Walking down the arts hallway, anyone is guaranteed to to hear the band and choir practicing, drama students rehearsing lines and video students filming. If they peek into classes toward the end of the hall they’ll witness students working passionately on their latest art or CADD projects, or publication students working tirelessly to meet deadlines. The hallway is covered in color and never experiences a dull moment. With so much being created it this hallway it is easy to say that it is the most productive hall in the school. Yet, so many students only take the one art class that is required to graduate.

There are over seven different types of arts classes to get involved in. With that, there is an art class for everyone. Participating in arts is a way to be involved in school beyond sports. Being involved in arts allows a students to fill the school with creativity through visual art showcases, plays and concerts. Students can be impact in the stories that get told through Newscast and Yearbook, and they can write about issues they are passionate about through the Newspaper. Students involved in the arts programs are involved and are able to communicate with their peers.

Students in these classes can leave everlasting effects on the community from the work they produce. Arts students have produced work that has traveled around Michigan, work that is performed in other states, and work that has reached over 200,000 views nationwide. These are the things students should be involved in during high school, because the arts are their way to impact the world.

Beyond the creativity involved in the arts, students benefit in other ways from their art classes. According to Arts Education Navigator “young people with high arts involvement were 4 times more likely to be recognized for academic achievement, and students who take 4 years of arts and music classes average almost 100 points higher better on their SAT scores than students who take only one-half year or less”.

Whether it’s drawing, singing, designing a page for the yearbook or all three, students who participate in arts are receiving a better education than those who do the bare minimum of one class. Arts can teach skills that math and history cannot and they provide a way for students to express themselves and provide a fun ways for student to get involved in their school. Students who do find themselves rarely in the arts hall are truly missing out.