Semester 1

Going into college, I expected that all of my classes would be large and that every assignment would just be a long paper, except for in math classes. I also did not expect to have as many class discussions or do as much collaborative work with my peers.

Fortunately for me, I attended a college preparatory high school that made my transition to college easier than it might have been; had I attended another school. With that said, I felt prepared in many ways for college. It was very similar to what high school felt like for me during the first half of the semester. However, as the semester progressed, it got progressively more difficult to manage. I feel like each semester is a mini school year. I had expected college to be difficult, but after the first few weeks of the semester, I thought that maybe it would be easier, but in the end, it proved to be challenging. Moving forward, now that I know what to expect in terms of the workload as the semester goes on, I can mentally prepare myself and plan accordingly.

The university's response to the COVID-19 crisis fit my expectations in terms of how it required people to be vaccinated and still offered virtual classes and free masks to people. However, at the same time, I expected the university to do more since we are a large school which means a lot of people come into contact with one another.

Two things we covered in the colloquium that I did not expect were curation, and thinking about who determines what is art (especially when it comes to who’s work gets put in museums or somewhere on display). One thing I felt we have not explored or gone deep into is performance-based art. I felt that the majority of our attention was focused on visual arts. As far as the activities beyond the classroom, they mostly went the way that I expected them to go based on the descriptions I was given about them. The one thing about the field trips though, is that I had expected the field trips to be to art museums and I expected them to be outside of campus. It was a happy surprise though to go on field trips to places on campus, like exhibits, art maker spaces, and the performing arts center.

An Arts Scholars supporting course I took this semester was Popular Music in Black America. One topic that came up often in that class was the idea of crossover, which was when a song did well on more than one of the three main charts in the early history of music in America. I connected that to discussions we have had in the Arts Scholars colloquium about how art can spark a conversation between different groups of people. This has helped me to view art more as a forum. It was notable if a song did well on several billboard charts because back then, certain groups of people mainly listened to music from only one of the charts. So if a song did well on multiple charts, that meant that it was able to break a barrier. People of differing groups could be brought together by their shared love for music or a particular piece of art.

Looking back on the semester, the most thought-provoking and impactful thing we discussed this semester was what is art and who determines what is art. That question has stuck with me throughout the rest of my time this semester. I think a question like this could help get to the origin of many of the perspectives and biases people have because we are all shaped by our experiences and background. I will continue to think about these questions as I look at what people call a work of art.

