By Joslyn DelSignore / The Jambar
Youngstown State University’s art department painted a picture of what life as a YSU art student looks like for local high school students during Student Art Day.
Joy Christiansen Erb, department chair and professor, said the event has been at YSU since 2017, and nearly 200 students, parents and teachers attended this year.
“Art day is a day where we can invite high school students into campus to learn about the department of art, and [they] have a chance to be more interactive with art as well,” Christiansen Erb said.
Christiansen Erb said the vision for Student Art Day was to bring high school students interested in art to campus, to help YSU when choosing higher education.
“We ultimately hope that students will see that YSU could be a great place to come for college and to study art, but we also want them to be engaged in the larger art community,” Christiansen Erb said.
She said many high schoolers who attend the event come to YSU after graduation.
“We see these students come to YSU as actual students once they get a chance to see our facilities and meet our faculty,” Christiansen Erb said. “It’s a good fun day to bring people to campus.”
Students broke into groups to see demonstrations from eight instructors that presented different types of art such as digital art, printed art and painting. They also toured facilities in the art department.
Students participated in a workshop where they made different art pieces through mediums such as graphic design, painting or sculptures.
“They’ll watch the demo, so they’ll learn some techniques or tips or tricks about different media and then do the hands-on approach,” Christiansen Erb said.
The faculty also informed high school students of local art museums on campus, such as the John J. McDonough Museum of Art.
“It’s really great to introduce students to that so that they know that this is something that has revolving shows and openings that they can come to,” Christiansen Erb said.
The day concluded with a student panel where YSU art students spoke about their experiences and answered questions from attendees. Parents and teachers also gathered to learn more about YSU’s art program.
The department will host Portfolio Day on Jan. 23, 2027 in Bliss Hall. Portfolio Day offers high school students the opportunity to share their portfolios with YSU faculty and receive feedback.
Christiansen Erb said Portfolio Day is a great learning opportunity for the students, especially because it’s before scholarship application deadlines.
“If they’re seniors and they’re applying for scholarships through YSU’s art program, it’s a good chance for them to get a little bit more feedback right before the deadline comes up for the scholarship submission,” Christiansen Erb said.