Features
Gracing halls, classroom
hillary olson photo
Art can be a subject that helps students cope with their ideas and emotions express themselves and liven up the halls. Art teacher Jerry Goodrich’s art classes are learning to do all of the above.
Goodrich has been teaching art for 38 years and teaches 3D design and art one and two. Goodrich is impressed with his classes, the students seem dedicated. His students also seem to be able to keep up with some of his more obscure assignments.
“We’re studying texture, we’re making cereal boxes with it,” Goodrich said.
Goodrich likes the glass cases in the halls because it helps promote the arts, and if students see what’s going on in the class, they’ll often feel more interested and want to be part of the class.
The contents of the glass cases in the hallways are decided on by Goodrich and his fellow art teachers. It usually depends on the projects in his and the photography classes. There are six cases, and when need be, the class whose projects take up more space or is more recent takes up the majority of the space.
Sophomore Rachel Hewitt hasn’t taken an art class since seventh grade, but Goodrich isn’t disappointing her.
“I like the assignments he gives because he teaches us how to do it and helps a lot,” Hewitt said.
Hewitt enjoys her classes because a lot of projects can be done in or with groups, which allows her to get help and support from her friends during class. Hewitt likes the idea of the cases because it’s like a showcasing of their assignments and it gives students a chance to show off their pride. Earlier in the year, the class has studied blind contour, which is drawing without looking at the page, shape and form and water colors.
Freshman Bakr Brown is also taking Goodrich’s classes and has taken art every year since elementary school.
“It lets me express myself,” Brown said, shrugging.
Brown feels what goes in the glass case is more up to the students and how hard they work than the teacher’s decisions. While Brown likes Goodrich’s assignments, he was hesitant about his teaching techniques.
“He lets the students kinda teach themselves,” Brown said, after a few seconds of thought and consideration.
Both Hewitt and Brown agree that while Goodrich’s techniques seem questionable at times, they manage to bring out the best in the students and their work. While neither of them plans to major in art in their future, they both feel it brings out their creative spirit, which they say not a lot of classes manage to do.
“Anyone can be creative, it’s their choice,” Brown said.