Student Biographies

Making up the largest body of talent at the Emergent Media Center, over 75 students contribute to the success of projects, events, and the Center as a whole.

Students A-L | M | N | O | P | Q | R | S | T | U | V | W | X | Y | Z

M

N

Max Nichols | Lauren Nishikawa | Jennifer Neves | Kaitlyn Newkirk

O

P

Dan Peavey | Joel Pelletier | Dan Porter | Sarah Prak | Brandon Phoenix

R

S

T

Alex Tabor | Keith Tatarczuk

U

V

Ryan Vachon

W

Robert Witbeck

Nichole Magoon

MAJOR: Double major in Marketing w/ concentration in Advertising; Multimedia & Graphic Design
YOG: 2010
EXPERIENCE: Internship at Kelliher Samets Volk, class projects with Eating Well Magazine; Able Paint, Glass & Flooring; VSECU; Stowe Area Association
PAST/CURRENT EMC PROJECTS: Researcher/Marketing on UNFPA Game to End Violence Against Women since July 2008
AFTER GRADUATION?: find a marketing or graphic design job and stay in the Burlington area for a few years, then who knows...Heads Carolina, Tails California. With the way the economy is, just having a job in general would be nice!
FAVORITE ACTIVITES: any kind of theater, Champlain's improv comedy troupe (Los Dormant Volcanos), playing the piano, writing
THOUGHTS ON THE EMC: I love working at the EMC, it's provided me with real life client work through the UNFPA project, along with an amazing trip to South Africa to get first hand field experience in primary research and data collection. It's been a wonderful place to work with very talented individuals and staff.
WEBSITE: coming soon!
ADDITIONAL COMMENTS: Follow me on Twitter! Twitter.com/barqshasbite87

Chris Matuszek

MAJOR: EGD Art & Animation
YOG:2010
EXPERIENCE: Maya, Zbrush, Photoshop, Illustrator, Flash, Word
PAST/CURRENT EMC PROJECTS: America's Army: District - Artist
AFTER GRADUATION? Environment/character artist
FAVORITE ACTIVITIES: Bowling, Golf, Various online games, Art
THOUGHTS ON THE EMC: The EMC is full of talented, aspiring, young professionals with a passion for what they do. I've always been impressed with the compassion and cooperation that the students work with.

Auston Montville

MAJOR: Game Design
YOG: 2010
EXPERIENCE: Press Start Studios.
PAST/CURRENT EMC PROJECTS: Info Lit: Searchlight and the project for Learning 2008.
AFTER GRADUATION?: Get shipped to Japan after working with EA.
FAVORITE ACTIVITIES: Seeing my girlfriend and friends, making music, gaming (traditional and electronic), adventuring (some call it ‘hiking'), and raving.
THOUGHTS ON THE EMC: The EMC is a fast growing studio that will have a great impact on multiple industries in the near future.
WEBSITE: http://www.linkedin.com/pub/9/a95/179
ADDITIONAL COMMENTS: Follow your heart. As long as you have a dream and truly believe it will happen, you will subconsciously take the steps needed to make it come true. Just stay focused, but be careful to never get stressed. It is okay to not spend 100% of your time focused on said dream. As long as you follow it, it will happen.

