Carrying out a tradition that has been a part of the school since it opened, senior Helena Howard Wins Once Again

Walking into the school, you may have noticed the stained-glass windows hanging over the front doors. Since the school first opened in 1997, a student from the senior class would design a tile of stained glass to feature in the school, as a goodbye gift from the graduates.

The tradition began with Ms. Nun, an AP art teacher at the school, who worked in the county for 40 years. When she retired, Deborah Cooper, current art teacher, decided to keep the tradition going, but she turned the stained-glass window project to an art club project, instead of only the AP art class working on it.

For many years, the entire school was invited to participate in the project – from design to selection. Students were able to submit designs as well as vote for what stained glass window they liked the most.

“We tried to involve the entire school in the selection process and the design process, so we had an all call [for] entries for submission ideas and we got three ideas,” said Cooper.

Cooper posted the entries online and advertised voting through Feature Friday among other channels.

In Cooper’s opinion, she believed all of the entries were great because they emphasized panther pride.

“I liked each of the drawings for different reasons. Some of them are panther-centered, which is very Potomac Falls spirited, while some of them are more related to things that happened that year,” said Cooper.

This year, the winner of the stained-glass window was senior Helena Howard.

“It makes me feel good that I won; it also makes me feel like I’m helping out in the stained-glass committee,” said Howard.

This is not the first year that Howard’s design has won, she won last year as well. This gave her experience and ideas on how to design the stained glass.

“I like being able to do the window because I know the bases of stained glass. By knowing the basis, I’m able to brainstorm my design,” said Howard.

The art club students construct the stained-glass window, cutting and soldering the pieces while thinking about the size and shape carefully. The process for a stained-glass window is time consuming, and students won’t have the window complete and ready to hang until well into next school year.