Saint Stephen’s Visual Arts Conservatory recently inducted eight seniors who have clearly exemplified a proficiency in the visual arts. In order to be considered for this honor, students must complete four or more art courses with at least one at the Advanced or AP level, or five visual arts courses with at least one at the Advanced level. This year, the conservatory inducted seniors Talia Barker, Laura Culp, Amanda Everhardus, Sarah Johnson, Melissa Johnson, Christina Jones, Sarah Orlando and Ally Thomas.

Ms. Peggie Johnson, the Chair of the Fine Arts Department, said it is a distinguished honor to be inducted into the conservatory.

“The whole idea of the conservatory is that students who have pursued taking visual arts over the course of their high school years are receiving boasts and recognition for that. Also, having an opportunity for people to see their work [is beneficial],” she said.

Senior Sarah Johnson, who was inducted into the conservatory this year, said the program is representative of her hard work.

“I’m proud to be a member of the conservatory because we all have worked really hard to get where we are and its nice to get recognition for the work that we do, especially since it’s not in a traditional academic field,” she said.

Senior Ally Thomas said she enjoyed having her artwork recognized as well.

“[This program is] really focused on showing seniors’ work more than the underclassmen’s work, and it is nice to be [honored] for that, especially because we have all been in art for the last four years,” she said.

Johnson said in the second year of the conservatory, she has noticed the skill set of these students seems to be more developed than last year’s conservatory members because of their wide range of talents.

“We have a good diversity of students. We have both photography students and ceramics students pretty evenly distributed, with some students having worked in both areas. It’s a very strong group,” she said.

Johnson added that the conservatory gives the Fine Arts Department the ability to introduce new workshops, ultimately strengthening the curriculum.

“[This program] has given us the ability to incorporate more workshops into classes, so the Advanced and Honors level classes have more substance than they had before. In both ways, the program itself builds and the encouragement [for] the student builds as well,” she said.

Thomas said there have been many interesting workshops which have enhanced her overall learning experience in art class.

“We’ve had a teacher from Ringling come to the school, and he’s really postive and helps us [with our art]. Also, the Advanced and AP photography classes [recently] went on a field trip to learn about lighting from a professional photographer,” she said.

Thomas added, “Several students inducted were [not sure if they wanted to continue] art, and this has been a way for them to reconsider it.”

Johnson said the conservatory program plays into the students’ strengths and will continue to expand in years to come.

“I really think the program’s strength is that it fosters what students are interested in and encourages them [to pursue art]. We have more students on the roster for next year, who will be in the conservatory if they continue in their courses,” she said.