Reflections: Image

Semester 2

Freshman "Time Capsule" End-of-Year Reflection

My first year as a College Park Arts Scholar has finally come to a close. It has been an interesting rollercoaster of an experience that got fun many times, but I also faced some challenges that helped me to learn and grow. Before I decided to be an Arts Scholar, I thought it would be a fun, relatively easy program that would allow me to stay connected to music while exploring other types of art. I did learn a little more about other forms of art, but not quite in the way that I expected. Being an Arts Scholar has proved to be an enriching experience. My advice to any incoming freshman who is considering becoming an Arts Scholar would be that the program is not as easy as you may expect and could feel demanding or inconvenient at times but participating in the program is worth it. There are fun aspects of being an Arts scholar, it would be a great addition to your resume, and completing the program would benefit your development as a person.
One skill that I was able to work on while in the program is social interaction, particularly when interacting with the Arts Scholars leadership team and my fellow peers. It could be very easy to fade into the background and not be noticed or recognized because of the number of students in the program. So, what worked for me in building a relationship with the leaders was interacting with them during those in-between moments and just having short conversations. Also, not being afraid to send them an email if I needed help or was concerned about something. One thing it is important to remember about dealing with people is to be respectful whether it is a faculty member or peer. Even if there is a conflict, being respectful is the best way to go about resolving issues. I would add that being compassionate is also very helpful in considering how others may feel about your actions.
Connecting with other Arts Scholars may be a slightly easier task for incoming freshmen, especially because you may interact with each other in smaller settings either in the dorms, in classes, or at other areas and times around campus. For any incoming scholars who decide to commute as I did, it may be a little difficult. You may sometimes feel left out because most of the other students would see each other more frequently as a result of living together in Bel Air hall. My advice would be to take advantage of the Arts Scholars events outside of class to become more connected with the Arts Scholars community. I’m talking about events that may be put on by your peer mentor or the Arts Scholars Advisory Board (AAB). I did not take advantage of attending those AAB meetings as much as I could have. I only went to one event, and it was their last one, but I was glad I went. It was more enjoyable than I expected. I have also made connections with other students interested in music by speaking to them during those in-between moments, such as when riding the metro to attend an Arts Scholars field trip.
In addition to the AAB events and field trips, the workshops were another aspect of the program that fostered community. Through the workshops, I was able to meet sophomore Arts Scholars and former scholars who may have decided to be a TA. In each of these types of events, I was able to explore other art forms, create art, and interact with my peers. I plan to continue engaging with the Arts Scholars community by staying involved in the program and continuing my participation in those activities outside of the classroom coursework.
Something I learned as a program participant was about the role or function of art in my life and in society. When experiencing or working in the arts in school, it can be easy to only think of art as art, to say that art is subjective but also to be selective in thinking about what counts as art or good art, and to think of art hierarchically. I find that we still face these challenges but as an Arts Scholar, I have learned to think about the numerous functions of art. Two overarching ways to think about art are either art for art’s sake or as a tool for a specific purpose. I think viewing art more as a tool makes it more versatile and more things can be considered art, like architecture for example. We are less critical of what classifies as art when we think about its use. Using art as therapy is an example of this since the purpose is not meant to necessarily create something that is appealing to most people’s eyes. These are ideas that I was introduced to while participating in the program. I would advise future students to take advantage of the opportunities to discuss these ideas and to put in their best effort. One thing that is clearer to me now is that a better effort yields better results.
To summarize my first year as an Arts Scholar, I have learned a lot and have developed more as an individual. The program can feel overwhelming sometimes but I would recommend staying the course for any new students who decide to join the program. Arts Scholars has allowed me to stay connected with the arts and develop relationships with other UMD students with similar interests as myself. This is a great opportunity to take advantage of.

Reflections: Image

Semester 3

Going through the process of developing a capstone project alongside my peers has allowed me to see art as a tool to help reshape people’s beliefs and biases. Before participating in Arts Scholars I knew that art could have an impact on people, but I mostly thought of how art can reflect an artist's emotions and influence the emotions of the consumer. I also knew that with literature, an author can have a lesson they want to teach the audience, but I had not made the connection that even with visual art and music, an artist can use it to reshape how their audience may perceive the world. Working with my peers in class and outside of the classroom during field trips has helped me to see how one art piece could serve the dual function of being something that appeals to people’s interest in witnessing or experiencing something beautiful while also functioning as a tool to influence the audience’s beliefs and biases.
I encountered a few examples outside of class that related to how the arts can be a mechanism for expressing one beliefs, values, or lived experiences. One of those examples was the costumes women wore in this year’s Miss Universe National Costume Show. Many of the women representing African countries wore costumes that reflected something about their country's culture or history. I may have recognized on my own that the customs were made to tell the audience something about their history or culture, however being an Arts Scholar made me more aware of examples of people using art to express their beliefs, values, and lived experiences. In a different class I took this semester, I saw a lot of connections to my experience in Arts Scholars. I took a Black Women’s Studies course in which we looked at many different art pieces to identify different strategies of resistance that Black women have used to cope with or fight against the oppression they have faced. Some of my initial ideas for my capstone project were influenced by this experience.
At the beginning of the semester of Arts Scholars, we practiced using different techniques of brainstorming to help develop our project ideas. I found the exercises such as making inspiration boards and mind mapping to be very helpful in keeping track of my ideas and developing them further. I even found the outline to be a helpful activity even though I did not enjoy it as much as the other activities. Many times in the past when I had an idea about something I would not document it or immediately criticize it without trying it out. Being forced to utilize those different strategies for beginning the creative process gave me a solution to get past my lack of confidence when it comes to brainstorming creative ideas. I also learned that allowing my peers or other people to look over my ideas through the peer review process is another great tool to help develop and refine my ideas. Getting another person’s perspective gave me insight into how my audience may perceive my final project.
I felt that my learning was most improved by interacting with fellow Arts Scholars inside the classroom. As I mentioned before, I found the peer review process to be one of the most helpful steps in developing my capstone project ideas. It was great for helping me to improve, but it also helped me to see that my peers and I were going through some of the same challenges with coming up with our ideas. Interacting with my peers during breakout sessions and field trips also helped me feel more of a sense of community with my peers. This is something that was and still is more difficult for me since I am a commuter student. Being an Arts scholar has forced me to talk to and collaborate with people that I may not have interacted with, had I not participated in the program. I feel that being around other Arts scholars has helped me to be slightly more confident. When you are constantly only exposed to your perspective or the perspectives of others who think similar to you, that can be very limiting. It may even stifle your creativity. This is why exploring different perspectives can be so valuable.
To give back to the Arts program community I have made friends with some of the first-year students. I shared some of my experiences with them to give them ideas about what to expect from scholars. Based on my experiences this semester, I know that they have a few great things to look forward to.

