Science degrees in Game Art & Design, Culinary Management, Graphic Design, Web Design & Interactive Media, Interior Design, Fashion and Retail Management and Media Arts & Animation. There are also Associate of Science degrees in Graphic Design and Culinary Arts. Each program is offered on a year-round basis, allowing students to work uninterrupted toward their degrees.
It’s not too late to start classes. Courses begin May 8, with offerings in the days, evenings and on weekends for new and reentry students. For details or a tour of the campus call (909) 915-2100, or go on line to artinstitutes.edu/inlandempire.
The Art Institute of California – Inland Empire is one of The Art Institutes (artinstitutes.edu) with 40 educational institutions throughout North America providing an important source of design, media arts, fashion and culinary arts professionals.
Chef Eyad Joseph, the culinary director of The International Culinary School at The Art Institute of California – Inland Empire (back right) will be the guest with Bill Anthony (back left) and Clifford Cummings tonight, Tuesday at 8:30 PM – Inland Empire Focus from on NewsTalk 590 KTIE AM.
The Perfect Assistant, a gift basket filled with sweet things for a coffee break, is one of many great gifts The Bountiful Basket could create to reward a hard-working employee on Administrative Professionals’ Day
(SAN BERNARDINO, Calif.) A well-functioning office staff is to their employer what oil is to a smoothly running machine. They strive to keep things running perfectly.
April 23 is Administrative Professionals’ Day, and the perfect opportunity to show appreciation for their hard work. This holiday, along with its related Administrative Professionals’ Week, (April 20-26) has been celebrated since 1952 in recognition of the work administrative professionals do in almost every business office.
The term administrative professionals takes in a wide variety of positions, such as receptionist, secretary or administrative assistant, office manager, file clerk and customer service representative. Many companies also have highly specialized employees who aren’t part of the administrative team, but are equally deserving of recognition.
If you’re stumped on what to give your hard-working employees, The Bountiful Basket, a southern California business that specializes in creating custom designs, has lots of unique ideas.
All good workers deserve a good coffee break, so The Bountiful Basket owner Marilyn Taylor has designed a “For the Perfect Assistant” basket with this in mind. This basket, actually a faux-leather train case, is filled with gourmet snacks such as butter wafers, shortbread cookies, chocolate and caramels, and a tin of coffee, cocoa or tea.
The gift basket also comes with a notepad and picture frame, perfect accessories for the well-organized administrative professional’s desk.
“This gift basket is elegant and sophisticated, like administrative professionals strive to be,” Taylor said. “And it helps them to feel good. What’s more, when they’re done with the snacks, they have a wonderful upscale container to help them stay organized.”
Taylor designed her “For the Perfect Assistant” gift basket with women in mind, as most administrative professionals are women, and most women are fond of sweet confections For male administrative professionals and those bosses who would rather not indulge their employees’ sweet tooth, she has other designs as well.
For a man, Taylor recommends her Gourmet Sampler gift basket. This basket is filled with savory snacks like cheese and crackers, nuts, popcorn, pretzels, mustard and sausage. There’s also coffee and cookies in this basket.
“Men appreciate more savory snacks, so this basket is filled with the things they like,’ she said.
Administrative professionals also crave serenity at the end of their day, and for women, The Bountiful Basket’s Serenity Pampering Gift Basket strives for exactly that. This basket is filled with Taylor’s own Bountiful Spa Therapy line of bath products, including intensive moisturizing hand cream, body wash, bath salts, a luxurious towel and more.
“I think it’s important to let women know they should pamper themselves,” Taylor said.
She noted that men like some of the Bountiful Spa Therapy products as well, so a basket could be tailored for them.
If a boss knows their employees have certain interests outside of work, a themed basket may be best for them, Taylor said. She’s already designed baskets for golfers, sports enthusiasts, gardeners, movie lovers and many others with specific hobbies, and can custom-make baskets as well.
The above gift baskets, as well as many others described on the web site www.thebountifulbasket.com , would also be great gifts for Mothers’ Day and Fathers’ Day, which aren’t far behind Administrative Professionals’ Day on the calendar. And for those who have a wedding or graduation on their calendars, The Bountiful Basket makes a large variety of baskets sure to please.
Pictured from left are Phyllis Clark, founder of the Healthy Heritage Wellness Conference; San Bernardino County Supervisor, Fifth District Josie Gonzales and Lisha Smith, field representative for Gonzales. Gonzales was one of several elected officials who attended the conference and presented certificates of recognition to Clark and the Healthy Heritage Wellness Conference.
(RIVERSIDE, Calif.) The fourth annual Healthy Heritage Wellness Conference (www.healthyheritagemovement.com) has set the date of the 2008 conference for July 26 from 8 a.m. – 4 p.m. at California Baptist University in Riverside. “This conference is dedicated to improving the overall health and well being of the African American community,” said Phyllis Clark, conference founder and president.
