Recent Alumni head to College
Ryman Alumni who graduated from High School in Spring 2008 have begun their college careers, enrolling at institutions all over the country.
| Nichole Cecilia Alvarez | The Art Institute |
| Aanchal Anand | Art Center College of Design |
| Ashley Mildred Austin | The Art Institute |
| Zoe Ohanneson Axelrod | Maryland Institute College of Art |
| Alessya Rose Bonder | Sierra Nevada College |
| Cody Julien Boyce | The Cooper Union |
| Reed Weston Bradley | University of California, Los Angeles |
| Megan Kincaid Broughton | California Institute of the Arts |
| Karina Jeraldine Cano-Sanchez | Pasadena City College |
| Susana Castro | El Camino Community College |
| Ann Chiu | University of California, Los Angeles |
| Armando Cortes | University of California, Los Angeles |
| Cassandra Rose Ebner | California Lutheran University |
| Linda Jean Field | Pasadena City College |
| Sarah Ann Friese | California State University, Fullerton |
| Angel Louis Gonzalez | University of California, Los Angeles |
| Maria de Los Angeles Gonzalez | California State University, Los Angeles |
| Arlene Tamar Hacatoryan | University of Southern California |
| Saiful Haque | Art Center College of Design |
| Laura Caitlin Gallant Hurtado | Mount St. Mary's University |
| Christina Graland Joseph | Maryland Institute College of Art |
| Sophia Kefallinos | University of California, Irvine |
| Stacy S Kim | University of Southern California |
| Stephanie S Kim | Parsons School of Design |
| Kristin Kim | University of California, Los Angeles |
| Christina Louise Kliewer | Goucher College |
| Joanne Kuo | Otis College of Art and Design |
| Jhoannadel E Leovonchiong | University of California, Irvine |
| Mayra Alegandra Lopez | Santa Monica College |
| Rosu Manandhar | Santa Monica College |
| Kelsey Mary McCullough | Georgetown University |
| Jovan Mendez | East Los Angeles College |
| Samira Mohammad | University of California, Los Angeles |
| Fernanda Montano | California State Polytechnic University, Pomona |
| Thinh Phuoc Nguyen | California State University, Fullerton |
| Yuri Ogita | University of Southern California |
| Evian Vicencio Olivares | Otis College of Art and Design |
| Joaquin Tomas Recinos-Walsh | Georgetown University |
| Lauren Elizabeth Reed | Azusa Pacific University |
| Robert Joseph Rios | East Los Angeles Skills Center |
| Roberto Rodriguez | California State University, Northridge |
| Amanda E. Rountree | Biola University |
| Jenna Isabel Sanders | Citrus College |
| Ben Tobias Sanders | Art Center College of Design |
| Amanda Rose Siegel | The Cooper Union |
| Karsen Lorrae Slater | Laguna College of Art and Design |
| Allison Nicole Strauss | New College of Florida |
| Molly Elizabeth Sullivan | Pasadena City College |
| Jasmine Linshuan Tseng | Pasadena City College |
| Christina Tsui | University of California, San Diego |
| Rocio Liliany Vides | Stanford University |
| Jennifer Christine Williams | Academy of Art University |
| Jennifer Yi Xie | University of California, Berkeley |
| Allan Yaxon | California State University, Long Beach |
| Adam Miguel Ybarra | Otis College of Art and Design |
| Jennifer C. Young | The Art Institute |
| Samantha Mi-sun Yu | University of San Diego |
| Danalene DeOcampo Yu | University of Southern California |
Evaluation provides evidence for Ryman Arts impact on students
In 2006, a comprehensive assessment of Ryman Arts programs demonstrated that the organization has had a positive impact on the young artists who participated. This is the first extensive evaluation of Ryman Arts and marks a new phase in our growth and maturity as an organization.
The assessment included surveys, focus groups, roundtable discussions with outside professionals, portfolio analysis, and review of demographic and enrollment data over the past five years. Outside evaluators included Kylie Peppler of UCLA Graduate School of Education and Information Sciences, and independent evaluators Diane Manuel, PhD., and Margaret Menninger, PhD. The purpose was threefold:
- to document the students who have participated in the program and enrollment trends over the past five years;
- to assess student artistic development and other ways the program has impacted youth;
- to assess strengths and areas for improvement in the program.
Tracking more than 700 students in the program since 2000, researchers found, for example, that Ryman Arts has been serving students from an expanding geographic area over time, and students came from almost 100 zip codes in the past year. Over 80% of students are from low-income communities.
The portfolio assessment rigorously reviewed 45 portfolios from a cross section of students, closely examining drawings made before admission to Ryman Arts and during their participation to track trends in their artistic development, and did in-depth analysis with Ryman Arts faculty on selected case studies. It found consistent and steady growth of student skill, and increasing understandings of shape, value, and dimension, which were the specific skill areas analyzed. The significantly positive overall trends are a good sign that the majority of students have increased their drawing skills over the course of their time in the Ryman Arts program.
Students wrote that in addition to artistic skills, they felt they gained “life skills” including time management, self-confidence, persistence, goal setting, self discipline and patience, based on the exit surveys analyzed by Dr. Menninger and intern Geraldine Lawrence. High school teachers who refer students to the program and college admissions officers also cited these skills as an important impact of Ryman Arts on artistic youth. High school teachers pointed out the need to make Ryman Arts available to more students.
The evaluation project was generously funded by the Jack Kent Cooke Foundation and the National Endowment for the Arts, a federal agency. Additional support for this project was provided by the Dwight Stuart Youth Foundation, the Ralph M. Parsons Foundation, the City of Los Angeles Cultural Affairs Department, and the Los Angeles County Arts Commission.
Download a pdf of
An Overview of the Ryman Arts Program and Assessment of Student Portfolio Work
by Kylie Peppler
or the On-Line Survey of Ryman Arts Alumni report
by Margaret Menninger, PhD.
