THE POWER OF THE STUDENT

Your high school transcript is stellar, test scores are off-the-charts, your personal statement is refined, letters of recommendation have been collected, application fee paid, essays eloquently written, and curriculars have been extra-ed!

You’re 17, and the time has come to start your future and prove what you’re capable of to the world. You sit down at the dinner table with your parents surrounded by college applications and possibilities. Okay, let’s be real. Those days have been long gone.

You sit down at the computer, hammer away at the applications, and off to university you go. We’ve all heard, or lived, this story.

A couple of decades ago, Longview Museum of Fine Arts saw a need for and assembled a board of students from surrounding high schools to volunteer at the community events it held. Over the years, it grew, dissipated, started again, and struggled to stay strong since the days of COVID-19.

Historically, the students have been selected by local art teachers and recommended to LMFA as well-capable, artist representations of their district. The high schoolers’ role in this LMFA student organization has been to attend the annual high school student invitational, serve as volunteers for community events hosted by the museum, and learn some of the inner workings of an art institution. The students also have helped during the summer, assisting with elementary art classes, answering the phone, and greeting visitors.

With the growth of the Arts and Culture District and the museum’s programming, the staff continues to ask questions in brainstorming sessions like, “How do we bridge the gap between LMFA and area students?” and “What would compel a younger crowd to want to attend an exhibition?” and “Where is the next generation of ambassadors?”

Recently, the answer had never been so obvious.

So, the LMFA staff and Education Chair, Sue Wilson, took a deep breath and decided to ask our current Student Board to take on the challenge of revamping their very own organization.

Their answer…CHALLENGE ACCEPTED!

LMFA has yet to see a class of students so eager to strengthen the ties between the museum and Longview area youth through a special task force committed to being the student voice for the museum, taking student ownership, and advising staff on ways to engage their peers.

In addition to their current responsibilities, this special task force will meet monthly to give feedback on new Student Board criteria, responsibilities, and application process ensuring that LMFA attracts suitable candidates who are qualified to sustain a powerful and well-positioned system for years to come.

LMFA is dedicated to pouring opportunity into these students who are dedicating their early years to igniting a passion for the arts in East Texas.

You’re sitting at the computer… bringing to life a story about how you, and a small group of your peers, forever changed a community for the greater good by redefining its relationship to the window that deepens our understanding of humanities.

That’s the story.

The 2023-2024 LMFA Student Board consists of 15 students from area high schools, including Longview ISD, Spring Hill ISD, Pine Tree ISD, White Oak ISD, Hallsville ISD, Trinity School of Texas, and Christian Heritage Classical School.

Statistics show that an art education increases the success of learners in the classroom equally to core subjects, student ownership and social groups. The museum staff asked the Student Board how an art education has affected their education and what they hope to receive in return for their service on the board.

Abigail Graves, sophomore at Christian Heritage Classical School, has a desire to “strengthen friendships with other people interested in art while gaining more experience with it and building a solid resume.”

Art has played an essential role in McKenzie Brown’s education, junior at Trinity School of Texas. Without it, she would not have been able to find the freedom to share her voice. “Finding my own voice in school has been important because you are learning about your identity and where you fit in.”

Abigail Mulchany, sophomore at Hallsville High School, said “I think being enrolled in art classes has helped me with understanding rhetorical analysis of literature and photos in English class, and the ”geometric” portion of art like graphing, scaling, and distance has helped me in Geometry. Looking at the artworks in history, I see that art is always changing, and there are so many different styles.”

"If there weren’t any art classes, I would take my education into my own hands. For most of my life, a lot of what I knew about art was self-taught,” said Grace Beach, senior at Spring Hill High School.