The Vega School of Brand Communication has opened the Imagination Lab`s Digital Centre in Sandton, aimed at exposing black students to the advertising world, according to Vega School navigator, Gordon Cook.
A R250 000 donation to the Digital Centre from Business Connexion (BCX), which was invested in computers, is in line with the company`s drive to grow SA`s skills base, says BCX deputy CEO Benjamin Mophatlane.
The Digital Centre aims to educate 380 students, most of whom come from previously disadvantaged backgrounds. The motivation behind the idea is to fast track transformation within the advertising industry, which is still representative of the past, says Cook.
"Increased education and the concurrent development of skills among previously disadvantaged individuals (PDIs) is critical for the country`s future," says Mophatlane. "By putting our money to work in Vega`s Resource Centres and the Digital Centre, we believe we can help Vega with successful transformation," he says.
"The Digital Centre will provide its students with basic computer literacy, which is something previously lacking in their curriculum.
"By virtue of receiving such basic computer literacy skills, students are not only better equipped to further their studies in either IT, design or marketing, but even those that do not continue their studies should at least be able to obtain an entry-level post, as most jobs today require a certain amount of computer literacy," he concludes.
BCX`s involvement with Vega is expected to have numerous and far-reaching impacts, according to Mophatlane, particularly in terms of providing the start up capital needed to establish resource facilities in Vega`s Cape Town and Durban campuses, which are operating without libraries.
Vega offers undergraduate and postgraduate degrees in branding, which include tuition in copywriting, visual communication, multimedia design or brand management and leadership. They will be exposed to an Apple platform degree, which is an intensive digital course, explains Cook. "With the sponsorship of PCs, we have PC networked resources, academic portals, Internet research and a PC labs research module."
Four Digital Centres have been opened through the initiative in Kwamashu, Alexandra, Sandton and Westville. "The initiative is purely to open doors for PDIs," he says.
Some of the students described having their own computer lab as "intimidating, yet exciting".
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