The Pea Ridge Primary/ Intermediate School online art gallery has cinched the number 1 overall ranking in the state of Arkansas.

The gallery is also holding the number 18 overall spot nationally among over 5,000 schools participating across the country in the Artsonia “Just Beyond Imagination” online art competition.

The locally-administered Web site has made a clean sweep of art, fans and visitor participation state awards on the site which was established barely a year ago.

Pea Ridge artists have published over 21,000 works of art this school year, dwarfing the second best total of 10,339 which Bald Knob Lubker Elementary accumulated. Lubker, a six-time overall state champion, placed second behind the Art Hawks in fans (1,583 to 1,530) and visitor participation (2,263 to 1,240) as they finished ahead of Van Buren Parkview, the third place winner.

Among the top 10 schools in fourth was Green County Tech, followed by Jonesboro School of the Arts, Van Buren Rena Elementary, Conway Mattison Elementary, Little Rock Selma School, Ft. Smith Fairview Elementary and Benton Ringgold Elementary.

Not only leading the state in art produced, the Pea Ridge Gallery is also number 1 nationally as they hold a 21,000 to 16,000 edge on second place Jackson (Mo.) Orchard Drive Elementary.

Pea Ridge art teacher John McGee said: “This has been the greatest tool I have ever come across in the 30 odd years I have been teaching. Since going online, my students have been much more productive and excited after seeing their art on the Web.

“One of the greatest things about this activity, is that it elicits community involvement and parental concern. If we produce a million works of art and no one sees it or comments on it, we couldn’t get a highranking. Our parental/community involvement has been incredible. The kind of response we have been getting usually comes from more affluent populous suburban/urban areas like St.

Louis, Chicago and Dallas.

“It is always good to get parents and community involved in the education of our kids, and this has been a great year for that in art,” McGee continued. “The kids have won 34 county, regional and statewide awards just this year and they are scheduled to put on an exhibition at the Gilcrease Museum of Art in Tulsa. A lot of momentum for our success has come from the kids wanting to do well for their parents and to put out something good for their relatives to see.”

Pea Ridge has had more than 137,000 visitors to its Web site since it was christened in March of 2009.

To see the gallery and view this years art (as well as last years) visitors can log on to: www.artsonia.

com/pearidge2.

School, Pages 11 on 05/26/2010