Every March, The Delaplaine in Frederick, Maryland hosts an art exhibition to celebrate Youth Art Month (YAM). The exhibition hosts artwork of different types of mediums from students throughout Frederick County.
YAM encourages support for school art programs through art shows, exhibits, fundraisers and annual community activities. At Linganore High School (LHS), YAM is celebrated throughout the Art, AP Art, Jewelry and Small Sculpture, Ceramics, Digital Photography, Publications and Computer Graphics classes. Among the various types of art classes offered at LHS is the Unified Art class.
Linganore High School utilizes the Learning for Life program, a program in which students with intellectual and physical disabilities are provided opportunities for inclusion and integration with non-disabled peers and mentors. Within a general education school, the system encourages students’ development of fundamental academic, social and life skills and to work to pursue a High School Certificate of Completion.
The Unified Art class gives these students of varying abilities within the Learning for Life program the opportunity to work together and collaborate to create works of art, typically through hands-on activities.
Doug Niemeier, teacher of the Unified Art, Art 1, and Computer Graphics classes emphasizes how the class focuses on inclusion, and not the difficulty of the projects themselves.
“[Students] come up to experience an art class with their peers that want to work with them one-on-one,” Niemeier said. “The goal is to build those peer relationships, which [will] ultimately help them be more successful in life.”
That’s the objective: full inclusion within art.
Niemeier highlighted the way students develop assignments and make adjustments to the criteria to adapt to the varying needs of the Learning for Life students.
“Right now, there are students who are teaching … I have students teaching pinch pots,” Niemeier said. “I’m not teaching it. The students are going to teach it. Anyone that’s in general education that isn’t in the Learning for Life program is required to teach something.”
Freshman Ellie Clark in the Learning for Life program shared through her communication device that some of her favorite aspects of the class is having access to a space where she can draw freely, and she loves working collaboratively with her friends. Clark also mentioned that she likes to sing along to the music they play in class.
Junior Molly Ward, a general education student in the Unified Art class, spoke about the benefits the class brings.
“The friendship building is great, because I see everyone in the hallway now … you say “hi” to everyone, and it’s awesome,” Ward said.
She believes the connections built between the Learning for Life students and the general education students have lasting impacts on their behaviors and ability to socially interact.
Junior Isabella Hoffman, a second-year Unified Art participant and a general education student, shared how the class helped narrow down her potential career choices and how it changed the way she sees inclusion in other aspects of life.
“I was not sure of what I wanted to do in life when I was older,” Hoffman said. “This class really showed me that I wanted to become an occupational therapist, where I help teenagers with learning how to walk and learning how to draw.”
The Unified Art class is available for registration for the 2025-2026 school year. The Deleplaine’s exhibits, showcasing local, regional and national artists and community art galleries are open for visits any time of the year.
