BROOKS INSTITUTE SHOWS GRATITUDE TO LOCAL FIRE FIGHTERS
Representatives from Brooks Institute Present Local Fire Chiefs with Framed Posters of Jesusita Fire Images

SANTA BARBARA, Calif. – (July 31, 2009) – Representatives from Brooks Institute presented local fire chiefs with framed images from the Jesusita fire during a private reception at Brooks Institute's Jefferson Campus in Santa Barbara on Friday. On hand to receive a framed copy of the poster with a letter of gratitude were: Interim Fire Chief for the City of Santa Barbara Fire Department, Andrew DiMizio; Fire Chief for the City of Montecito Fire Department, Kevin Wallace; Battalion Chief for the Ventura County Fire Department, Bryan Vanden Bossche; and Captain Ron Topolinski also of the Ventura County Fire Department. Faculty, staff, students and alumni contributed images taken of the fire and the first responders during the Jesusita fire fight that took place May 5 – 22, 2009.

The poster is designed as a piece of memorabilia. It consists of a collage of images collected from students, staff, faculty and alumni showing many different views and aspects of the fire and those involved in fighting it. The lead image is a panoramic of the Jesusita Wildfire from afar. It shows the scope of the fire, effectively surrounding the city of Santa Barbara, and reveals just how vulnerable the city was.

"This poster is dedicated to the members of Cal Fire, Carpinteria Fire Department, Montecito Fire Department, Santa Barbara City Fire Department, Santa Barbara County Fire, and the Ventura County Fire Department. This poster is also dedicated to the many firefighters from throughout the United States who traveled to Santa Barbara to help fight the Jesusita Fire," said Brooks Institute President, Dr. Roger Andersen.

On creating the poster, Brooks Institute faculty member, Bill Robbins said, "During the mop-up stages of the fire I started to see "Thank You" signs of all sizes and shapes starting to pop up around the fire area, and that's when the idea of creating a poster that would be designed specifically to say "Thank You" to the firefighters came to me."

Robbins continued, "As part of a community of photographers (faculty, students, staff, and alumni) who live in the Santa Barbara area, I thought that there might be a unique way for Brooks Institute to say thank you to all of the services and people who served during the Jesusita Fire."

Over the next few weeks, posters will be sent out to many of the departments involved in the firefight. Posters will also be available to the public, while supplies last, at Brooks Institute's Cota campus, located at 27 E. Cota St., Santa Barbara, CA 93101.The poster is available free of charge to community members.

About Brooks Institute
Brooks Institute celebrates more than 60 years of educating students in the visual and media arts. With campuses in Santa Barbara and Ventura, California, the school offers Bachelor of Arts degrees in fields including Professional Photography, Visual Journalism, Film and Video Production and Graphic Design, and a Master of Fine Arts degree in Photography. Brooks' graduates are visible nationally and internationally, working for distinguished organizations including National Geographic, Smithsonian, Los Angeles Times and other national media outlets, including Hallmark Publishing, Cousteau Society, HBO, Kodak and other industry leaders in the visual media arts fields. Brooks is part of the Career Education Corporation network of schools (NASDAQ: CECO). For more information about Brooks Institute and the school's programs, visit www.brooks.edu, or call 805-966-3888.