By Michael Beeli
Staff Writer
Mira Costa’s visual and performing arts courses, such as Art 1 and 2, Advanced Placement Studio Art, Sculpture, Photography, and Woodshop, are important electives offered at Costa. These classes have a large impact on campus; however, their department does not have the proper attention and representation they deserve, as shown through the lack of a booster club, and must instead rely heavily on district funding and student donations.
According to Arts Department Co-Chair Katherine Martin, the visual arts, opposed to other arts such as band, do not have a booster club because they do not generally travel or perform. Thus, the visual art classes rely heavily on donations to help pay for materials and supplies, as district funding for the whole department grants a total of approximately $194 per class annually.
According to Cary Jordal, the lack of a booster club means that visual arts students have a limited basis for much-needed supplies in their classes, instead having to rely on significantly less materials. Also, the absence of a booster makes it more difficult for parents and other donors to direct their contributions to the department itself.
Reynolds indicated that, art teachers have a difficult time choosing what art supplies to buy with such a limited budget because the money given to the arts program is not enough for the high level classes, which deprives students in the program.
As stated by Reynolds, visual arts are also underrepresented in terms of as an extracurricular class, despite the amount of talent in the department as a whole. She said the classes are not commonly publicly displayed across campus and that many people view the department simply as art opposed to a full-fledged extracurricular.
This department has made attempts to receive proper representation, however it is not the most effective it could be. According to Yearbook Advisor Valerie Park, one way the visual arts department has worked to make itself better known throughout campus is by displaying the art gallery in Room 60, where students are able to showcase their work in individual shows or group shows. The gallery has attracted some student attention, but just a fraction of the population.
Park also indicated that a few teachers are working on an Innovation Grant from the Manhattan Beach Education Foundation. Every year the department holds a group show at the Manhattan Beach Creative Arts Center where any of the students can submit work for a few weeks towards the end of the year. Visual arts also hosts a Hometown Fair booth every year to sell a variety of artwork and ceramics. These measures are effective, but a uniform booster club would be more effective to generate revenue through a common channel would ensure the department follows similar standards to other programs at costa.
The visual arts department is a successful program that is important to many students; however, it realies heavily on unconventional sources of funding. With a booster club and similar structural support, the department would run largely on a basis similar to other programs at Costa such as Band, and would receive adequate support, ensuring greater efficiency and uniformity throughout the department.
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