“Many of the diseases that African Americans suffer from are lifestyle related,” Clark said. “If we change our behavior, and change the behavior of the next generation, we can prevent many of these life-shortening health problems. The goal of this conference is to provide African Americans with the tools to make better lifestyles choices.”
A 2005 study of African Americans in San Bernardino County, completed by the African American Health Initiative (AAHI) led by Dr. V. Diane Woods, reported that African Americans in San Bernardino County die 13 years younger than Whites. Many due to lifestyle-preventable diseases such as diabetes, high blood pressure, heart disease, HIV/AIDS and cancer.
As a member of the AAHI team and surviving daughter of a mother lost to colon cancer, Clark’s experience led her to commit herself to help Black people live longer.
“The Healthy Heritage Conference focuses on the major health and wellness issues in the African American community such as cancer, heart disease and organ failure,” Clark said. The conference also addresses emotional health issues which are often not discussed in the Black community.
“Mental health advocates are finding there are many emotional health issues in the African American home such as alcohol, drug abuse and depression,” Clark said.
The 2008 conference will offer seminars from the nation’s leading healthcare professionals, together with free screenings for HIV/AIDS, prostate cancer and blood sugar levels, Clark added.
The 2007 conference featured presentations from nationally renowned healthcare professionals specializing in minority health issues. The keynote speaker was psychologist Dr. Kimlin Ashing-Giwa, director of City of Hope’s Center of Community Alliance for Research & Education.
The 2008 Healthy Heritage Wellness Conference Committee started planning for 2008 last August. The committee includes staff members from Riverside County Public Health Department, the American Cancer Society, the Southern California Witness Project, Inland Agency, Clark Marketing Group, Dameron Communications and many volunteers.
Sponsors for the 2007 conference were First 5 San Bernardino, Abbott Labs, Riverside Community Health Foundation, Novartis, Blood Bank of San Bernardino and Riverside Counties and Kaiser Permanente.
“Although the information is targeted at the African American community, the conference is open to all nationalities,” Clark said.
San Bernardino County 5th District Supervisor Josie Gonzales attended the 2007 conference to gather information for her constituents. Gonzales was one of several elected officials who presented certificates of recognition to Clark at the conference. Clark was also recognized by U.S. Rep. Ken Calvert, State Assembly Member Wilmer Amina Carter, Riverside Mayor Ronald Loveridge and the Rialto City Council.
As a Supervisor, Gonzales sees the financial effects of mid- to low-income families who do not go to the doctor regularly. Many of these families make frequent trips to the emergency room, which is a huge strain on the government, Gonzales said.
“Many of our residents don’t make the commitment to practice health prevention,” Gonzales said. “This transfers into huge costs for the county.”
She said the conference offered area residents a chance to learn about ways to prevent serious health problems and about different health insurance options.
Gonzales added that it was important that Inland Empire residents monitor their health and pay attention to potential health problems.
“When we’re young we think we are never going to get sick,” Gonzales said. “As years pass it may not seem that our health is deteriorating, but there are signs, and we must train ourselves to recognize the symptoms leading to illnesses such as diabetes, heart disease and high blood pressure.”
Failure to plan for future health problems can have a disastrous effect on personal finances. “One third of all bankruptcies are because of health care costs,” she said.
To join the planning committee, or become a volunteer, sponsor, presenter or vendor for the 2008 Healthy Heritage Wellness Conference call (951) 565-4431 or e-mail hhwcmovement@yahoo.com .
(SAN BERNARDINO, Calif.) The Inland Empire African-Chamber of Commerce will hold its 18th annual Awards Banquet 5:30 p.m. Friday, April 25 at the Canyon Crest Country Club, 975 Country Club Drive in Riverside.
Awards to be given this year are Youth Entrepreneur of the Year, which will recognize a person between the ages of 16 and 21 who has started his or her own business, and New Entrepreneur of the Year, recognizing the owner of a business that has recently started or a person who is thinking of starting a business.
“This event recognizes African-Americans in business in the Inland Empire,” said Dolores Armstead, Chamber vice president.” “We especially want to give recognition to a young business person and one who is just starting out.”
Keynote speaker is Roland Gilbert, a personal and professional development coach and expert in sales leadership. He formed RNG Consulting Group in 2006, which specializes in helping sales teams market their businesses.
“Our honorees have already accomplished some fantastic things in their businesses,” Armstead said. “And Roland Gilbert will motivate all business owners to reach higher levels of success.”
Admission is $50. Reservations should be made by Friday, April 18.
