Madison’s Art Department provides a multitude of opportunities for students to be creative in its classes such as Photography, Studio Arts, 3D Arts and Computer Graphics, but enrollment has decreased, by roughly, five classes in the past two years according to Studio Arts teacher Brandy Carter.

Due to a decreasing number of students, there are too many people in one class, but not enough to make a second class. This causes class sizes to be an average of 30 students, which is larger than the teachers prefer.

“In a perfect world, [I’d like to have] smaller class sizes,” Photography teacher Johanna Little said. “A smaller classroom environment provides more of an opportunity for one-on-one guidance and student critiques.”

Although classes may be large, some students accept it with grace.

“I think [the larger class sizes are] cool because you get to see more photos and be exposed to more ideas,” Peter Faragasso (‘17) said.

Some students even prefer the larger classes. “While you can go and work with Ms. Carter at [times], you can work with other students in the class as well,” Bridget Thornberry (’17) said.

In order to solve the dropping art enrollment rates, art teachers increased their advertisements by creating a photo booth for students at the Electives Fair this past year. They also made posters and sent students to Thoreau Middle School to encourage incoming freshmen to take a creative arts class.

“We just did a lot of advertising last year, which was a lot of work for us, but it ended up being worth it because our numbers went up, and then we got to hire a part-time teacher,” Carter said. If not enough students had enrolled into the art program, teachers could be let go or be demoted to part-time.

“[The Art Department is] a creative outlet and lets students participate in classes that aren’t strictly academic,” Faragasso said.

Teachers and students continue to encourage students of all grades to take advantage of the broad range of creative art classes available — from learning how to throw clay on a wheel to how to develop film — students are bound to find something that intrigues them.

“A lot of people have different interests. Some like to be more hands-on with pottery, and others are really good with technology. Everyone can find something they like,” Thornberry said.

An art class implemented into students’ schedules can offer a more relaxing and creative environment during the school day as well as an opportunity to meet new friends and explore new skills.