By Kristina Goetz
The Cincinnati Enquirer

CLIFTON - A cocktail waitress, disc jockey and a second-shift Costco employee shuffle in with the rest of their classmates through a side door at Cincinnati State Technical and Community College, about the same time the cleaning crews sweep though.

Katie Stout, a cocktail waitress at A Live One in Mt. Adams, orders drinks from the bartender. Stout is a 21-year-old computer graphics student at Cincinnati State Technical and Community College. (Meggan Booker photo)

In a second-floor computer lab, these eight students build complicated 3-D computer images with software called Maya, the same program used to help create hit movies like Shrek and Finding Nemo, and to produce the violent waves in The Perfect Storm.

But these students are also redefining the working hours of the college in what could be a first-of-its kind class in the nation. Unlike most Tristate students, who wrap up by 10 or 11 p.m., these self-professed night owls don't start class until 10:30 p.m.

And they don't finish until almost 2 a.m.

"The class rule is, 'You're not allowed to talk about being tired,'" joked 29-year-old instructor Jason Caudill, who wrote the curriculum for the school's computer graphics major, the most popular program in information technology.

"It definitely puts new meaning to the term night class,'' Caudill said, "but with the response we've gotten, I know that students who take this class are serious."

On a typical Monday or Wednesday night, the full nine-week term class meets in a small conference room to discuss story lines for their animated scenes like ones involving a Big Wheel or dancing eggs in a refrigerator. Then, the lights go down and each team presents its creations on a giant projection screen.

"Everyone I tell about this class, they think I'm lying," said Jay Downs, a 29-year-old from Fort Mitchell. "But it fits my schedule. I've been a DJ for 13 years. So for the past 13 years I've been up to at least 4 a.m. three to five nights a week.

"After about 11 p.m., the fog lifts and the creativity turns on."

For more than a decade, technical and community colleges, including Cincinnati State, have focused on serving a broader population of students, said Norma Kent, a spokeswoman for the American Association of Community Colleges. The schools have tailored courses - with fast-track programs, mini-semesters and weekend classes - to reach working moms, second-career students and those who need to upgrade their job skills.

While two- and four-year colleges have for years offered courses at hospitals and job sites during third shift, "Animation Tools: Maya II'' is taught on campus.

"It sounds like they have moved this a step further," Kent said of Cincinnati State. "I've never heard of any classes lasting until 2 a.m."

Caudill, who has been an instructor at Cincinnati State for three years, says he was trying to fill a need when he noticed students weren't as focused during early-morning classes.

"I went to East Tennessee State and we had 24-hour labs, and before that I worked the night shift," Caudill said. "I've taught the same class at 8 in the morning and everybody's yawning, including me. So, I said, 'Well, what if we taught a class in the middle of the night?'"

Initially, there were concerns about security, Caudill said. Then came discussions with the networking department about the computer lab and the logistics about where to safely park. (These are the only eight students who are permitted to park in faculty spots.)

But administrators finally agreed.

Katie Stout and Emily Koester, 20, of Western Hills, show the progress of their project during a late night animation class at Cincinnati State Technical and Community College. (Craig Ruttle photo)

"Shoot, why not?" said Paul DeNu, dean of the information and engineering technology divisions. "The building is certainly not busy at that time of the day. This was effectively a trendsetter, and it proves it can be done."

Students were surprised the college went for it.

"When he (Caudill) first mentioned it, I didn't think it would really happen," said Katie Stout, a 21-year-old computer graphics major from Toledo who works as a part-time cocktail waitress in Mount Adams. "But I'm happy it did."

Academic vice president Monica Posey even chipped in to provide a coffeemaker. "We have a pretty diverse population in terms of lifestyle needs and activities that students are involved in that the school has to address," she said. "To me, this is just the beginning of a new option."

Students such as John First, a 23-year-old computer graphics major from Delhi Township, are already wondering whether more classes will be offered at the same late hour. He fits the class in between the 30 hours a week he works at Costco and the handful of graphic design jobs he has each month.

"This is a lot better than a day class because it's a lot more laid back," he said. "During the day, people were saying, 'Hey, can we use this as a computer lab?' The only people in the school right now are us and the janitors.''

About the class

• Course: Animation Tools: Maya II (computer animation course that teaches a program that creates special effects for movies and computer games)
• Credits: 5 (Required for the computer graphics major)
• Enrollment: Eight.
• Instructor: Jason Caudill.
• Where: Cincinnati State Technical and Community College.
• When: 10:30 p.m.-1:50 a.m. Mondays and Wednesdays.

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E-mail kgoetz@enquirer.com