Reflections: Image

Semester 4

Program Synthesis

This final semester as an art scholar has forced me to use all the techniques and skills I was introduced to during the colloquia, supporting courses, and homework assignments. I often used these experiences when I was developing my capstone project. One example is the TRYathlon assignments. With each assignment, I made a connection to my final project. I mostly used those assignments to learn some best practices for getting your intended message across with your art. My capstone project was based on a complex concept so these assignments were very helpful in getting me to think more critically about reaching my audience.
Although the TRYathlon assignments helped me to focus on the impact I wanted to have on my audience through my work, my ideas did not always have the effect I wanted them to. The peer-reviewing process during the capstone process and also throughout my time in Art Scholars allowed me to improve. I took my peers' feedback very seriously and made the appropriate adjustments in my revised versions.
The development stage of my capstone project became challenging at times. Some knowledge I acquired from art scholars to help me was public speaking through class discussions and assignments, where to look for sources of inspiration, and how to keep myself organized while working on a long-term project. Of these three, the second was the most crucial for my success with the project because I was finding it difficult to come up with ideas at the start of the semester. I thought that maybe I just was not very creative. Keeping my work organized using a Google folder and saving my sources on different Google Docs was also crucial to my success because without being able to access my prior work I think I would become discouraged and have to start over each time I wanted to add something to my work.
When I first joined Art Scholars, one aspect of the program I was excited about was being able to explore other art forms. That is exactly what I did with my capstone project. I had never done collage before. I combined my already existing interest in social issues with my developing interest in collage. I do not think that I would have tried collage art if I had not done a capstone project. The artistic discipline I am used to working in is music, specifically singing, but I had never sung my own songs before so I did not feel comfortable with doing it for my capstone. This forced me to think about trying other art disciplines.
Art programs are usually the first to go whenever there are budget cuts. The arts are not valued in our society as an important discipline. I disagree with this sentiment and I did before, however, this last semester has given me a stronger perception of how valuable and disciplined the arts are. I have seen through creating my exhibit how much work and effort goes into creating something with the hopes of making an impact on people. I felt less connected to the arts before I had the experience of making my own and displaying it publicly. It takes courage and perseverance to put so much effort into something that is not guaranteed to be appreciated or understood. Working with other art scholars behind the scenes in preparation for Arts Fest also reminded me that art can have many different purposes. One of my other interests is criminal justice, but I could not think of a way to tie that interest to my interest in the arts. The work of another sophomore arts scholar allowed me to make that connection. She made a collage about it in Arts Fest.
One lesson I learned from Arts Scholars that I do not think I will forget is that to create new ideas you need inspiration. For a while, I thought that I just was not a creative person even though I like to sing. I thought every person’s ideas just came from thin air without outside influence. Other lessons I will carry with me beyond Art Scholars are project management and organization. These are skills that I know I will have to keep working on, however, Art Scholars gave me a good foundation to keep working on these things in the future. In my first year of the program, I was worried about the capstone project. I did not think I could do it. Now that everything is coming to a close, I am proud of myself and glad that I completed the program.

Reflections: Image