UTAH PTA AWARDS ARTS GRANTS TO TEN SCHOOLS

Utah PTA Awards Arts Grants to Ten Schools Utah PTA Arts Grants have been awarded to ten Utah schools and their Parent Teacher Associations. Each PTA will receive $500 for their project. The grants were made possible by a generous $5,000 donation from Beverly Taylor Sorenson. PTA/Schools applying for the grant were required to provide matching funds from other sources. Four Schools in Alpine District will receive the grant. Foothill Elementary in Orem will provide “Art in Action”, where guest artists will teach children about careers in art while sharing their artistic talent. Rocky Mountain Elementary in Lindon will purchase art supplies and bring in performance groups from BYU and high schools and have a poetry week. Ridgeline Elementary in Highland will partner with the Springville Museum of Art. Oak Canyon Jr. High in Lindon will have dance competitions patterned after the popular TV show, “So You Think You Can Dance”. Three schools in Canyons District are grant recipients. Altara Elementary in Sandy, and Draper Elementary will each provide “Art Through the Ages”, a creative combination of art and history. Quail Hollow Elementary in Sandy will provide “The Great Artist Program”, which includes information about great artists combined with an art project in the style of the artist. Two schools from Granite District were awarded the grant. Cottonwood Elementary in Holladay will put on a school musical. Millcreek Elementary will study Native American Art and have an Art Festival. Weber District’s Green Acres Elementary in Ogden, will use the grant money to sponsor field trips to the Eccles Art Center. The grant winners were chosen from a list of criteria, which included creativity and innovation, matching funds, and involving the most students possible with a major contribution by the PTA in the project. We appreciate those PTAs for taking the time to apply for the grant and we encourage all PTAs to apply. We hope to receive applications next year from everywhere in Utah. Including education in the Arts in a child’s education has proven very beneficial and facilitates learning. We appreciate parent groups in all schools who volunteer to bring the Arts to children, when funding will not allow the school to provide it. We appreciate Beverly Taylor Sorenson for her generous donation and wish to invite any individual or business who would like to help bring the Arts to the classroom, to please donate by contacting the Utah PTA at 801-261-3100. Congratulations to this year’s Utah PTA Arts Grant Winners!