Amaral’s creative ideas are so successfully executed in part because of his tremendous technical skill. His resume lists about a dozen computer applications in which he is proficient, many of which he taught himself. When one of his concepts comes up against the limitations of a particular software program, he uses various applications in combination to perfect his images.

Associate Professor of Communication Karen Ritzenhoff, who taught Amaral in a basic TV production course last fall, says, “He is definitely a ‘techno-phile.’ I enjoyed having him as a student because he contributed so much technical knowledge. Richard is always helpful, a great team player, and full of original ideas.” His last project for the course was an innovative music video that involved animated characters from video games. Notes Ritzenhoff, “He always pushed the envelope with his video assignments.”

A transfer student from Seton Hall, Amaral chose CCSU for the breadth of its communication program. The variety of courses he has taken in the field, in addition to his technical skill, helped to make his resume one of the most highly sought in the co-op program. (He received a number of offers and chose Juran because of its small size and his ability to play a vital role there, and because of the breadth of experience the firm would provide.)

Amaral has also relished course offerings beyond his major, some in the English Department. “My writing classes have been a tremendous help,” says Amaral. “The teachers are pretty rigorous and hard on you, as far as the way they grade.” Paying close attention to language was key to his poetry course with Associate Professor of English and poet-in-residence Ravi Shankar, while a course with lecturer MaryEllen Fillo improved his mastery of grammar and editing. Amaral also took a few theater courses, including one on script analysis that gave him insight into how his own writing was constructed.

Amaral says all of his creative interests developed in childhood. “I’ve been drawing ever since I was a little kid,” he notes. He also played a lot of video games because he had trouble focusing enough to read books, something he now understands was an effect of Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD), with which he has been recently diagnosed. He says he always preferred role-playing games with a storyline that featured challenges and puzzles. “I’d get my story fulfillment from that,” he says. In high school, he thought he might want to be a video game designer and started learning about computer graphics and animation. Today, he is an active participant in Massively Multiplayer Online Games, through which thousands of players from all over the world engage in adventures and quests related to a fantasy narrative. He’s also an avid reader, who says his dream job would be as a novelist.

Amaral’s teachers say that along with wide-ranging skills, Amaral’s personal qualities are among his most important assets. Associate Professor of Communication Christopher Pudlinski, who taught Amaral in a communication survey course, calls him “a very inquisitive and interactive student” and a “nice and respectful person.” Dr. Ritzenhoff appreciated his enthusiasm for the field, curiosity, self-motivation, and “fine interpersonal skills.” She says, “I think that he will do very well in his professional future.”

— Leslie Virostek