Art classes have been a requirement in high schools, including Air Academy, for decades. The value of art in education is widely accepted for its many positive impacts on students. These impacts range from providing a creative outlet to even improving academic success.

The Arts Education Partnership conducted a report in 2002, indicating that students exposed to visual arts, music and dance are often more proficient at reading, writing and mathematics. This prominent tie between literacy skills and the arts was also demonstrated by the 2006 Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum.

But don’t just take a study’s word on it; teachers and students at AAHS have passionate views on the effects art has on students and teachers alike.

Senior Emma Hein elaborated, “Art has a huge impact on my life, it’s my release of all my creativity. I’ve never been good with words but I can express that through my art.”

As Hein stated, academic stress is a pivotal aspect of today’s education system. Having that release and creative form of expression is essential to many students in the art department.

As well as art being an outlet for creative expression, it also acts as an exploration of one’s innermost feelings.

“Art is a great way to explore yourself and to challenge your intellect,” said honors art student and senior Landon Dills.

He believes that art has the ability to help a student investigate the depths of their emotions and exercise their minds through creativity.

“I want students to be brave and take risks to learn how to express themselves through their art,” art teacher Lisa Preeshl explained.

Preeshl structures her classes to include opportunities for students to express their emotions and deeper thoughts through their artwork. She encourages her students, beginners and experts alike, to push themselves to the next level of expression and emotional voice within their art.

Another art course offered at AAHS is ceramics, a popular course that attracts many students who have never attempted art classes before. Ceramics teacher Jonny O’lonergan, who is popularly referred to by his students as “Jonny-O”,  interprets an outsider’s perspective on the impact art has on students.

“One of the things I love the most about being an art teacher is watching the faces of the students when they finish a project and see how they discovered a new talent or passion that they didn’t know they had,” he stated.

As O’lonergan put it, art enables passion and expression, an ideal that may seem foreign to typical academic structures. Art acts as many things: a release, a passion, an expression or even just a hobby.

“No matter what level of art you are in, it’s a very accepting place,” commented senior Jade Leseure. “There is always someone walking by, complimenting and supporting your art.”

Leseure appreciates the comfortable, safe environment that AAHS art classes provide, especially due to  the personal nature of art.

The vulnerability and passion students express through their art is a reflection of art’s unique and essential role in educational curriculum. It allows students to be personal and intentional with their work and to deepen their understanding of themselves while exploring methods of expression.

These experiences show that trying art at Air Academy can open the door for students to discover worlds of new things about themselves.