By Kenneth Guiterrez/reporter
After a semester’s endeavors, NW humanities students unveiled their course project for Child Advocates of Tarrant County.
Public Awareness, a 23-minute documentary, spotlighted the numerous challenges the Child Advocates agency faces and highlighted the success and areas of volunteer opportunities.
The call for public awareness to Child Advocates of Tarrant County was the idea of Linda Quinn idea, humanities teacher and associate professor of dance. Encouraging her students to become public advocates, Quinn directed her class in the production of a Holocaust video in fall 2006 and the child advocate video in spring 2007.
The spring film depicted the process through which children enter the child advocate system. The film takes the audience from the initial assessment process to the child advocate process to the final judicial component.
Quinn said the documentary focused on the common misconceptions about the role of child advocates in the system.
Natasha Lawry, a child advocate supervisor and former volunteer, was featured in the documentary. She said advocates aim at keeping families together whenever possible.
Students such as Gina Gwozdz found the project educational and satisfying.
“ This was labor of love and a true learning experience for all involved,” she said.
Nancy Fisher, Child Advocates executive director, and Dr. Elva LeBlanc, NW Campus president attended the screening earlier this month.
“ I have pride and deep admiration for the class and their work,” LeBlanc said.
The class had a definite purpose behind the film.
“ We wanted to give the children in the Child Advocate system a voice,” Gwozdz said.
Faculty or students interested in obtaining a copy should contact Quinn at linda.quinn@tccd.edu.
