Deylah McCarty

2008 SAM State Winner
Classic City PLC

Creative Expression - High School

Virtually Expressed
By Deylah McCarty

For the first box, I chose dark, angry colors and a jagged, clustered design to represent the time in my life when I was frustrated, confused, and depressed.  This box conveys the contempt I had for my old school and my lack of hope for success.  During this time, my parents had gotten divorced, and I moved to a new state.  I attended Ila Elementary, where I was miserable.  One of my t4achers played favorites, and I was not one of them.  She was constantly pressuring me about my work and placed me in after-school detention when I did something minor.  It’s obvious to me that the county could have benefited greatly from Communities in Schools.

In the second box, the design is much less congested and appears to be drooping. This box represents the point in my life during which I was giving up in school.  I was still extremely depressed, but the anger was replaced with a lack of enthusiasm.  However, the white streaks convey the small threads of hope that I was beginning to have.  When I attended middle school at Hilsman in Athens, I had a particular experience there that exacerbated my depression.  A couple of students stole my sketchbook and tore it up, throwing the pages away or keeping the ones they liked.  To make matters worse, the principal told me it was my fault and that I shouldn’t have had the notebook in the first place.  This experience created a mental block that made me give up on my artwork for a long time.

The third box is clearly more positive than the other two.  It displays the time of my life when I found Classic City High School PLC.  I heard about Communities In Schools had created schools for disengaged students and had the feeling that this new school was the place for me.  My hope was steadily growing, as was my self-esteem.  The swooping design and electric look of this box represent my newfound passion for school and my love of life.  On my first day at Classic City PLC, I had a math class, and I was already frightened I would fail.  I remember that my teacher, Dr. Maudsley, was very patient with me and helped me earn that math credit.  From that point on, I knew my life was changing for the better.

The fourth box is the stage of life that I am in now.  The swirling blues and greens represent my creativity and my personality by showing how freely I now flow through life.   Every day I feel I can express myself to the fullest, and each day at Classic City High I get the chance to show my creativity at its best.  One of my teachers there said to me one day, “You’re Ms. PLC!”  Classic City High has been a major aid in allowing me to develop this content lifestyle, and I am grateful to Communities In Schools for helping to create the school that has helped so many people like me.