McGee joins Arts Center staff

Wednesday, March 31, 2010

— John McGee, elementary art teacher for Pea Ridge, has been hired by the Arts Center of the Ozarks as a summer arts instructor at the main facility in downtown Springdale.

At the annual “Celebrate Art” elementary art competition recently at the ACO, Pea Ridge elementary students claimed 25 percent of the awards presented in the kindergarten through 8th grade exhibition. Lorena Razuri, a second-grade student, captured honors as third best overall competing against students through 8th grade.

Visual arts director Leslie Callison was impressed with the 36 Pea Ridge student artworks submitted by McGee in late February.

Callison shortly afterward interviewed McGee and a schedule was arranged for McGee to teach classes in Springdale beginning the first week of June and through the end of July.

“You can see the students’ pride and energy that they put into their art,” Callison said, “and I can tell that art holds an important place in the Pea Ridge community.”

McGee said: “I think a very large contributing factor that helps the students to do so well in competition is their support from home and community. The Web site (www.artsonia.

com/pearidge2) that has our kids’ art on display has tabulated over 120,000 visitors in just our first full year of having a presence on the Internet.

“To gain a proper perspective, we are now the second most visited elementary/secondary school art gallery in the state, behind Bald Knob’s gallery which has had 152,000 visitors. Bald Knob has taken five years to get to that level,” McGee said.

“Just like in sporting programs or other similar activities, kids always do better when they know their folks care,” McGee said.

Summer class schedules at the ACO in Springdale will be posted on the ACO Web site - www.artscenteroftheozarks.org - in April.

McGee’s classes will be for all ages and will chiefly focus on painting.

School, Pages 8 on 03/31/2010