Max Nichols

MAJOR: Electronic Game and Interactive Development - Design
YOG: 2010
EXPERIENCE: I was part of a team that created an anaglyphic (red-blue 3D glasses) game for entrance in the Gamma 3D show. I moderated numerous The Legend of Zelda online communities, one of which had nearly 50,000 registered users. I ran Zeldalegends.net, the fansite with the largest selection of content, and wrote regular articles for Zeldauniverse.net, the most popular Zelda fansite on the internet. I also did some freelance game journalism for several years, with articles appearing on the aforementioned Zelda sites, n-sider.com, and rpgamer.com.
PAST/CURRENT EMC PROJECTS: I began work at the EMC in fall of 2007. I worked as a designer in the earliest stages of the Information Literacy Projects, and was a writer/proof-reader for IBM Good Games Media Package. In the summer of 2008 I was producer of one of America's Army level Design teams, and in the fall I was a designer for the Learning 2008 project, which produced Teletrust.
AFTER GRADUATION?: Games have always been a source of inspiration for me; immersive worlds where I could explore crumbling ruins and ancient forests, collect mystical items, and, in the end, save the worlds that I had grown to love. That feeling is what inspired me to pursue this career. My aspiration is to create compelling experiences that will inspire young players. I work towards the day when I can meet a young game developer who can tell me that they were irrevocably inspired by my work. With this goal in mind, upon graduation I hope to find a job at one of the Montreal-based studios. But with such a competitive industry I'm not picky, and would happily begin my career at any number of companies.
FAVORITE ACTIVITIES: These days I have little free time. When I do though, I usually spend it visiting with my fiancée or playing games. I'm also an avid reader, the type that regularly consumes 1000 page novels. I enjoy trips to the gym, although they're infrequent. I also have an interest in martial arts; I trained in Shaolin Kempo Karate for ten years. Oh, and you can never go wrong with kayaking, or Dungeons and Dragons. I should try to combine the two one of these days.
THOUGHTS ON THE EMC: The college is incredibly lucky to have it, and as a student I am honored by the enormous opportunities that Ann Demarle is always cooking up for us. In addition to in country opportunities, the EMC puts us on the international stage. And for a student of game design, it presents a chance to build my portfolio, experience a more realistic production environment outside the umbrella of academia, and show off my work to audiences that would otherwise be untapped. I feel that it has made me a better person, a more capable leader, and a more skilled designer. In short, the EMC pretty much rocks.
WEBSITE: http://www.maxnichols.net

Lauren Nishikawa

MAJOR: Game Design
YOG: 2009
PAST/CURRENT EMC PROJECTS: Attended Learning 2007/CIMIT Innovation Congress 2007/ MPI, Programmer/Designer/Interviewee for IBM Good Games Package, Producer/Designer/Programmer for Info Lit Project, Designer for UN Project.
AFTER GRADUATION?: Help build up the technology industry in Burlington, particularly the game space. Apply games to learning and empowerment in ways that no one's thought of yet.
FAVORITE ACTIVITIES: Wandering around Burlington, creative side-projects (abstract pastel drawings, short musical compositions), being a lifelong learner
THOUGHTS ON THE EMC: The EMC teeters on the fine line between academic space and industry work environment. There's plenty of room to experiment, fail, and persevere - but don't think the pressure isn't on! It takes a real level of dedication to work here, but the experience that comes out of it is irreplaceable.
WEBSITE: http://laurennishikawa.com

Dan Peavey

MAJOR: Electronic Game and Interactive Design: Art & Animation
YOG: 2010
EXPERIENCE: Working / have worked on several projects with the EMC as an artist, and on a few personal mod projects on Unreal Engine 2, Unreal Engine 3, and Valve's Source Engine.
PAST/CURRENT EMC PROJECTS: From April 2008 to the present I've been on the America's Army Level Design project. From October 2008 I've worked on the "Teletrust", rapid game development at Learning 2008.From October 2008 to November 2008, I worked on Visualize Burlington 3D, and from October 2008 to the present I've been on the IBM OpenSim project.
AFTER GRADUATION?: I want a couple of things. I want to get a job with what I love doing. Money is a secondary concern compared to my thirst to learn and create. Bringing mine and other's ideas to fruition is my passion. Getting a job as a junior or senior artist in a developer would be amazing, especially getting it right out of school. I would also like to travel. I want to see more places, and further fill my head with the greatness that I cannot yet see in this massive world of ours, to further spur that inspiration!
FAVORITE ACTIVITIES: I love to paint, draw, 3D model, sculpt, and overall, make games. Going outside and studying everything organic to manmade while, preferably, spending time with friends is a great combination activity as well.
THOUGHTS ON THE EMC: Being able to practice and apply what you have learned in your life and in school while still in school? Hah, go figure! Such a simple idea, and yet so powerful and amazing a scope, I am so happy with the fact that I have the opportunity to be working and learning with my peers in projects with very practical applications.
WEBSITE: http://www.therealdanpeavey.com/

Brandon Phoenix

MAJOR: Game Art and Animation
YOG: 2012
EXPERIENCE: I have done free-lance game art for the past year, and have taught myself both 3D and traditional art over the past 4.
AFTER GRADUATION? I hope to get a job in either the entertainment or serious game market. Oh, and travel.

