With the new faces that were seen at the beginning of the school year, one was left out. This is due in part to the fact Coach Norris’s room is tucked away in the back corner of the school with the rest of the art rooms. She is also a self-admitted drama queen, and being such, she needs attention. Wouldn’t you be a drama queen if you had to raise four sons? The WEB : Why did you come to the high school to teach art? Mrs. Norris: I came because I was working at Meeker Elementary and decided that it was time for a new challenge. I had been there for a number of years and thought that it was the best time for a new adventure in my life. W: What besides teaching art are you involved in? N: Well, it is a little known fact that I also directed a play called “The Bench” which performed in Ames in December. It was a really interesting play that focused around a bench in a shopping mall during the holiday shopping time. W: Being an art teacher, it must be quite a challenge to keep up with your own creativity. What do you do to keep your mind keen? N: I actually have a creativity coach. That may sound silly but it really isn’t when you think about it. Tiger Woods has a coach. Why can’t I? W: What would your advice be to students looking to sign up for their first art class? N: Keep an open mind and be aware of your choices. It is important to know that art class is a busy place. Also know that art has an unfair bias from people outside of the artistic world who possesses a weird, wacky conventionalism that is not fair to the subject of art. That could be the reason why art doesn’t receive the respect that it deserves. W: You think the subject of art is unfairly judged by the students? N: Yes, I went into the back lobby, or whatever you kids call it, and saw a bunch of guys in white lab coats. Being curious I asked them what was the deal with the coats. They then said that they had double chemistry. I thought to myself that a double period would be perfect for art because it seems sometimes that art should be a two-period class. Some kids only get into their groove at the end of a standard period. That’s one of the reasons why I like the idea of block scheduling classes at Ames High. W: Finally, for the mandatory wacky question: if you could be in any piece of art what piece would it be? N: “The Persistence Of Memory” by Salvidore Dali. I really like that it is a genre of art where you can’t think out of the box anymore than what is going in the painting.