News Release

Art created by 37 students from Chesterfield County Public Schools will be on display Sept. 12 through Nov. 6 at the U.S. Department of Education in Washington, D.C. Chesterfield is the first school division in the nation to exhibit in the Department of Education’s student art exhibition program, which is in its sixth year of existence.

A gathering to celebrate the students and their art is scheduled for 11 a.m. Sept. 25 at the Lyndon Baines Johnson Education Building, 400 Maryland Ave. SW. U.S. Department of Education officials and Chesterfield school officials will join the student artists, parents and teachers at the celebration. Chesterfield County School Board members Marshall Trammell, Dianne Pettitt and Patricia Carpenter and Superintendent Marcus Newsome plan to attend on Sept. 25. The Monacan High School jazz band, directed by Jennifer Ryan, will perform during the event.

“The Human Form in Art” was chosen as the theme of the exhibit because “this is always a fascinating area for artists of all ages to explore and is an important part of our curriculum and the Virginia Standards of Learning,” said Lin Ferrell, Chesterfield’s instructional specialist for visual arts. The art that will be on display was selected from the school system’s 2009 Arts and Sciences Festival.

The U.S. Department of Education regularly exhibits student creations to honor art as an effective path to knowledge, according to Jackye Zimmermann, director of the student art exhibition program. “The works also provide department employees and visitors with both a beautiful environment and the means to be in touch with the department’s principal customers — students. Because we are located in the nation’s capital, in addition to our 2,000 employees who enjoy the artworks daily, the 200 visitors we receive each week will also have the pleasure of seeing the work in our lobby.”

A list of student artists and their art teachers accompanies this news release.
Also attached are photos of some of the art that will be on display:
Jack Rosenberg’s portrait created in tempera paint, Constance Willoughby’s photograph and Yurbin Davila’s mixed media portrait.

Here are the students whose artwork will be displayed at the U.S. Department of Education; their grades and schools are from the 2008-2009 school year, which is when the art was created:

Tyren Cloyd, fifth grade
Yurbin Davila, fifth grade
Chalkley Elementary
Emily Shields, art teacher

Gabrielle Ernesto, fifth grade
Grange Hall Elementary
Kathy Glotz, art teacher

Travis Miller, second grade
Spring Run Elementary
Wanji Lee, art teacher

Taylor Blackwell, first grade
Watkins Elementary
Sarah Matthews, art teacher

Stephanie Fischer, eighth grade
Maxie Williams, eighth grade
Melissa Irvin, eighth grade
Chester Middle
Sheree Zimmerman and Ashley Dowdy, art teachers

Travis Hall, eighth grade
Salem Church Middle
Steve Harris, art teacher

Jenna Nojaim, eighth grade
Alex Ternate, eighth grade
Swift Creek Middle
Barbara Mehrer, art teacher

Jack Rosenberg, eighth grade
Felicia Gater, eighth grade
Tomahawk Creek Middle
Stephanie Walsh, art teacher

Emily Walter, 11th grade
Summers Cleary, ninth grade
Clover Hill High
Meredith Snyder and Amanda Berneche, art teachers

Meagan Abell, 12th grade
Morgan Porter, 12th grade
Wesley Messer, 11th grade
Connor McGurl, 11th grade
Shayne Vanderpool, ninth grade
James River High
Laura Wright, Frank Constanzer and Allison Duvall, art teachers

Alysa Pittman, 11th grade
Derrick Wells, 10th grade
Jeanette Johnson, 10th grade
group project — Abby Hamalainen (12th grade), Presley Hankins (11th grade) and Katherine Wallace (11th grade)
Manchester High
Petie Jackson, Pam Howell and Allen Bayuk, art teachers

Jordan Rogers, 11th grade
Matoaca High
Jenn Myer, art teacher

Jarell Edmonds, 12th grade
Meadowbrook High
Rachel LaRue, art teacher

John Holden, 12th grade
Mary Kathryn Florence, 11th grade
Emma Scarvey, 11th grade
Midlothian High
Barbara Rothenberg, Paul Terrell and Marie O’Kleasky, art teachers

Megan Reilly, 11th grade
Constance Willoughby, 11th grade
Justin Davis, 11th grade
Michelle Hutchison, 11th grade
Jose Mireles, 10th grade
Monacan High
Anne Rieser, Melinda Carson and Connie Russell, art teachers

Megan Hartsoe, 10th grade
Thomas Dale High
Patricia Fairley, art teacher