Online Student Named Valedictorian

For the first time at the Academy of Art University, an exclusively online student was named valedictorian. Shannon Widmer earned her MFA in the Department of Web Design and New Media while working as a multimedia designer in North Dakota.

Shannon said of being an online student at AAU:
"The online program gave me the opportunity to pursue the exact degree I was seeking, without having to settle for a lesser program just because it was geographically close. The instructors were incredible and I was always amazed by how responsive and knowledgeable they were. I was able to develop some great friendships with my fellow online students. I would highly recommend the Academy's online programs to anyone."

Her thesis project, Effusio is a Web application that allows art therapy clients to “express their feelings visually” by creating a collage of words, art, and music.

Shannon visited San Francisco. Watch a video of Shannon presenting her project on With Gelato Baby's coverage of the Spring Show.