Monmouth Arts

For Immediate Release
April 27th, 2010 Media Contact:
Mary Eileen Fouratt
732-212-1890
mef@monmoutharts.org

Monmouth County Arts Council Announces the Arts Education Awards (Red Bank, NJ) The Monmouth County Arts Council announces the Arts Education Awards to be held at Two River Theater Company, Bridge Street, Red Bank, on Monday May 17, 2010 from 6-8:00 pm. An annual event, this is an exciting evening for students, parents, teachers and community arts supporters to come together to acknowledge the power of art education and to honor the awardees. The Monmouth County Arts Council established the Arts Education Awards to recognize and celebrate Leaders in Arts Education, Community Arts Education Leaders and Community Champions of the Arts, tho se individuals and organizations who support the council's mission of "enriching the community by inspiring and fostering the arts." This year, one Leader in Arts Education is Mychelle Kendrick, visual arts teacher, Wall High School, who is an educator, creator and dynamic promoter/organizer/motivator for all of the arts at Wall High School. She has created an atmosphere of art learning in her classroom for all students all the time. The Visual and Performing Arts Department (VPA) of Red Bank Regional High School drama teacher Joe Russo will also be honored as a Leader in Arts Education for his commitment to excellence in drama. He has been teaching Theater at RBRVPA since 1983 when the program began. Dan Green will receive a Leader in Arts Education as an Arts Administrator as Supervisor of the innovative Fine and Performing Arts Center (FPAC) of Freehold Regional School District, at Howell High School. The FPAC program includes acting, dance and entertainment technology and celebrated its 25th anniversary last year. One Community Champion of the Arts is Monmouth University in recognition of its support to revitalize the State Teen Arts Festival, and especially the efforts of President Gaffney in bringing the festival to Monmouth University the last week of May. The second Community Champion of the Arts is New Jersey Natural Gas for their long time support of the Monmouth County Teen Arts Festival.
The third award category is Community Arts Education Leaders. A collaboration between VSA New Jersey and ARC of Monmouth County, Red Horse Gallery, offers "life long learning in the arts for people with disabilities" and will be honored as a Community Arts Education Leader for its ongoing educational programs and gallery opportunities in the arts. The Two River Theater Company's education programs, led by Kate Cordaro, Director of Arts Education, will receive recognition for a program that "embraces the power of creativity with the philosophy that art changes lives". The Arts Education Awards reception will highlight several talented students in visual arts, musical arts and theater from the county Teen Arts Festival. For more information, contact Sandy Taylor at sbt@monmoutharts.org . To purchase tickets for the event, please contact Lisa Marie, lm@monmoutharts.org or call 732 212 1890 x 1. Adult tickets are $20, student tickets are $5, benefit Art Education programs at MCAC, and include a 6 month membership to the council. Monmouth County Arts Council's programs are made possible through funding from the Monmouth County Board of Chosen Freeholders, through the County Historical Commission, and the New Jersey State Council on the Arts/Department of State, a partner agency of the National Endowment of the Arts.