By MICHAEL KIRAL / L’Observateur / January 18, 1999

RESERVE – The St. John Parish School to Career Alliance held its firstmeeting of the new year with a presentation by the East St. John HighSchool Visually Talented Art program.

“Let’s begin the new year with a celebration, and I feel we are having a celebration this morning,” School to Career coordinator Beverly Harris said in opening the meeting.

The meetings are held on a monthly basis at the Media Center at the school board building. Each month a different school and supporting business isfocused.

This month’s focus was on the Visually Talented Art program at East St.

John which addresses the needs of students with above average abilities and needs in the visual arts.

“The program is for students who are serious about art and want a career in art,” Janine Ward, who teaches the program at East St. John, said.Ward said the students talk about careers in the arts, salaries and setting prices for their works. Such topics as art history and art law arediscussed.

Field trips are taken to fine art galleries and museums. Ward had a formerstudent come in and talk about art galleries. Students in the program haveentered contests such as the one for the Louisiana duck stamp. Ward alsowants to take students to special education classes for them to provide art therapy and also to East St. John Elementary to teach classes they planthemselves.

Ward said a variety of mediums are used in the program. Students doeverything from caricatures to illustrations to architecture. Students alsodo a lot of work on computers.

“The rule is if they learn something, they teach it to me so I can teach others,” Ward said.

Students in the program made presentations of projects they have worked on. Matt Roussel displayed wildlife drawings he has created. Roussel alsopainted a mural of a wildcat at the school. Melissa Grows, Neyer Growsand Koi McGee developed an art center which they entered in a contest.

Melissa Grows created the floor plans, while Neyer Grows did the drawings and McGee the model of the facility.

Ashley Fallon displayed a dummy board she created to promote soccer uniforms and equipment she is promoting. And Erica Cook showed boardsshe has created to put up at every railroad crossing, promoting safety by letting people know by showing how many accidents have been at that crossing.

Students have also created murals such as the one at the PERO Center at Dupont.

Ward said she wants to see if she can get apprenticeships program started for the students with local businesses providing the apprenticeship.

East St. John principal Debra Schum said the students in the program showwhat School to Career is all about.

“The key to School to Work is making the students understand what they are doing in school applies to what they are doing out of school,” Schum said. “These students show they have made that connection.”Presentations were also made about other programs at the school, including the Petrochemical Academy and the Health and Human Services Academy.

“These programs exist because of the enthusiasm of the principals and staff,” St. John Parish associate superintendent Chris Donaldson said incommending Schum and her staff.

Dupont, which has East St. John High School as its adopted school, was theindustry highlighted at the meeting. Human Resources secretary JerryGauthier said Dupont also provides science and social studies fair judges at many schools in the parishes as well as internships for students and teachers. Dupont also sponsors teachers to go to the national teacherconvention as well as participating in career days and being a leader in the parish’s Honor Roll Roundup.

“We try to help any way we can and are finding more and more ways all the time,” Gauthier said.

The next meeting of the Alliance is scheduled for Feb. 11 at the MediaCenter.

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