Amber Billings, a sophomore and graphic design student at the University of Minnesota, entered a national design contest last spring - and won! The task was to design a pack for Orbit gum. Her signature and design will appear on limited edition packs of Orbit's Melon Remix gum through February 2012. (See the photo below for Amber's design.)

Amber has been an artist and designer for her entire life and loves inspiring others with her work. Amber credits her academic adviser at the U of M for letting her know about the Orbit contest last spring; Amber figured she had nothing to lose and had high hopes for her chances to win the $5,000 in prize money awarded to the eight contest winners. 

Amber's idea for the winning design was inspired by other Orbit packs as well as from design techniques that she has learned in her College of Design classes at the University of Minnesota. She began by looking at newer Orbit pack designs to figure out what the judges were looking for; she realized that geometric shapes and patterns were very popular. Using concepts and ideas that she developed in her color theory class, Amber created the eye-catching, winning design. 

Amber chose the U of M for the four-year college experience, the location, and the excellent design program. Her ultimate dream is to someday have a job that she loves. As a student, Amber counts on her friends to be her motivation and support. They have become her "second family" in the transition from high school to college. Additionally, the energizing spirit of Amber's professors and instructors at the U of M encourage her to do her best work every day.

Amber's advice to other students who are seeking a creative path in life is simple: "You just have to make sure that what you're doing is what you want to be doing. If you like what you've created, others will too." 

Name: Megan Odom 

Hometown: Savage, MN
Major(s): Spanish and Sociology of Law, Criminology, and Deviance
Year in School: Sophomore, Class of 2014

Colleges and universities she considered: As a high school senior, Megan's top choices for colleges included the University of Minnesota-Twin Cities, Yale University, University of Wisconsin-Madison, and Bethel College.

Why she chose the U of M: 
Megan ultimately chose to attend the University of Minnesota-Twin Cities based on the quality of academic programs as well as value: low cost of attendance and great scholarship opportunities.

Campus involvement:
• Swing Dancing
• The Rock Church (click here to see a list of the variety of religion-based student groups available to all students on campus)
• Admissions Ambassadors

Getting involved in research: "As a freshman last year, my research project included working with the speech-language-hearing sciences department to research effective language interventions for children and adolescents with both Down Syndrome and Fragile X Syndrome."

Highlight of her freshman year at the U of M: "Meeting a group of friends who are like family! We made 'family dinners' on Sunday nights a tradition. We even celebrated 'fam Christmas' together before going home for winter break."

Her advice to high school seniors: "Stay in touch with friends once you go off to college - everyone loves to get mail!"

College of Design (CDes) students at the University of Minnesota were able to gain valuable hands-on experience last semester while supporting Haitian children in need. The U of M students assembled clothing for children in Haiti who are suffering without basic needs after the earthquake of 2010. Sherri Gahring's Apparel Design class partnered with U of M alumna Karen Moen, a board advocate for Healing Haiti, to assemble more than 80 garments for children at the Grace Village orphanage in Titanyean, Haiti.

Moen asked that the design students make garments for the orphanage to help support service-learning coursework on campus. The students were able to gain experience in assembly and design, while also making a difference in the world and helping those in need. In total, the 27 students created 42 sundress and 43 jam shorts. Karen Moen and her team delivered the clothes to Haiti in late November.

For more information, visit the College of Design's website, or visit the CDes Facebook page to see photos of the students, as well as photos of the Haitian children.