Make It Millikin: Taylor Isaia

Millikin student becomes first marketing intern for Children's Hospital 3-D Project

Taylor Isaia, a digital media marketing major, is spending her summer working with the up-and-coming technology and innovations at OSF HealthCare Children's Hospital of Illinois in Peoria, Ill. The Mapleton, Ill., native is the first marketing intern for Jump Simulation, a collaborative program between OSF HealthCare and the University of Illinois College of Medicine at Peoria, where she will be focusing on the About Me 3D project.

What is the About Me 3D project? It's a Jump Simulation Coloring Book made possible through a generous grant from the PNC Foundation, and is an extension of the Jump Science, Technology, Engineering, Art and Mathematics (STEAM) program that serves middle school through college students.

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Photo courtesy of  OSF Healthcare

The coloring book was created to give children and teenagers, who have been admitted to the hospital for an extended period of time, a way to experience Science, Technology, Engineering, Art and Mathematics through various technologies.

"The coloring book teaches the patients about their condition in ways that they can understand," said Isaia. "The patient can color in the book and then take a phone or tablet with the app and see their drawing come to life."

This new technology includes 3-D imaging, 360-degree environments, virtual reality and augmented reality which all help achieve the goal of educating the young patients.

Isaia will be helping market and sell the coloring book to hospitals around the United States so other patients will also be able to experience this new technology.

"I feel prepared for this internship, especially with all the experience I have had through Millikin thus far," Isaia said.

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Isaia helps market Blue Brew, a Millikin University student-run coffee shop. Working with Blue Brew has given her an insight into different programs like Facebook Analytics, Hootsuite and Google Analytics. That experience, as well as the material she has learned within her courses, has set her up for success going into the internship opportunity.

"I definitely have become more creative because of my classes," Isaia said. "The classes I've taken through the Design Thinking for Leadership minor have taught me creative problem solving. Every situation's answer is not going to be black and white, but sometimes you have to work to create a new solution."

The Design Thinking for Leadership minor is an interdisciplinary program that focuses on increasing students' technical, creative and management skills as they work to become creative leaders.

Isaia will put all of her learning into action as she enters her internship this summer.