Jefferson Foundation News
January 2012 Press Releases
The Jefferson Foundation continues commitment to Jeffco’s student artists
January 13, 2012, Lakewood, CO ~ When budget cuts threatened to end the 40-year tradition of student art shows in Jeffco Public Schools, The Jefferson Foundation and its supporters committed more than $17,000 annually to keep the shows alive. Now in its third year of funding four district-wide shows, the Foundation says saving the shows was one of the best decisions it ever made.
“Jeffco schools have a reputation for excellence with regard to the arts in education,” said Katie Tiernan, the Foundation’s executive director. “The arts help students develop better planning and reasoning abilities, help them connect diverse subjects, and help them become the kind of critical thinkers they need to be in the 21st Century.”
This year of art shows begins with The Jefferson Foundation 2012 Equity and Excellence Art Exhibit, with multimedia artwork highlighting cultural and social diversity. The show includes work from all grade levels. The public is invited to an opening reception from 5 p.m. to 7 p.m. on Friday, February 3rd at the Jeffco Public Schools Education Center, 1829 Denver West Drive, #27, Golden, CO, 80401. The Arvada High School String Quartet will perform at the show opening. The show will be open to the public through April 3rd.
“The public exhibition aspect of the art shows is really important to our students. It shows them that we want them to share with their community their talents and points of view,” Tiernan said, “and that we value the effort they put into mastering the visual arts.”
The Equity and Excellence Exhibit is coordinated by Aimee Pickar, art teacher at Swanson Elementary School in Arvada, and Phyllis Bubeck, art teacher at Wayne Carle Middle School in Westminster. “The Equity and Excellence Exhibit has been an annual tradition in Jeffco for the past decade,” said Pickar. “This year, 38 schools will be displaying student art in many different media.”
The Jefferson Foundation Elementary School, Middle School and High School Art Shows will follow this spring. The Jefferson Foundation gratefully acknowledges the support of FirstBank, Kaiser Permanente, and the Betty and Joe Wetherbee Arts and Music Fund which all contributed to make this year’s shows possible.
Photo 1: Conifer High School’s Kit Jarvinen’s photograph won the “Best of Show” honors at the 2011 Jefferson Foundation Equity and Excellence Art Show.
For more information contact Anton Delgado 303-982-2212
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