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MIMIC Fair to plug students into business Courtesy logo PLUG INTO THE FUTURE: The MIMIC Fair theme for 2001

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 By Ted Troupis

Some IVCC students have not only attended a corporate board meeting, they have developed a product idea and carried it all the way from design prototype to a saleable item. On May 2 their products will be on sale in the cafeteria from 7:30 a.m. to 2 p.m.

Those students are in the MIMIC project, which stands for Making Industry Meaningful in College. They are enrolled in business, web design, engineering and electronics classes, and this semester they have been teamed into five "companies."

The products they have developed and will be selling at the Sixth Annual MIMIC Fair are

- The Millennium Bubble Lamp manufactured by The Bubble Works

- Starlight Lamp manufactured by Star Gazerz

- A Customizable Novelty Lamp by Heavenly Lamps Bubble Company

- Terra Cotta Fountain by Serenity Falls Company

- Nature Lamp by Turn Ons.

All of the products will be in the $6 to $12 range.

Jim Gibson, electronics instructor, said: "Looking at the prototypes, I’m excited about the upcoming fair. These are some of the best products I’ve seen. I’m expecting a very good turnout this year."

Designing Web pages, tracking the finances, marketing the products and organizing the fair where the products are sold are part of the project for MIMIC participants. The theme for this year’s fair, "Plug Into the Future," was also created by the students.

Throughout the semester, the students give presentations about their products as they would in real-world companies. They also receive training in a number of areas, such as goal setting or Web page design, which might be outside of their career courses.

Business instructor Alice Steljes said, "The MIMIC students are learning valuable skills as they interact with students from different programs in their companies, teams and committees."

Gibson said many former participants report they are working in groups at work, "and it’s just like MIMIC."