The month of February has shaped up to be a collage of achievements and events at area schools.
Williamsburg Christian Academy announced a new art course, brought in a display from the Virginia Museum of Fine Arts and received an invitation for their orchestra to travel to London. Two local teachers were recognized as top teachers in Coastal Virginia Magazine, and a senior at Walsingham Academy received a standing ovation for his academic achievement. Read on for more in this week’s Get Schooled.
Black History Month at WCA Brings Art Display, Announcement of New Arts Course
Photo courtesy of WCA
As a part of Black History Month at Williamsburg Christian Academy, a traveling art display from the Virginia Museum of Fine Arts made a stop at the academy. It’s called “A New Mosaic” and features photographic reproductions of works by African Artists spanning 200 years.
The exhibit started Feb. 12 for a school assembly and will remain on display throughout the month of February. With the display came an announcement from WCA Head of High School Dianna Lindsay, who serves on the museum’s advisory board, that an advanced placement art history course will be offered at the school next year.
The course will ask students to study 250 key art pieces from ancient to contemporary times through literature, music, film, museum visits and a possible trip abroad. Invitational events for students and parents are also planned.
“Teaching art from a historical perspective is a new way for WCA to expand our commitment to the arts,” Lindsay said. “We recognize that art — like music — is an important and universal language through which we can communicate, teach unity and celebrate diversity.”
Daniel Brause, a 16-year-old senior at Walsingham who received a perfect score on the ACT, received a standing ovation during a school assembly Wednesday for being selected as a National Merit Scholar finalist.
Brause is one of 15,000 students to be named a finalist out of a pool of about 1.5 million students across the country. He will learn in March if he is one of about 8,000 in the nation named as a National Merit Scholar.
The National Merit Scholarship program is a nonprofit competition that recognizes high academic achievement and awards $2,500 to the winners.
Coastal Virginia Mag: 2014 Top Teachers Include York, HRA Instructors
Amy Insley of York High and Valerie Stinson of Hampton Roads Academy both received the 2014 Top Teachers recognition from Virginia Coastal Magazine. This year was the third for the competition, which recognizes outstanding educators.
Insley has been an educator for 14 years and teaches both elementary music and high school theater. Insley is in the process of raising money for the theater department to take her students to Scotland’s Edinburgh Festival Fringe, the largest performing arts festival in the world.
Insley has received the Michael Sullivan Distinguished Service Award and has been nominated for The Kennedy Center/Stephen Sondheim Inspirational Teacher Award.
Stinson has been an educator for 10 years and has taught all subjects in third through fifth grade; reading, world civilizations and English in sixth grade; and geography in seventh grade. She is a founding faculty member of the Hampton Roads Academy’s Lower School and is an assistant field hockey coach.
For more information, visit the 2014 Top Teachers at the magazine’s website.
Photo courtesy of WCA
Student members of Williamsburg Christian Academy’s High School String Orchestra will soon get a chance to perform in England and go sightseeing in France. The orchestra was recently invited to perform in June at the World Strides Heritage Music Festival in London.
The trip will include performances in London cathedrals and museums and a visit to some of the most recognizable attractions in Paris: Eiffel Tower, the Louvre and Notre Dame.
“Working with and learning from professional musicians will validate the students in their own musicianship and inspire them to greater heights,” said WCA Strings Director Carolyn Kluge. “A unifying and life-changing experience, the WSHMF is an opportunity for the students to grow in their gifts and talents as they minister to the people in London via their music.”
