A 'Bright Light' at Seaford High

Seaford High School art teacher Michael Kerr never thought he would pass his love of the 1980s on to younger generations.

Kerr, 41, uses movies, cartoons and toys that were popular when he was growing up to inspire his students’ art projects. The walls of his classroom are adorned with iconic ’80s pop culture art and memorabilia, ranging from a poster of actor Michael Keaton as Batman to Garbage Pail Kids’ collectible cards featuring grotesque art of children.

Kerr teaches his students to surround themselves with what inspires them, so they can let their creativity flow. And while he finds inspiration in the past, he is using modern methods, such as 3D printing and social media, to show them how art is used today.

In recognition of his classroom innovations, Kerr was named a recipient of the Bright Light Award for infusing instructional technology into his teachings. The award comes from the Association of Suffolk Supervisors for Educational Technologies, a nonprofit that encourages the integration of technology into school curriculums.

Kerr said that the award took him by surprise.

“I was taken aback, because I don’t think I’ve been nominated for something this prestigious before,” he said.

Debbie Langone, the Seaford District’s executive director of instructional technology and STEAM — science, technology, engineering, arts and math — nominated Kerr for the award, which was presented to him at a luncheon in Farmingdale.

In his sculpting class, Kerr uses 3D printers to teach toy design. Students create the rendering of a toy, and it comes to life via 3D printing. His projects are based on popular toys from his childhood, like Madballs, foam balls with wacky faces on them. With their spherical design, Kerr knew that creating Madballs would be a simple way to teach students how the printers work.

“It was the first time I was exposed to actually creating something with a 3D printer, and so it was cool to see my design,” Seaford High junior Anastasia Perlegis said. “But then to actually see it come out (of) a 3D printer physically in my hands, I was like, wow!”

The printers, Kerr explained, have also been helpful in creating items for classes, such as number templates for students to use as stencils. At first, he saw the printers as a fun way for them to develop toys, but as time went on, he realized that they could use their newfound knowledge of 3D printing for projects other than toy design.

According to the Centers for Disease Control, 3D printing can create medical devices matched to a person’s anatomy, which opens up potential uses of the technology in the medical field. That in turn has sparked an interest in potential medical careers among some of Kerr’s students, as well as in printing projects of all kinds.

“It’s kind of eye-opening that some of the ridiculous ideas that I’m doing are actually planting seeds in students’ minds to do better than what I’m doing,” Kerr said.

Photo editing is another application he and the students explore. They use photo-editing software to manipulate images of Garbage Pail Kids that they draw, adding logos and backgrounds, while fine-tuning mistakes they may have made in the drawing process. Kerr said the process results in higher-quality finished work and shows students how art is used in today’s industries.

According to students, Kerr’s classes have allowed them to create whatever comes into their minds. For junior Lilli Doblin, the classes have offered a chance during the school day to decompress and work on something to be happy about.

“It’s a great break from all the harsh and educational work that you’re getting from all your other classes,” Doblin said.

Through the Garbage Pail Kids project, Kerr shows students another important lesson: networking. When they have created trading cards, he has reached out to artists on social media and showed them what his students have been working on. He has asked artists he was influenced by to offer critiques of the students’ art, and, he said, they have sent notes of praise and advice.

“He has his students do so many awesome projects that incorporates his true passions,” Seaford High Principal Nicole Schnabel said.

One of those projects led to the publication of senior Isabella Buran’s Garbage Pail Kid card in SchoolArts magazine, a national publication. According to Buran, Kerr is helpful in guiding his students, and clearly explains the technology they use in their art projects.

“He’s very supportive,” she said.

Kerr said that reaching out to artists has been a great way to connect students with those who make art for a living, and he hopes it can show them that it, too, can be a successful career path.

“If I could even have a small piece, and a kid may be opening their eyes and thinking about something that they never thought about, and it could lead them to a career in art,” Kerr said, “that would be the reason I do this.”