Arts Alive SDSU Rolls Out New Badging Program

Arts Alive SDSU has announced a brand-new credentialing program officially recognized through Student Affairs and Campus Diversity. Initially developed and recognized as the Arts Alive Certificate over the past two years, the newly designated Arts Alive Badge offers students a way to validate their sought-after job skills to future employers. 

All SDSU badges are digital credentials that provide students, staff and faculty with verifiable proof that they have learned or mastered a particular skill. 

The Arts Alive Badge specifically highlights participant’s dedication to creative research and interdisciplinary collaboration as they explore a variety of sociopolitical and cultural issues through the visual and performing arts. 

The badge itself is a digital credential that is embedded with data to explain what they represent. Official Student Affairs and Campus Diversity badges are hosted online through Credly, and can be shared via social media, email signatures, and other online communications.  

The Alive Alive events that qualify for the badge immerse students in conversations at the intersection of the arts and critical social issues. While the Arts Alive Badge is a recognition of those students who adopt an interdisciplinary approach to their study of the arts, humanities, and sciences, it is open to students of any major at San Diego State University. 

The goal of the Arts Alive Badge is to prepare students for future professional and academic experiences by enriching their education beyond the traditional classroom environment. 

SDSU Alumna Kennii Ekundayo (Class of 2024, M.A. MALAS) graduated last year with the Arts Alive Certificate, and recognized the impact that her participation in the program has on her education. 

“Arts Alive, through its diverse programming, has contributed immensely to my academic and professional development,” said Ekundayo. 

To earn the certificate, students must accrue 75 points by attending designated Arts Alive events, including guest artist lectures, panel conversations, theater talk-backs, and workshops. Attendance of these programs is worth 15 points per event. 

Students participating in Arts Alive internships or Arts Alive ICT courses are also awarded 50 points toward the certificate. 

After attending each event, and at the end of acquiring the required points, students must submit short written reflections on Canvas. 

“Arts Alive helped to contextualize most of the lessons taught in the classroom,” explained Ekundayo. “It expanded my knowledge and greatly influenced my research interests.”

A calendar of available qualifying events are available on the Arts Alive website, as well as the Arts Alive Badge canvas course. Enrollment is available at any time throughout the academic year, and points do not expire until a student graduates from the University. Students who wish to earn an Arts Alive Badge must-self enroll in the Arts Alive Badge Canvas Course.