Last Thursday, a group of about a dozen schoolchildren taking a course in the Oak Park Education Foundation’s BASE Camp converged on the pedestrian overpass at Garfield Street and Home Avenue for a re-occupation of sorts. The bridge is a popular spot for Tea Party protestors and other hardline, typically conservative, political activists to publicize their viewpoints to motorists on the I-290 Expressway.
Guillermo Delgado, a Lincoln Elementary parent and noted art educator, had different ideas. Instead of anti-Obama banners, his kids clipped what amounted to pictorial essays in six parts to the fencing of the overpass. They’re called ‘zines, or self-published pamphlets that are easy to distribute and a low-cost way to make known one’s rantings and ravings.
“The theme of these particular ‘zines is ‘things to avoid at all costs,” Delgado said. “We decided on a funny one. The students make a cover and a bio page on the back, which includes a little bit about themselves. For many of them, it’ll be their first foray into self-publishing. I’m drawn to this bridge. On some Saturdays, the Tea Party hangs out and occupies the bridge and raises flags. I’m like, ‘Hey, you know what? I need to take this bridge back.'”
Delgado said the project is interactive art, with walkers-by encouraged to de-clip the ‘zines and humor themselves with the students’ litany of avoidances: bad referees, stealing a Leprechaun’s gold or leaving the door open in the bathroom.
The installation was also a public display of the foundation’s deep commitment to what may very well be the next frontier in cutting-edge curriculum. It’s called STEAM — an acronym for science, technology, engineering, art and math.
The addition of the ‘art’ into the much-vaunted STEM curriculum that has been sweeping school districts across the country is a relatively recent phenomenon.
According to an article published last year in EdTech Magazine, there’s been a wave of federal support for STEAM since a Massachusetts arts teacher created a MoveOn.org petition in 2012 “asking Congress to add art and design to federally supported STEM programs. Rep. Jim Langevin of Rhode Island sponsored House resolutions to that effect in 2012 and 2013. Last year, Reps. Suzanne Bonamici of Oregon and [former Representative] Aaron Shock of Illinois started a bipartisan STEAM caucus that now has more than 50 members.”
“STEM is very popular, but we incorporate the arts as well into our hands-on programs,” said Deb Abrahamson, the foundation’s executive director. “The other camps we do involve robotics, sailing, dance, even Legos. There’s such a huge variety we offer and they all fit together so well. One of the things we do best is to incorporate all the different parts of the brain and strengths of an individual into teaching the whole child.”
Abrahamson said that over 25 summer camps are offered to more than 600 first- through eighth-grade students in District 97. There is a fee to participate in the summer, but that money goes to provide cost-free STEAM learning to D97 students in the fall.
Abrahamson also noted that, despite the fact that the foundation’s a separate entity from the district, she’s excited about the district’s recent personnel moves. In June, the district has hired two African American female former engineers to prominent administrative positions. LeeAndra Khan, a former civil/design engineer, was hired as the new principal at Brooks Middle School and Carol Kelley, a former systems engineer, was hired as the district’s new superintendent.
“They’re hugely important additions,” Abrahamson said. “As a citizen, it’s so exciting for us. Actually, the superintendent is a member of our board.”
CONTACT: michael@oakpark.com
