The Groop Announces the Launch of Artcenter.edu

September 19, 2004

The Los Angeles-based design collective, THE_GROOP today announced the launch of Artcenter.edu, a much anticipated update to Art Center College of Design's highly visited website. The new site launched on July 30. The 15-person GROOP team collaborated closely with Art Center's administration and IT staff. "Our approach was tailored to meet Art Center's unique needs and to support its mission. Our team of industry veterans was able to deliver on-time and on-budget in a very collaborative and efficient manner," said Tony Wong THE_GROOP's Project Manager for the Art Center web site. The 8-month project commenced in December 2003 with an Inception phase while the GROOP team worked closely with the Art Center team to establish the strategy and functionality priorities. During this phase THE_GROOP also developed a strategic platform for the Art Center Alumni Relations office.

This is the first step in a three-step plan for the Art Center website: Art Center will continue to work with THE_GROOP to provide the resources and tools that engage their diverse audience in an immersive experience as well as an environment where they interact with Art Center resources and systems. THE_GROOP is currently collaborating with Art Center on the Alumni Relations portion of the web site that will begin to provide the Art Center Alumni body with the tools necessary to harness their impact.

"I am very honored to have the opportunity to collaborate with my Alma Matter and I am very proud of the entire group, both the Art Center team and the GROOP team. This project is a great example of a how a very seasoned team can make the process of developing web applications seem like art. The seamless execution of the project management, strategic foundation, technology, information architecture and creative processes are a testament of what an experienced group of people can do," said Jose Caballer, Creative Director and CEO of THE_GROOP. The combined GROOP team, including the Art Center team, brought together over 25 professionals in all disciplines including technology and creative.