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The Oasis High School Performance Arts Department has grown exponentially in the last six years after Carrie Guffy was asked to build the program.
Guffy received a phone call asking her to come to Oasis to build the program in 2018. When she first arrived, there were 11 chorus students.
"Today in only one program, in only one class, we stand at 45 - representing an increase of 309% in just six years," she said. "This growth is not only numerical, it reflects increasing student interest, rising program credibility and a deepening culture in the arts education within our schools here at Oasis."
Guffy went through a rundown of the program after some of her students sang before the Charter School Authority Governing Board last week.
With the expansion of the program came the purpose of the performing arts department, as the programming is no longer just for class elective options for students.
It's now a place where students belong.
"They offer a space of connection, creativity and acceptance where students build meaningful friendships, learn to collaborate and develop the confidence to express themselves," she said of the program.
Some of the options include chorus, theater, musical theater and technical theater, which all offer group cohesion, while students learn passion and empathy, and discover what it means to support one another in challenges and successes, Guffy said.
"The performing arts foster a well-rounded education - teaching perseverance, discipline, emotional intelligence and resilience required to strive for excellence. These skills expand far beyond the stage, concert hall or here, they prepare students to become leaders, problem solvers and engage community members," she said.
Now the program expands far beyond a single choir ensemble at Oasis High School.
"Oasis High School now offers a full and diverse performing arts curriculum that includes piano, musical theater, regular theater, chorus, audition vocal ensemble, technical theater and film studies," Guffy said. "In the past we have also offered AICE music. These courses give students pathways to explore performance, musicianship, design, storytelling, production and media skills that support both support artistic and academic growth."
The students' achievements reach beyond the walls of their school to the state level. She said for the past two consecutive years, Oasis choral students have passed two days of rigorous music theory and site examination to earn placement in the Florida All State Choir.
This placement puts them among the best high school musicians in the entire state.
"This level of achievement requires discipline, talent and dedication, and our students continue to rise to the challenge," Guffy said.
The growth also expands into the realm of theater, as over the past four years students continuously are taken to state competitions and receive superiors.
"This year we have officially joined the Florida Vocal Association and in the spring our students will compete in the solo and ensemble music performance assessments as well as Choral MPA where they again can make it to state," she said. "We now have a thriving mix chorus of 45 students and an audition vocal ensemble."
The theater program has also seen great growth. The program began with seven theater students.
Guffy said they recently brought 38 students to the district level thespian competition participating in 45 individual and group events.
"From that group, 14 students qualified for the state thespian competition as well as nine receiving top honors above other schools. It is a tremendous honor that speaks not only to their talent, but to their teamwork, resilience and dedication. Our students' talent has also been beyond these school walls over the past few years. We have been invited repeatedly to perform at community events, city ceremonies, art showcases and council meetings," she said.
Oasis High School also has a strong representation at the high school music theater awards where they received recognition for choreography, acting, music ensemble and lighting design even though they do not have a theater.
The school's performance season also continues to grow, as they now present a fall stage play and junior musical presented by their own musical theater class for elementary students to enjoy as a field trip. The school rents out space at the Bell Theater for both of these productions.
A large-scale spring musical is held at Cultural Park Theatre, which they rent out, to give students real-world performance experience.
The arts have also trickled down into Oasis Middle School where an interconnected pipeline of performing arts program begins with choir and band. Guffy said six of their choral students passed the same type of rigorous training and testing to earn placement in the middle school all state course.
"All four of our Oasis schools will once again participate in our large districtwide musical production at Cultural Park Theatre this April. A powerful showcase of talent that exists across all of our K through 12th grade schools," Guffy said.