Perpich Arts High School Literary Arts Department Presents “Telling Their Stories” Oral History Exhibition

December 18, 2025

The Perpich Arts High School Literary Arts Department presented “Telling Their Stories”, this year’s Oral History Exhibition on December 17, 2025. From exploring puzzles and escape rooms to sitcoms and family farms, from conservation officers and our very own principal, our writers interviewed friends, family, and strangers to construct a portrait of their work. The exhibition gave attendees a chance to learn a sliver of history and ask questions of the artists.

Kevin Lally, Literary Arts Instructor, was very impressed with the students. “Writers don’t tend to be chatty types, so an assignment that pushed them out into the world to conduct an interview, sometimes with complete strangers, was a little intimidating,” Lally said. “These young artists met that challenge with gusto, creativity, and a (mostly) positive attitude. As always I am immensely proud of them. It remains the privilege of my life to work with them and learn from them. They seek truth and light in confusing and often dark times, and they have done nothing less with these projects.” Kevin trusted that the attendees would learn something new and walk away with a little more confidence in our collective futures, “knowing we’ll soon be in their competent, creative, and compassionate hands.”

The project that Zach Stegora (Literary Arts 2026) created was focused on the world of Pokémon

Zach Stegora (Literary Arts 2026) had a lot of fun with this project, despite some hurdles. “I had to restart my project twice,” said Stegora. “But even with all those hurdles, I still ended up making a really good product that I’m proud of. A lot of people just loved it. I somehow even got Tory [Peterson] to understand my project, which was the last thing I was expecting.”

Rebecca Bullen, Perpich Arts High School Principal, said, “Wednesday evening’s Literary presentations, ‘Telling Their Stories’, were truly impressive. Students stepped into confidently sharing their research, insights, interpretations, and engaging thoughtfully with the audience. Their clarity, curiosity, and ownership of their work was powerful. I am proud of the way they showed up with knowledge and care through storytelling and connection.”

Congratulations to all involved with the Literary Arts Oral History Exhibition!