Westlake High students participate in art museum program

Westlake High School's museum ambassadors, from left, Kylie Hulver, Natalie Samenuk, Kyle Wong, Harleen Shergill, Kaylee Carson, Lucia del Rincon Martinez, Haley Quinlan, Paige Dawson and Beth Noren.

Eight Westlake High School AP art history and AP studio art students will participate in a Cleveland Museum of Art Museum Ambassadors program that provides a behind-the-scenes experience at the world-class institution.

Master students are seniors Paige Dawson, Lucia del Rincon-Martinez and Kylie Hulver. Apprentice students are juniors Kaylee Carson, Hayley Quinlan, Natalie Samenuk, Harleen Shergill and Kyle Wong. Students were chosen for the program by prevention coordinator Kathy McGinty and social studies teacher Beth Noren.

The first year of the program has students participating in behind-the-scenes experiences in various departments at the Cleveland Museum of Art. In their second year, students participate in similar experiences at other University Circle institutions, including the Cleveland Institute of Art, Cleveland Museum of Natural History and the Cleveland Orchestra. This year students will be working in the different areas of the library, such as education, curating, marketing and research.
 
The focus of this year is how to bring teens into the museum to celebrate the art museum’s 100th anniversary in 2015 using specific collections within the museum’s permanent collection. The program is designed to build a general awareness of museum life and careers, as well as to build career skills, including public speaking and team-based project planning.
 
The art museum aligned this year’s program with state education standards and their aim to develop 21st century skills. Each session, students are asked to solve problems relating to real-world situations occurring in the museum and other places of employments. Students will present their ideas and solutions to other students. They will also work in small teams with students from other schools using technology and multi-media. By analyzing gallery space, logos and art, students develop an awareness of the visual information around them.
 
WHS students will visit the museums once a month October through May for the program. They will develop a project for a Family and Community Day next spring at the end of the program year, which will complement the Cleveland Museum of Art’s Gallery One space. The Family and Community Day involves students sharing what they’ve learned with the public in the form of projects, which have included scavenger hunts, games, coloring books, tours and studio activities.
 
Noren was asked to be part of the 2014/2015 TEAM (Teachers and Educators at the Art Museum) again. The TEAM creates lessons and best practices for K-12 students using the museum’s permanent collection to promote visual literacy, Cleveland history, world and American history, visual arts and literature.
 
Other schools involved in the program include Bedford, Cleveland School of the Arts, Shaker Heights, Lincoln-West, Shaw, Strongsville, John Hay and Hawken.