When Marisa Dluge climbs into the bright yellow Louie
the Lightning Bug outfit, she knows young children
will get a jolt out of learning how to be safe around electricity.
"The kids really enjoy it," said Dluge, an Eastern Michigan
University graduate student in interpretation performance
studies. "They think he's funny and silly, and laugh when
he dances."
 |
LESSONS FROM LOUIE: (from left) Louie
the
Lightning Bug and EMU senior
Doug Crandall
discuss electrical safety with pre-school
children at
the Milan Parks and Recreation Safety
Town
program Aug. 18. This past summer, EMU student
teams and Louie delivered 123
electrical safety
presentations to 4,300 young
children at 44
different sites. The DTE Energy
Foundation
provides annual grants of $25,000
to $35,000,
which enables EMU to employ student
presenter
teams for the summer. Photo
by Wendy Kivi
|
Dluge also enjoys playing the role of the presenter in
the two-student team. She said she gets to interact with
the children more and it is a fun way to practice her public
speaking skills.
Since Eastern Michigan University partnered with the DTE
Energy Foundation in 2006, Dluge and many other EMU students
have been making Louie the Lightning Bug presentations
to children all over Southeast Michigan. The DTE Energy
Foundation provides annual grants of $25,000 to $35,000,
which enables the University to employ student presenter
teams for the summer.
"I look for students who are excited about the opportunity
to be Louie and really like working with kids," said Wendy
Kivi, special events manager for EMU's Communication, Media
and Theatre Arts Department.
For the past two years, student intern Meggie Brammer
has coordinated all of the Louie the Lightning Bug events,
and organized and scheduled each two-person team. This
summer, she sent student teams out to deliver electrical
safety messages to 4,300 young children at 44 different
sites.
Through song, dance and colorful pictures, the teams help
children gain an elementary understanding of electricity
and how to respond when they encounter an electrical safety
hazard. The students learn that water and electricity do
not mix, that they should "stop, turn around and go the
other way" when they see downed power lines, and many other
important lessons.
On Aug. 18, Dluge teamed up with fellow EMU student Doug
Crandall to bring the fun and informative performance to
pre-school students at the Milan Parks and Recreation Safety
Town program.
"They did a wonderful job," said Ann Taylor, a Safety
Town teacher. "They were well-rehearsed, kept the children's
attention and the presentation was age-appropriate. The
kids thought it was great."
As important as Louie's electrical safety messages are
for children, the program has broader implications as well.
"It creates a good working relationship between DTE and
EMU, and shows our interest in community service," Kivi
said. "And student presenters send the message that there
are good, solid EMU students helping out in the community."
