Local students to benefit from educational partnership project with OSU

Wednesday, October 8, 2014

Stillwater Middle School students will soon get an introduction to the pleasures of visiting museums that they’ll be able to write a book about, thanks to a collaborative effort involving the Oklahoma State University Museum of Art Postal Plaza Gallery, Stillwater Middle School and the OSU chapter of the Phi Beta Kappa honor society. 

Carrie Kim, museum curator, has designed a series of activities and will lead the students from Crista McCann’s art classes on an educational tour of a wing of the Postal Plaza Gallery on Friday, Oct. 10. The students have already received an orientation session from Kim outlining what to expect and OSU buses will take the students to the museum to see first-hand what they’ve been learning about. The activity will be repeated later in the year.

”This is a program that Carrie has put together focusing on incorporating art and writing, and even a journalism aspect for the yearbook students,” said McCann. “She has aligned it with our state and national standards, as well as our own local school goals. The students are very excited to ride the OSU buses, visit the museum, and create a book of their collected works.”

The Stillwater Public Education Foundation will use a grant the middle school received last year to help fund the printing of a collection of works the students will produce following their visit.

“We are very thankful that these paths have all intersected and we are fully planning on continuing this program and watching it develop into something grand!” said McCann.

The program is being sponsored by the OSU Chapter of Phi Beta Kappa honor society, America’s oldest academic honor society, with a chapter established at OSU in 2012. 

Local honor society spokesman Dr. Robert Graalman congratulates all those involved and agrees with McCann that this is the start of something important. “Everyone who lives in Stillwater is fortunate to have so many educational resources, and this is an example of the strength of a partnership that is fully engaged,” said Graalman, who is hopeful the best of the completed assignments the students submit can be recognized by Phi Beta Kappa.