Program Overview

This microcredential short course is offered in partnership with the iconic wooden-boatbuilding shop based in Flagstaff, Arizona, run by Â鶹ӳ»­ alum Brad Dimock, that specializes in building beautiful wooden boats, including Grand Canyon dories and McKenzie River dories. This course begins with a 1-week session in Fretwater’s boatshop building two 9’ open one-person McKenziacs. This will be followed by a 3-day river trip on the San Juan River.

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Wooden Boat Building

During this portion of the course, you will gain the knowledge and skills to build your own McKenzie River dory, her larger cousin the Grand Canyon Dory, or any number of other similar craft. You’ll learn lofting, scarfing, fabricating parts, free-form assembly, and outfitting, as well as many of the arcane arts you’ll use along the way. You’ll use a minimum of fancy tools, relying more on adaptation and improvisation, as well as learn about maintenance, storage, and repair. 

Wooden Boat River Running

Then you will take your boats … to the river! In addition to learning (or if you are already a River Rat) refining your river expeditionary and camping skills, you will learn how to navigate and row these beautiful wooden crafts in Class I and II whitewater over the course of a 3-day river trip on the San Juan River from Sand Island to Mexican Hat. 

Why this program?

This immersive workshop introduces students to mono-printing as an expressive foundation for relief and mixed-media printmaking. Through hands-on demonstrations, guided studio practice, and group critiques, students will explore both traditional and experimental approaches to mono-printing, including additive and subtractive inking, layering, stenciling, and ghost printing.

Emphasis is placed on creative risk-taking, sustainable studio practices, material exploration, and personal visual language development. Students will leave with a cohesive body of prints, a working sketchbook, and practical skills applicable to future printmaking and mixed-media work.

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What will this program look like?

DAY 1 – Foundations + Controlled Exploration

• Welcome Introductions, Images + Demo
• Exercise 1: Direct Mark-Making
• Exercise 2: Additive + Subtractive Layers
• Structured Challenge: Limited Palette Composition
• Registration Intro (Simple Method)
• Texture & Transparency
• Independent Studio Work
• Group Critique + Clean Up

DAY 2 – Advanced Layering + Series Development

Editioning Practice, Critique and Reflection

Review + Advanced Demo

Project 1: 3-Layer Registered Print

Ghost Print & Variation Series

Ink Modification + Experimental Techniques

Final Project: Thematic Print – Solo work

Program Overview

This 5 day yogic river immersion takes place in a spectacular southwest canyon adjacent to Monument Valley in Utah. This program brings together the outdoor skills inherent to a multi-day river trip with a focus of connecting to Place through yogic practices. Participants will have numerous opportunities to practice yoga asana, breathing and meditation while flowing through the San Juan river’s upper corridor. Participants will share in the daily work required to paddle down stream and live harmoniously in the river environment. Each day will be a blend of landscape exploration and personal exploration through a variety of yoga practices in this natural outdoor setting. Discussions and reflections around yogic philosophy and principles will allow participants to dive deeper into their understanding of yoga and consider what aspects are most relevant and meaningful to them.

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Schedule

Day 1: Drive to Sand Island. Dinner, evening yoga practice + camp setup

Day 2: River safety + cultural introductions + petroglyph panel stop + evening yoga + camp

Day 3: Layover for am + pm yoga practices, side hike option, and sense of place overview, art + reflection

Day 4: Sidehike explorations and place-based yoga practices and discussions

Day 5: Silent float, contemplative practice. Take out + drive

Why this program?

This four-day studio intensive introduces students to the creative possibilities of solar plate printmaking and collage based monoprinting. Participants will learn how to transform high contrast photographs, drawings, textures, and found imagery into richly layered prints using light-sensitive solar plates and non-toxic printmaking methods.

Students will create a series of original prints while learning both traditional and contemporary approaches to image-making. The workshop is designed for artists, educators, students, and creative individuals interested in expanding their printmaking practice. No prior printmaking experience is required.

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What will this program look like?

Through demonstrations, guided exercises, and independent studio exploration, students will experiment with relief intaglio printing, monoprint techniques, transparent color layering, and collage processes. Emphasis will be placed on creative experimentation, personal expression, and the development of a unique visual language through printmaking.

Each day will conclude with a reflection, group discussion, and review of successful exposures and troubleshooting techniques 

Day 1: Introduction to Solar Plate Printmaking 
Learning Focus: Understanding solar plate processes and producing successful first prints.

Day 2: Layering, Texture, and Monoprint Exploration 
Learning Focus: Building visual complexity through layered imagery, texture, and color.

Day 3: Collage-Based Print Construction 
Learning Focus: Developing personal imagery and integrating collage into printmaking practice. 

Day 4: Final Projects and Portfolio Development 
Learning Focus: Completing a cohesive body of work and reflecting on artistic growth. 

Materials and Techniques Covered 

Solar plate exposure 
Photographic transparency crea3on 
Hand-drawn plate creation 
Intaglio inking and wiping
Registration methods
Monoprinting
Layered color printing
Collage construction
Mixed-media integration
Print presentation and portfolio development 

Why this program?

The Foundations in Community Journalism microcredential invites participants into the practice of journalism as a tool for collective power, resilience, and accountability. Through four interconnected, experiential workshops, students will gain both a grounding in the values of community journalism and practical skills they can immediately apply. Together, we will explore what makes community journalism distinct from legacy models and how it overlaps with community organizing. Students will learn why authentic, trust-based relationships are central to ethical reporting, and they will practice strategies for showing up within communities with transparency, humility, and care. Participants will sharpen their ability to ask strong, open-ended questions—cultivating curiosity, cultural awareness, and active listening as cornerstones of ethical storytelling. Finally, students will step behind the scenes of the full journalistic process, moving from idea to impact while reflecting on the rights and responsibilities of both journalists and news consumers. By the end of this program, students will leave with a holistic understanding of community journalism: its principles, practices, and potential to create meaningful stories that are accurate, ethical, and rooted in community trust.

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What will this program look like?

To successfully complete the pathway and earn the Foundations in Community Journalism badge, participants must:

• Engage with all four modules by completing required readings, videos, and non-lecture learning resources.
  
• Submit one artifact per module (e.g., a short written response, audio/video reflection, or activity worksheet) demonstrating engagement with key concepts:
  • Module 1: Reflection on how community journalism differs from legacy journalism.
  • Module 2: Example of a relationship-building strategy or community map.
  • Module 3: A set of open-ended, intentional interview questions.
  • Module 4: A brief outline of a story idea following the journalistic process.
    
• Participate in at least two cohort-based discussions (online discussion prompts, peer feedback, or synchronous conversations).
  
• Complete a final capstone reflection (2–3 pages or a short multimedia submission) synthesizing learning across all modules. The capstone must demonstrate:
  • Understanding of the historical roots and purposes of community journalism.
  • Application of relationship-building and ethical accountability strategies.
  • Ability to craft effective, curiosity-driven questions.
  • Familiarity with the journalistic process from idea to public engagement.