Call the Inland Empire African-American Chamber of Commerce at (909) 888-5223 for more information, or email info@ieaacc.com
(PALM SPRINGS, Calif.) The Palm Springs/Inland Chapter of the American Society of Interior Design (ASID) will host a student Career Day Saturday, April 5 in Corona.
The conference is sponsored by the Palm Springs/Inland, Los Angeles, Orange County and Pasadena chapters of ASID. It takes place at the FLOORCO Design Center showroom, 146 Via Trevizio, Corona from 8:30 a.m. to 6 p.m.
“I encourage all interior design students and industry professionals to join us for a great networking opportunity,” said Sara Sandoval, academic director for interior design at the Art Institute of California – Inland Empire. “Students interested in interior design will benefit from the networking with dynamic professionals, a wide variety of educational choices and career options in the field.”
The conference is open to students and industry professionals. Student members of ASID may register for $20. Interior design students who are not in ASID may do so for $30, and interior design professionals may register for $40.
For more information about registering, contact Traci Kunz at tkunz@swansoninteriors.com, or by calling (760) 346-5300, or Maria Cruz at mariacrz@yahoo.com or (760) 449-0724.
Participants will find employers to network with and possibly a new job, but this conference offers them much more. Most importantly, they will have an opportunity to learn from interior design experts in Southern California about current topics in the field.
There will also be at least one speaker whose expertise is in helping people find jobs. Scott Saunders, director of career services for the Art Institute of California-Inland Empire, will discuss strategies for finding employment, including networking in the hidden job market.
“Especially in the field of interior design, at least 50 to 80 percent of the open positions are hidden, meaning they are not publicly posted,” Saunders said. “My presentation will show them how to network in the hidden job market by making industry contacts and by working with organizations such as ASID.”
Other topics to be addressed by industry professionals include green design, how to obtain required state certifications, and contemporary design techniques. There will also be keynote speakers, product tours and vendor booths.
Lunch is served during the conference, and the last two hours are dedicated to a “social networking event.” During this event, there will be an expanded vendor display of potential employers, live music, wine tasting and an opportunity to network with students and industry professionals. Many of these professionals, including Sandoval from the Art Institute of California-Inland Empire, will be available to critique resumes or answer questions about the industry.
The Art Institute of California – Inland Empire offers Bachelor of Science degrees in Game Art & Design, Culinary Management, Graphic Design, Web Design & Interactive Media, Interior Design, Fashion and Retail Management and Media Arts & Animation. There are also Associate of Science degrees in Graphic Design and Culinary Arts. Each program is offered on a year-round basis, allowing students to work uninterrupted toward their degrees.
The Art Institute of California – Inland Empire is one of the Art Institutes (artinstitutes.edu) with 40 educational institutions throughout North America, providing an important source of design, media arts, fashion and culinary professionals.
For more information about the Art Institute or a tour, call (909) 915-2100.
(SAN BERNARDINO, Calif.)– Have you ever dreamed of marketing your own line of clothes? Do you want to decide what hot fashion looks will show up in Nordstrom’s, Macy’s and other top fashion retailers?
The Art Institute of California-Inland Empire (www.artinstitutes.edu/inlandempire) is offering a new degree program in Fashion and Retail Management that will allow students to learn the inner workings of the fashion business. With the Art Institute of California – Inland Empire’s year-round schedule, students could obtain this bachelor’s degree in three years.
“We finally have a program right in our back yard,” said Phyllis Clark, who has worked in fashion merchandising for more than 20 years and serves as a member of the new major’s program advisory committee. “Students in the Inland Empire will have a very exciting opportunity to study fashion merchandising and retailing as a career.”
The Inland Empire needs a qualified labor force in the fashion industry, Clark said, because there are a growing number of large, upscale retail centers in the two-county area. A few of these are Victoria Gardens and the Ontario Mills Outlet Mall in the west San Bernardino Valley, the Galleria at Tyler and Riverside Plaza in Riverside and the Cabazon Outlet Mall in Cabazon and El Paseo in Palm Desert.
Now that the fashion and retail management program has begun, Clark said, the Art Institute also plans to expose others to the world of fashion by bringing in speakers and staging fashion shows.
“They have an important and necessary role in the fashion landscape of the Inland Empire,” she said.
“Anyone who would love to have a job in fashion or retail management should study in this new major at the Art Institute of California – Inland Empire,” said Jerry Foust, Dean of Academic Affairs. “We focus on entry level careers, and our new degree program will give students the skills necessary to enter the world of fashion and retail management.”
The program provides a broad-based general education, then offers specialized courses in marketing, fashion design and retail management. Topics students will learn include retail marketing, designing fashion portfolios, staging fashion shows and predicting fashion trends, to name a few.
