North student is first in state to earn WPG animator certificate
Feb. 13—EAU CLAIRE — A North High School student is the first teen in Wisconsin to receive the Web Animator industry certification from Web Professionals Global, a nonprofit dedicated to the support of individuals and organizations that create, manage or market websites.
Lindsey Knecht, 17, said she earned the certification under guidance of Doug Devine, North's technology education teacher.
In order to obtain the animator certification, an examinee must demonstrate basic knowledge of animation concepts; drawing and creation tools; audio, marketing, accessibility, animation project management; and ethics and legal issues during a 70-question, hour-long exam.
"Truthfully, it was a lot more of a task than I thought it would be," Knecht stated in an email to the Leader-Telegram. "I was constantly learning and creating, whether it was simply taking notes on walk cycles or creating an entire minute-long animation. Having a deadline allowed me to place my best foot forward and get a taste for what the pace of the industry itself is like."
Knecht said she someday hopes to become an animator for a big-name studio like DreamWorks. Becoming the first high school student in the state to earn WPG's animator certificate is a "surreal" step toward achieving that goal, she stated.
According to CTeLearning.com, animators are in high-demand across a variety of industries including marketing, advertising, scientific visualization, entertainment, gaming, simulations, architecture and engineering.
The average median wage of an animator as of 2021 is $37.88 hourly, or $78,790 annually. Animator career growth rates are 7% higher than average.
"It's hard to believe that an opportunity such as this was available for the career path I'd like to pursue," Knecht stated. "Not only that, but to be the first in the state to receive this certification from the industry is a wonderful honor."
Devine, who teaches courses in video game development and cartoon animation, uses web-based curriculum CTeLearning in his classes, which allows students to work as interns for a company at their own pace.
He said programs like CTeLearning are beneficial for students because they teach real-world applications and provide students with certifications like the one obtained by Knecht.
"Lindsey's accomplishments show that achieving an industry certification at the high school level is attainable," Devine stated in an email. "She has demonstrated outstanding ability, ambition, and dedication to her work. I was extremely proud of Lindsey and her accomplishments. She is truly an outstanding student that will be very successful as an animator."
And Devine said he'd like to see more students follow in Knecht's footsteps. The knowledge and skills CTeLearning's courses teach students are unlimited, he stated. The more students work at them, the more real-world skills they acquire.
"My advice would be to focus on your interests, do the best you can, and work hard at attaining your goals," Devine stated.
Knecht said she would advise young people with similar aspirations to never pass up on an opportunity to learn.
There's room to grow in all of us, she stated, so taking the time to find motivation to grasp new skills and improve upon them is vital.
"Certificates such as these are incredibly important so that students such as myself can get a jump-start into their future careers," Knecht stated. "It allows them to recognize their potential and decide whether or not the field that they're looking into is one that they'd like to pursue."
