Tierra Woods
Staff Writer
According to Dorothy Whitley, adjunct professor in the Department of Art at Jackson State University, there is an overflow of students wanting to take the Art of Children course each semester.
“The purpose of this course today is to provide students with an understanding of various disciplines of art education and knowledge of children’s artistic development. It is designed for students who are training to become teachers by introducing experiential art to children. It is also designed to introduce students who are not majoring in education to materials, techniques and procedures suitable for various age levels and developmental stages of children,” said Whitley.
The first art for Children course was offered in 1940 at then Jackson College. In 1949, Professor Lawrence Jones organized the Art Department, which focused on preparing students for jobs in the art industry and education.
Rondejhanae Rush, a senior psychology major from Meridian, Miss., has an art piece displayed on the walls of Johnson Hall.
“I didn’t ever think that I could make a quilt out of just construction paper. It’s nice, it’s really creative. It could be something that you could definitely teach to the younger people and kids or siblings that you may have or things of that nature,” said Rush.
Glenda Blount, a senior childcare and family education major from Canton, Miss., believes the experience gained in the class will benefit her future employment.
“I teach at an afterschool program at church and I’m affiliated with a lot at the church so I can take this art that I have here and help teach the kids so they can become creative. I love the class. The class is very energetic to me because I have learned so much, things that I thought I will never be able to do. It opens your mind and helps you become creative,” said Blount.
Some students, like Tamarick Johnson, are taking the class even though it has nothing to do with their major and or future profession.
“It’s pretty interesting when you actually get to do something and I have younger siblings so there is some stuff that I’ve learned that I can show them and do with them,” said Johnson, a senior mass communication major from Atlanta, Ga.,
One of the goals of the course was to show students how to do traditional art techniques with unorthodox materials. Many of the students who participated in this class worked on a mural of African masks and quilts from construction paper.
According to Whitley, the Department of Art at Jackson State was the first art program in Mississippi to be accredited by the National Association of Schools of Art and Design (NASAD). The program has maintained its accreditation since 1978, the initial year of accreditation. To date, JSU is one of the four HBCU schools with an accredited art program.
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