Once again, please join art teacher Jaime Shafer in congratulating the talented Churchill County High School art students for their inclusion in the Sierra Nevada University Flat Flat Rate Exhibition. A national contest with over 200 entries.
Shafer announced the awards last week in what has become a fairly regular occurrence over the past couple of years for her students, recognition for their hard work and aptitude. Lest we take for granted their accolades and allow winning to become common place instead of the great honor it is, we thought it important to learn more about these students and the program that is producing such talent.
“For me, I push the kids to enter,” said Shafer, “because one, it’s good for them in terms of resumes, and their exposure especially if they’re considering art, but it’s also an advocacy thing, we need support for these programs so its good to raise awareness.” She is constantly looking for contests and helping her students meet the various requirements and application processes.
Shafer sees these contests as character building and a process that teaches students about the real world. “I tell the kids all the time, art is subjective, and you have to have a thick skin when you enter contests. You have to be willing to accept rejection, and just move on and say, ‘I’m not going to let that bother me,’ it’s good practice,” said Shafer.
Students who aren’t confident or may not be particularly academically inclined, grow and become sure of themselves through their art and through the recognition. She tells of a student she had as a senior who had never taken art before. “We got her into these contests, and I helped her with her portfolio, and she got a $25,000 scholarship for her art.”
Building connections with the kids and the interpersonal relationships are what Shafer finds the most important about teaching. She says there is so much going on in their lives and there is so much crossover in what’s happening and how students can apply that to art. Building those relationships helps students see they do have ability and talent and that does change things for many students.
“I think art is special in regard to the fact that I get to sit with my kids while they’re creative, I get that down time with them to talk,” she said.
The Sierra Nevada Flat Flat Rate show used to be a live exhibit guided by the rule that if your work could ship in a flat-rate envelope you could send it for consideration/ jurying. But, because of COVID the contest organizers could only do the show digitally this year, so they changed the contest to the “Flat Flat Rate” show because it is digital only. Shafer also said this is the first year the contest is national, it was previously just a local, regional contest, and it includes work from community college students as well.
“It was funny because we were watching the awards reception,” said Shafer, “and there was my hometown.” She is from Pennsylvania.
In addition to this Flat Flat Rate show, Shafer’s students regularly win several awards at the state Scholastic Art Competition and last year won at the Inova Art Contest. She also displays their work in shows at the Churchill County Library and Banner Churchill Community Hospital.
Congratulations for the Flat Flat Rate show go to: Lacee Wallace--Honorable Mention, Macall Brown, Rebecka Anaya, Azruh Tessers, Jackson Moon, Nicole Nelson, Hailey Lackey, Bianca Lopez, Dalia Lopez Gonzalez, and Mikala Ledesma.
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