As with all of the Art Institute of California-Inland Empire degree programs, the fashion and retail management courses will be taught by instructors who have worked in the field. One of the program’s instructors is Robert Delgadillo, who designs advertisements for the chic and upscale Beverly Hills clothing boutique, Kitson. Delgadillo is also an instructor in the Art Institute of California – Inland Empire’s graphic arts department.
You can start classes before summer at the Art Institute. The next sessions begin May 8. For more information, or for a tour of the campus, call (909) 915-2100.
The Art Institute of California – Inland Empire offers Bachelor of Science degrees in Game Art & Design, Culinary Management, Graphic Design, Web Design & Interactive Media, Interior Design, Fashion and Retail Management and Media Arts & Animation. There are also Associate of Science degrees in Graphic Design and Culinary Arts. Each program is offered on a year-round basis, allowing students to work uninterrupted toward their degrees.
The Art Institute of California – Inland Empire is one of the Art Institutes (artinstitutes.edu) with 40 educational institutions throughout North America, providing an important source of design, media arts, fashion and culinary professionals.
(SAN BERNARDINO, Calif.) Gift baskets filled to overflowing with gourmet goodies, pampering products or specialty items a company can use to market itself, have garnered a high award for Marilyn Taylor, owner of The Bountiful Basket.
Rave Reviews! magazine has named this Southern California business one of the Top 50 Gift Basket Businesses in the United States. The award recognizes The Bountiful Basket as one of the major gift basket makers based on Taylor and her team’s dedication to her business, the creativity of her customized baskets and the wide variety of upscale products included in them.
“This is a prestigious award,” Taylor said. “Rave Reviews! is an upscale magazine that caters to advanced basket designers serving a high-end clientele.”
This is the third time Taylor’s has been named a Top 50 Gift Basket Business. In 2005and 2006, Gift Basket Review magazine named her to its Top 50. This magazine caters to both professional gift basket designers such as Taylor, and to those who design gift baskets as a hobby.
Before being named to Rave Reviews! Top 50, Taylor completed a detailed questionnaire. It asked about the types of baskets she designs, which are the best sellers and how she markets her baskets.
“Some gift basket retailers don’t design their own baskets, but order shipments from large foreign suppliers then resell them,” Taylor said. “We take great pride and pleasure in designing our customers’ gift baskets ourselves.
“Our biggest competitor is Costco. People can go there and see 20 baskets all the same, with no personality.”
“For the same price they can have a beautiful unique basket custom designed for their recipient, delivered to their customer’s or loved one’s door.”
Taylor does half of her business on the web, and will ship orders all over the world. Many of her customers are out of state; one of her biggest clients is in Texas and a large number of orders come from New Jersey and New York.
Since 1995, Taylor has made a career out of designing her own gift baskets. Her team scours trade shows and elsewhere looking for gourmet foods and uniquely shaped baskets. They have more than 500 different products that can be used to create a specially designed gift, many of which can’t be found anywhere else in the local area.
What’s more, the baskets and other gift containers come in a wide variety of shapes and sizes.
For instance, she discovered a company that hand makes baskets in the shape of states, and uses a California-shaped basket to hold an assortment of products native to the state, including chocolates manufactured locally.
“We have a wonderful variety of made-in-California products that are not found in any grocery stores,” Taylor said.
About four years ago, they started designing children’s baskets, and now sell many of them to families with children at Loma Linda Children’s Hospital and other hospitals throughout the United States. These baskets are filled with interactive toys, games and books.
“I search the globe for things that get children to use their minds,” she said. “It’s hard to find things that aren’t video games or otherwise keep them in their own zone.”
Earlier this year, one of her top-selling kids’ baskets included Hot Wheels and Matchbox cars.
For adults, both men and women, many of her best-selling baskets contain her Bountiful Spa Therapy line of lotions and other items for the bath. She developed this line after sampling hundreds of similar products and finding none that were “just right.”
Other baskets could be filled with coffee, cookies, chocolates, savory snacks, fruit or many other choices.
At the website, www.thebountifulbasket.com Taylor has dozens of examples to choose from, $10 to $500. These are grouped by themes such as holidays, corporate, children’s and teenagers’ baskets, college students’ designs and gifts with different varieties of products.
But, if none of those designs are exactly what you’re looking for, The Bountiful Basket can custom-make the perfect gift that you will be proud to give and will fit within your budget.
“If someone is allergic to peanuts, we won’t put that in there,” she said. “Or if they would rather have tea than coffee, we can accommodate that.”
She also encourages businesses to include their own products in their gift baskets. And she can imprint names and custom messages on the ribbons that adorn the baskets, for an even more personalized and professional touch.
How do you create an award-winning business from the Inland Empire?
“We treat every customer as though they’re a business next door and they come back again and again,” she said. “Our business is our passion and it shows in every gift we create.”
For more information about The Bountiful Basket, call (909) 425-2203 or visit www.thebountifulbasket.com
