Student Highlight
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| Abi Brown, Art Education Major |
What led you to choose HPU for your education?
I
grew up nearby and even went to bandcamp in highschool, so I’ve been familiar
with HPU for sometime. Both of my parents have attended HPU, and several close
friends began school here after graduating high school. I remember them talking
about their experiences here, and started trying to convince me to apply when
it came time for me to transfer from a community college. For a long
time, I didn’t consider HPU an option, because I assumed a private school would
be too expensive. However, when I compared it to my other top choice (I
literally had a spreadsheet and compared it dollar for dollar), HPU somehow
made the most financial sense. God worked through scholarships and financial
aid, and I got to go to my dream university.
What
has been the most important experience as an art student at HPU?
The
student art shows have contributed so much to my experience as an art student.
They are a way to be exposed to other students’ finished work, they create an
environment for the local artistic community to come together, they are a
structured way for students to work toward goals, and setting up the show itself
teaches gallery skills and collaboration. Art shows have given me the
opportunity to experience what professional artists experience, and that has
been so valuable.
How
has HPU shaped you as an artist and and future teacher of art?
Although
the art department has had its challenges, the changes have also taught me how
to adapt and make the most of every situation. We may be a small group, but
working so closely with other students has helped me be aware of the value that
each student has and the unique perspective they bring to the table. As an
artist, HPU has shaped me to adapt and pursue excellence no matter the
situation. And as a teacher, HPU has taught me that every student
matters.
For
what are you most thankful for in relation to your education at HPU?
I
am thankful for the heart of each professor/staff member for students. HPU
feels like family and as a student I’ve felt safe and invited. That feeling
wouldn’t be possible without each individual member of HPU making the choice to
love students and work for their good. This experience hasn’t been so much like
“school” to me; it’s been an invaluable education that has prepared me for a
career, faith, family, and life as a whole.
Alumni Highlight
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| Julie Mize, Adjunct Instructor |
Julie Mize, ('96)
Ms. Mize’s
association began in March of 1992 when she was a high school senior from
Houston, meeting Eloise Trigg to interview for a Howard Payne University art
department scholarship. That subsequent fall she would be an art major also
seeking teaching certification. Ms. Mize notes, “Receiving that scholarship was
a boost to my confidence and I appreciated Mrs. Trigg’s faith in my abilities.
I was so excited to learn all I could from my university faculty.”
“Half of my art
classes were held in the old barracks that had been purchased from the U. S.
Army when Camp Bowie was closed. In these buildings, Dr. Charles and Mrs.
Maurine Stewart had developed the HPU art program. I never knew them, but I
knew of their dedication from their careers in teaching here and the seeds of
that heritage were planted in me. Mrs. Trigg had been one of their students,
and now I was one of hers.”
“In my junior
year, though I didn’t see it coming, God began fine-tuning one of my artistic
interests when I took the photography class. I was introduced to the magic of
the darkroom, and after the class I kept practicing photography.”
Following
graduation, her first teaching position was in an elementary school in Houston.
“Three years later I married and moved to Brownwood, where there are no
elementary art jobs. However, there was a position for an art teacher at
Brownwood Middle School, and I took it.” Due to the developmental differences
between middle school students and elementary-aged students, Ms. Mize discovered
that she had to make adjustments in her teaching. She turned to her former
professor the then head of the Art Department, Ann Smith for advice and her
ongoing mentoring. As Ms. Mize’s career continued, so did her relationship with
HPU. “Over the years my teaching experience grew and HPU’s education department
began placing student teachers with me. I have loved working with those
students and felt I was giving back to HPU by helping them prepare for their
own careers.”
Ms. Mize
completed her Master of Art Education degree at Texas Tech University’s campus
in Junction, Texas. There, she was again afforded the opportunity to work with
her preferred medium of photography. “It was my first access to a darkroom in
many years and I dove right in. I continued to take photography courses through
that time. After I graduated Mrs. Smith asked if I would be interested in
teaching the photography class for the HPU art department. I said ‘yes’.”
“So now, with 22
years of public school teaching and 10 years of adjunct work for HPU, I have
seen how a few small steps early on in life have led further down my life’s
path. I feel the legacy of what Dr. and Mrs. Stewart started, and what Mrs.
Trigg and Mrs. Smith carried forth. I thoroughly enjoy working with my HPU
students and I hope they gain a sense of how God guides our lives with steps
that can lead to bigger events that help shape our own and others’ lives.”
Faculty News
Sally
Davis, Adjunct instructor
Continuing in her role as a Middle
School Art Educator for Early ISD and member of the Texas Art Educators
Association, Ms. Davis is also Director of the Region XV Junior Visual Art
Scholastic Event (VASE). She also served as a workshop presenter for the Region
XV Education Service Center All-level Art Workshop.
Julie
Mize, Adjunct Instructor
Ms. Mize is a member of theTexas Art Education Association,
Texas Photographic Society, Brownwood Art Association, Brownwood Art
Association Photographers Group. During January of this year, Ms. Mize was part
of the committee to curate artwork placements for the annual Stars of Texas Art Exhibit in Brownwood,
Texas. In February, she also presented an artwork demonstration during the Stars of Texas Art Exhibit and had two of her
photographs accepted to an exhibit in Granbury sponsored through the Lake
Granbury Art Association. June saw Ms. Mize co-host an art education
workshop with Sally Davis and Tasha Carter for summer staff professional development
credit for public school teachers through the Region XV Education Service
Center. She also attended an art education workshop at the Glassell School of the
Museum of Fine Arts, Houston.
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