TROY , Ala. —Jerry Johnson, chair of Troy University ’s Department of Art and Design, may not be a surfer, but he recently joined participants from six continents in riding a wave of historic proportions.

Johnson was one of only three U.S. educators selected to participate in “Creative Waves,” the world’s largest international online design project. Hosted by the University of New South Wales in Australia and the International Council of Graphic Design Association, the project was the first in a series of free online projects for students interested in graphic design, photomedia and visual communication.

Twenty-two teachers, 61 students and 21 special guests from 22 countries worked together to produce more than 500 visual designs and 18 galleries of work over a six-week period this spring.

Johnson’s task was to serve as an educator and mentor for five students. His students were from Jordan , New Zealand , India , Canada and Italy .

“The main idea was to come to understand the learning personalities of your team members without actually seeing them face to face,” Johnson said.

Ultimately, work from all of the design teams was compiled and merged to create one piece that served as the final product of the six-week experience, according to Johnson.

Before this final product could be achieved, Johnson said many challenges had to be worked through. Johnson believes his department will benefit from his participation in the project. He hopes to build on the lessons learned through his experiences to create an online, international collaborative and creative center for the Department of Art and Design at TROY .