PAST/CURRENT EMC PROJECTS: UNFPA Game to Prevent Violence Against Women
FAVORITE ACTIVITES: Definite audiophile from blues to metal, love drawing, lacrosse, and working with computers.
THOUGHTS ON THE EMC: So far it's been a wonderful experience. It allows me to do what I love and apply my particular skill set to a social cause.

Alison Seffels

MAJOR: Electronic-Game: Design
YOG: 2011
PAST/CURRENT EMC PROJECTS: Writer for the IBM: Good Games project, Producer of the CIMIT: RIPS project, and Designer for the Breath Biofeedback Cystic Fibrosis project.
AFTER GRADUATION?: I hope to start out as an associate/assistant producer or maybe a level designer. In my spare time, I'll continue writing manuscripts, which will probably also remain unpublished, but are fun anyways.
FAVORITE ACTIVITIES: Reading, writing, drawing, hanging out/lounging, cooking sweets/desserts, and playing video games (when I have time).
THOUGHTS ON THE EMC: The EMC is a great learning experience. I'm so glad I got involved my freshman year because it's given me a lot of invaluable experience and helped me make great connections to people I may have otherwise never met.

Becky Schmidt

MAJOR: Digital Filmmaking
YOG:2010
EXPERIENCE:Moving from professional writing to digital filmmaking, I have written for many various types of media in my classes, including film and television screen plays, copy for radio and television, as well as for websites. Two of my films will be entered into the Vermont International Film Festival in 2009.
PAST/CURRENT EMC PROJECTS: UNFPA Game to Prevent Violence Against Women.
AFTER GRADUATION? Right now I'm not quite sure what aspect of film I would like to concentrate in, so getting any job in the film industry will be a great opportunity.
FAVORITE ACTIVITIES: Hanging out with friends, watching movies, playing videogames, reading books/comic books.
THOUGHTS ON EMC: The EMC is an amazing opportunity for the students at Champlain and I am truly excited to be part of it.

Andrew Start

MAJOR: Game Programming
YOG: 2010
PAST/CURRENT EMC PROJECTS: Breath Biofeedback, IBM Virtual Worlds
AFTER GRADUTAION? I think I will go program some place, haven't thought about where yet.
FAVORITE ACTIVITIES: Videogames, fantasy/sci-fi books, ultimate frisbee
THOUGHTS ON EMC: It's a great place to work with good people on fun and interesting projects.

Ryan Vachon

MAJOR: E-Game Design
YOG: 2011
EXPERIENCE: Before coming to the EMC, I worked with RPG Maker XP as a hobby. This program was part of my inspiration to become a game designer, and my continued experimentation with it has allowed me to put concepts pulled from my classes into practice.
PAST/CURRENT EMC PROJECTS: Currently, I am working on the Wiki Project, a resource where anyone can go to find multiple different resources and information on projects.
AFTER GRADUATION?: When I graduate, I would like to work for a local game company, preferably a small developer with a lot of creative freedom. Though I realize my career path may take me in other directions, my largest goal is to start up my own independent game development company in New England.
FAVORITE ACTIVITIES: Clearly, I enjoy gaming. I like to read as well. George R.R. Martin, Ben Bova and Clive Cussler are among some of my favorite authors. Growing up I liked to play with Legos, which speaks somewhat to my current aspirations in game design; level design.
THOUGHTS ON THE EMC: I wanted to work at the EMC for the experience more than anything. As a game designer, I am interested in putting my learning to practice. Since most of what is taught in classes is based on theory, terminology and document writing, I felt the need to see how everything comes together. I also view working here as a great opportunity to build up my resume and work on a few projects before I graduate from Champlain.

Robert Witbeck

MAJOR: Game Design
YOG: 2010
PAST/CURRENT EMC PROJECTS: Designer/Programmer for Info Lit Project, Designer for UN Project
AFTER GRADUATION?: Finding a job in the industry as a level designer and making amazing experiences for the players of my games.
FAVORITE ACTIVITIES: Hanging out with friends, watching movies, reading books, and playing games both of the video and non video variety (assuming I have the time).
THOUGHTS ON THE EMC: Working at the EMC has been an incredibly rich learning experience. I would probably not know half the things I know about making video games if I had not worked here.