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10 January 2007

Art experiment has desired results in Minden classroom

They just knew Friday afternoon art classes led by Chris Broussard were something other students were not getting. They felt special. And that's how Broussard and Robinson wanted it. Both women are recognized artists whose reputations reach far beyond Webster Parish's boundaries. But it was their desire to utilize their talents inside the small confines of a Richardson Elementary classroom that has brought some of their greatest rewards. Robinson wanted to do something extra for her class of all boys and one girl. So she sought out Broussard to first find out if any money was available for art supplies.

Other than the parish's gifted and talented programs, Webster schools do not have organized art classes as part of the curriculum. Since no funding was available then, Broussard offered to fill the void. She volunteered her time every Friday afternoon and provided all art supplies free.

The experiment, as Broussard and Robinson sometimes called it, was simple: interject art into a class where it's never been taught, sneak in behavioral role playing and stand back and watch the transformation. Word of what Broussard and Robinson were doing somehow leaked out, and as a result, Cultural Crossroads, the parish's official art agency, will receive a $140,000 federal grant that will assist in the first true introduction of arts into certain Webster Parish schools, Broussard said. "The curriculum is still being written, and we won't be able to address all of the kids. But it will be a start," Broussard said. "We'll target elementary schools and the ones Cultural Crossroads has a good relationship with. We'll target the kids that are struggling and need that extra push." Getting arts education into the schools as a true course and not as a filler or an occasional fun day is something Cultural Crossroads has been trying to do for years, said Broussard, who serves as chairwoman. "This is the way to do it without stepping on the school system's toes, and these guys here were the catalyst."

While the reason they were chosen might be lost on Robinson's fourth-graders, the end result is not. Devondrick Harrison, 10, beams when a fellow student comments on the background he is adding to his portrait drawn earlier by Broussard. That, said Robinson, says it all.