Gifts at Work: Igniting a Spark in the Next Generation
Visiting artist Deb Donovan guides students through printmaking inside the SparkRoom at Monomoy Regional High School.
A graffiti artist, an African drum band, theatrical performers, and fashion designers. Sixteen years ago, each left an indelible mark on Amanda Newcomb when she was embarking on her educational career as a student teacher at Dorchester Academy in 2010.
And they served as her inspiration for the SparkRoom, a dynamic artist makerspace at Monomoy Regional High School, that she launched in the fall of 2025.
“They had long-term residencies where the students would be exposed to different types of art and also to the community. It got the kids super engaged with learning,” she said.
With seed funding from the Arts Foundation, the SparkRoom became a reality this past spring, allowing Newcomb, chair for the school’s visual and performing arts department, to invest in technology that included a laser cutter and an embroidery machine as well as adjustable workstations for project-based learning.
With the $10,000 grant, the school was also able to hire three professional artists – Deb Donovan (textile/printmaking), C.R. Florence (comic book illustration), and Emily Celia (graphic design/illustration) – for in-person residencies that gave students a real-world perspective on creativity.
Monomoy Regional High School Visual and Performing Arts Department Chair holds up a piece of artwork created by her students inside the SparkRoom.
Newcomb, owner of a freelance design company and lifestyle brand, Down Cape Design, said the SparkRoom is important because it lets students know that pursuing a career in the arts is a viable path.
“As a child my father told me, ‘everything you see in the built world was drawn by an artist before it existed.’ Creativity shapes the world around us,” Newcomb said. “By bringing local creatives into the classroom, I hope to inspire young people to see the value of the arts and imagine possibilities for themselves.”
In April, as Donovan was beginning the first of the SparkRoom residencies, a handful of students worked diligently at their stations.
Alexa, 16, now a senior, was one of them. She has dreams of working in animation.
Her passion for art, she said, started at a young age when her parents first put crayons in her hand. “They couldn’t get me to stop drawing,” she shared. “It is fun, it is entertainment, and it is a great way to exercise your brain.”
The SparkRoom gives her a space where she can experience that joy, work towards her dreams of becoming an animator, and connect with local artists who are inspiring her to greater heights.
“I want to be here every day,” she said. “It is so much fun.”
While the SparkRoom is giving her a path forward, for her classmate Kobe, a junior on the basketball team, it is offering something less concrete, but just as valuable – a place to relax, quiet his mind, and step away from the constant pull of technology and the academic and social pressures that come with being a teen.
“This place is calming,” he said. “You can take your time and not be rushed.”
Kobe, a junior at Monomoy Regional High School, has found the SparkRoom is a place where he can relax, quiet his mind, and step away from the social pressures that come with being a teen.
At Monomoy, Newcomb said, more students are realizing the value of the arts.
Nearly 300 students signed up for the school’s ceramics class last year, resulting in a long waitlist. “A lot of kids want to get off of their screens,” she said.
This fall, the SparkRoom will enter its second year with continued support from the Arts Foundation thanks to an $8,000 grant which will allow more students to connect with and learn from artists in the community.
For Newcomb, the arts “gets me excited and motivated and engaged,” sparking her imagination, creativity, and curiosity.
This is what she wants the SparkRoom to give her students. “I want to support young people in figuring out who they are.”
Ignite a Spark with a Gift Today!
Support more programs like the SparkRoom with a gift to the Arts Foundation. Through your generosity, you’re allowing kids across the Cape to build their confidence, tap into their creativity, and use arts as a positive outlet for self-expression.
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