Popcorn Packaging designed by Brandon Heanssler, Lyndon State College’s web & digital designer, is one of the pieces of art included in the Lyndon@NECC art show.

Lyndon State College will celebrate the launch of its new Visual Communications bachelor’s completion program at Northern Essex Community College with a faculty and student art exhibit running from March 1 through March 31 on the Lawrence campus.

The opening reception will be held Wednesday, March 1, at noon in NECC’s Dimitry Atrium, 45 Franklin St., where the exhibit will be displayed. The exhibit and reception are free and open to the public.

The reception will provide an opportunity for prospective students to learn about the Visual Communications Program and career options in graphic design and advertising as well as other Lyndon@NECC programs including Music Business & Industry and Computer & Information Systems. Light refreshments will be served.

In addition, on Friday, March 10, Lyndon faculty and students will be available to discuss career possibilities in visual communications at an open house in the Dimitry Atrium, at 11 a.m.

The Visual Communications Program began in January for students who have completed an associate degree or are finishing an associate degree at NECC. The program offers the only arts-related classes at NECC’s Lawrence campus.

“Graphic design, which is part of the Visual Communications Program, is used in practically every business,” says Lyndon Site Director Kristin Hunt, who is based at NECC in Lawrence.

The Visual Communications major with a graphic design concentration, covers e-publishing, multimedia, print, and product packaging, will prepare students to work in a range of positions and businesses, from corporate communications and public relations to marketing and desktop publishing.

“It’s about being able to tie together the different facets of branding and communication,” Hunt says.

The Visual Communications bachelor’s completion program is more affordable than many bachelor’s programs because Massachusetts residents get the lower Vermont in-state tuition rate.

The new degree is one of three bachelor’s degree completion programs in the Lyndon @NECC program, which was established in fall 2016 with the Computer & Information Systems Bachelor of Science degree.

A bachelor’s degree in Music Business & Industry with concentrations in music and self-promotion and music industry management will be launched in fall 2017. Students will gain skills in managing events, artists and venues; working with contracts; booking acts; and other areas.

In addition to ongoing faculty support and career advising for students, the programs emphasize “advance-level internships and senior projects that are really meant to prepare them for the workplace. That’s definitely a hallmark of the programs and of Lyndon State,” Hunt says. “Students will leave each program with work experience and developed projects under their belt. That is really important.”

For more information, visit Lyndon@NECC.

Northern Essex offers an Associate in Art degree in General Studies: Art that prepares students for transfer into a four-year program or for a career in photography, visual arts, graphic design, and multimedia.