Julee Patterson literally blew us away with her application for glass fusion equipment and her passion for the Art Department at Sudan ISD.
Julee says “Teaching fused glass in the art classroom reinforces concepts that students learn in math and science class. Students are measuring and using geometry to build their glass pieces. Then, the science experiment starts. Students get to program the kiln and schedule the firing themselves, with my supervision. This requires them to think of rates, temperatures, and hold times. Building the glass project to be fused doesn’t take too long and the firing time is usually about 9 hours. After that, students are ready to use power tools and machines. They love this part! Students start out anxious about using the loud tools. However, after I demonstrate the use of these tools, they are thoroughly thrilled that they get to use them. With the lapidary grinder, students have said they feel empowered and important to be using such a powerful tool. After they sand, saw, grind, and cut their fused glass project, we run them through a fire polish firing in the kiln. Students cannot wait for their finished project to be cool enough to come out of the kiln.”
We love that she is incorporating science, math, construction and life skills into art. The students love learning the fused glass process and feel empowered using the lapidary grinder and learning about the science of glass fusing. They have said things like, “I feel like a professional jeweler,” and “They look like candy!”.
Mrs. Patterson sent us a few pictures to give us a glimpse of the glass fusing process and some of the finished pendants.
These Sudan students and their pendants are amazing! We are thrilled to to be able to play a small part in empowering these art students and we cannot thank our donors enough for partnering with us to provide tools, just like these, to the students of Sudan ISD. Also, thank you to Julee Patterson for inspring your students and each of us with your innovative ideas! If you would like to donate to the Sudan Education Foundation and help fund more grants for our teachers and district, please visit our website at stxef.org.
Julee Patterson is certified to teach K-12 All Level Art by the State of Texas. She received her Bachelor of Fine Arts degree in 2013 from Texas Tech University. This is her 8th year of teaching art, and fourth year at Sudan ISD. Julee enjoys making art of her own; she has particular interest in painting and fused glass. She also enjoys being a Mama to her 2 year old son Lucas, baking delicious desserts, traveling, updating her family home, tagging along and listening to her husband’s band, and hanging out with her dog Amos Moses.
