Alyssa Shoults

My name is Alyssa Shoults and I am a senior studying Visual Communications. This is my third year in Ball State's immersive learning course, Conservation Tales. I joined the team my sophomore year as the team photographer and assistant graphic designer and came back my junior and senior year as a team lead and head graphic designer.

My experience with Conservation Tales has taught me so much about bridging the gap between art and science. Where the two worlds seem like total opposites; they can mold together to create a common ground. I had learned how to convey science through art in an easy, accessible way, so simple that even younger children can understand. Through literature, illustrating, and design, we can create pathways to communicating complex ideas into simple thoughts and actions. Working on Conservation Tales has given me the tools and resources to participate in doing just that.

I joined Conservation Tales because of my love for giraffes. My sophomore year, the team was working on the Giraffes and Elephants book. I was never interested (or very good) in science, but I have always loved and admired nature and animals. This course taught me all the ways that science can be fun and accessible, and how we can apply it to our everyday lives. Through the application of art to science and how we can convey our ideas and research to young readers, I found myself learning so much. I learned countless conservation efforts, all about the animals we were researching, how animals are researched and studied, and much more. Everything I have learned has been invaluable to my life, how I see the world, and how I want to go out into the world with my design degree.