Student art featured at MIA

Sydney Wilcox brought her painting classes to the Minneapolis Institute of Art for analysis of a new exhibition. What made the field trip personally impactful was seeing the paintings of 13 Como Park students whose creations were selected to be in the gallery.

The exhibit showcased student art from three urban schools that collaborated with the MIA on the theme of “Racism as a Public Health Crisis.” Professional artists mentored Como students during the fall, helping connect complex social issues to their painting lessons and addressing racism through art.

The exhibit sponsored by Blue Cross and Blue Shield will be on display at the MIA until Feb. 6.

Library mural

The library entrance at Como Park High School was enhanced during winter break with the addition of a mural reflecting student life and school activities. Como librarian Sheri Chaffee-Johnson organized the creative, colorful project with local artist Shane Anderson.

Students contributed ideas, quotes, language and content that resulted in a brilliant painting that proudly tells a story about Como students, struggles, origins and experiences.

Features include “Hello” in the top ten most widely spoken languages among Como students, a Lakota/Ojibwe greeting in the Minnesota design, a globe showing the countries where most of Como’s immigrant students arrived from, clothing reflective of inclusion and symbols of school culture and history.

Career and trade fair coming

A career and trade fair at Como Park High School is planned for Wednesday, Feb. 23, from 10:45 a.m. until 1:30 p.m. Como staff members organizing the event are seeking volunteers from the community to participate and share experiences and information from a variety of professions and trades.

The event is a collaborative effort by the school’s Career Pathway Center, counseling department and Get Ready program. Plans include having a rotational schedule for students who visit the fair and having students register ahead of time in order to participate. To accommodate social distancing and provide more personal interactions, each session will be capped at a limit of 50 students.

Event coordinators are especially interested in finding volunteers who are women in male dominated professions and BIPOC (Black Indigenous and People of Color) professionals to share their career experiences.

If you have personal or professional contacts who would be willing and able to share information about their careers with Como students, please email Mai Chue Moua at mmou.getr@spps.org.

Eric Erickson is a social studies teacher at Como Park Senior High School.