Tom Tolen / news@whmi.com

The Brighton Board of Education voted Monday night to ensure that the art program at Brighton High School continues to have at least one full-time teacher.

After hearing over two hours of impassioned testimony from students, teachers and parents, the board voted 7-0 to reject a recommendation to downsize the position of the current art teacher, Rebecca Marzonie, from 1.0 full-time equivalent to .6 FTE, or slightly more than half-time.

The rationale behind the recommendation was that 50% fewer high school students selected art for next year. However, the board was told many students who would otherwise take art are constricted by scheduling demands, with courses like physical eduction and health required by the state. As a result, those class mandates and core curriculum choices such as science and math leave little or no room for electives like art.

Marzonie currently teaches six art classes at the high school. In addition, she runs an art club after hours for which she does not receive compensation.

A procession of speakers addressed the board at an over two-hour call-to-the-public. Among them was 1981 BHS graduate Michael Monroe, a nationally known wildlife artist and children’s book illustrator. Monroe urged the board to keep the art program at its current level, saying that for him, “It was a place to decompress from the demands of the required courses and a place to be creative.”

Board Vice President Alicia Reid initially urged the board to table the issue in order to study it more. However, Board President Roger Myers said they have to make an immediate decision because the fall teacher assignments must be set by the end of the month. Reid withdrew her motion and the board voted unanimously to keep Marzonie at her current full-time level.