Ridder: We need a graphic design class at Franklin Tech

If the recent controversy over whether the Joplin R-8 School District should hire a graphic design artist has had any positive result it may have come from a remark made by Interim Superintendent Norm Ridder during the Board of Education meeting Tuesday night.

One of the questions that has been posed, both by board members and by readers of this blog is why couldn't at least some of the graphic design work be done by students.

As it turns out, Franklin Tech does not have a graphic design class, though Director of Communications Kelli Price told the board that students in the regular art classes have done some work for the district.

"We need to have graphic design as part of our program at Franklin Tech," Ridder said and board members appeared to agree that should be done.

Though it is unlikely anything can be done for this school year, it does sound like the idea of bringing someone in to Franklin Tech who can teach graphic design would have plenty of benefits for the district, including having a professional graphic designer on staff who can teach students a subject for which there is a demand in the workplace and also enabling them to learn the requirements for doing the kind of work that has been the subject of the discussions at the last two board meetings.

During the meeting Tuesday, the board agreed to hire Christina Williams, who worked for the district as a graphic designer before her position was eliminated during budget cuts, at a rate of $45 per hour, with a cap of $12,000.