You've probably heard of STEM education programs that stress Science, Engineering, Technology and Math. Students at St. Joan Antida are getting another aspect of STEM education. It's called STEAM, and it adds art to the curriculum.
"They come in like this tight shell, and If I fail I'm never going to move forward, but I'm constantly trying to teach them that failure is growth if you learn from it," explains art teacher Carolyn "CC" Braunreiter.
Teens learn to channel their inner creative forces into their own personal art collections. They are expected to create 24 pieces of original art.
17-year-old Melinna Gonzalez discovered she had a special talent.
"We were working on self-portraits, I didn't know I could draw myself as good as I saw, I was pretty proud of that," exclaims Gonzalez.
18-year-old Sarah Kopacz shows off a model of one of her creations. "It was very organic..not very uniform like I though it was going to be, which actually fits me better because I'm not very cookie cutter," Kopacz says.
"I just feel like I can be myself in there, who I truly am I feel I can express myself in that class better than all my other ones," she exclaims.
"Seeing them be so proud of themselves, and to look back and reflect on the four years and what they've learned and how they've grown as young women is probably the most rewarding thing for me," admits Braunreiter.
She smiles as she witnesses the joy of students using art to enhance their lives.
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