Arkport Superintendent, William Locke, receives ARTS Partnership Award!

William Locke, the Superintendent of the Arkport Central School District and Fine Arts Liaison for the GST BOCES Superintendent's Advisory Council was honored as the recipient of an ARTS Partnership Award through The ARTS of the Southern Finger Lakes at the International Motor Racing Research Center in Watkins Glen, NY, on May 21st.

As stated in a Press Release from ARTS of the Southern Finger Lakes:

The ARTS Council of the Southern Finger Lakes is proud to recognize this year's recipients of The ARTS' Annual ARTS Partnership Awards, which recognize individuals, artists, volunteers, schools, organizations and businesses that significantly contribute to the region's arts and cultural life.

"This year's ARTS Partnership Award recipients are forces of nature in the region's arts and culture scene," said Ginnie Lupi, The ARTS' director, "their passion is inspirational and we're indebted to them for all they do." This year's recipients are:

William Locke, Superintendent, Arkport Central School District, for creating stellar arts programming for the schools in his district and for being an invincible advocate for the arts in the Arkport/Hornell region in Steuben County. Locke is an actor and vocalist who has performed in many plays and musical events. He was instrumental in the creation of the Hornell Rotary Club Summer Musical Program and serves as an adjudicator for the Rochester Broadway Theatre League.

"Mr. Locke's passion for the arts and education inspires many students to participate in the arts either as perceivers or makers - performers, musicians and visual artists."

Lynne Rusinko, Arts Advocate, of Elmira, NY, also received an award for her tireless commitment, outstanding contribution and dedication to artists and organizations in her community. Ms. Rusinko's enthusiasm, creativity, passion and skills have helped the arts thrive throughout the region. She has volunteered countless hours to the Elmira Open Studio Tour, Steele Memorial Library's Poetry Festival, Community Arts of Elmira, Festival of Women in the Arts, and the Elmira Street Painting Festival.

"Lynne does all of this volunteer work - graciously and quietly - behind the scenes. Lynne Rusinko is a friend to the arts and works for the greater good of all the groups with which she is involved - ensuring the success of each project." - - Kathleen Huddle, Nominator

The ARTS Council of the Southern Finger Lakes presented this year's awards at its Annual Meeting on Thursday, May 21, at 5:30 pm at the International Motor Racing Research Center,

The ARTS Council of the Southern Finger Lakes is the leading arts services and development agency in Chemung, Schuyler and Steuben counties.

To see more pictures from the ceremony and read more about the event, go to the GST BOCES Arts in Education web-page at:

http://www.gstboces.org/iss/artsineducation/willpartnershipaward.htm

The Education staff at the Rockwell Museum talk about Arts in Education

Thanks to the dynamic and dedicated staff at the Rockwell Museum of Western Art, there is always something new and exciting happening at the museum for students in the GST BOCES region to discover! The three women in the photograph above - Education Coordinator, Lori Rajsky; Director of Education, Gigi Alvare; School and Docent Program Manager, Mary Mix - all work in the education department and have a special mission to provide young visitors of the GST BOCES region and beyond with an educational experience they will not be able to forget. They accomplish this through schools tours and special programs which reach out and attract students and their teachers and families from pre-K through high school. Each experience is standards-based arts in education in action through which students develop visual literacy, critical thinking and communication skills during the tours. Curriculum connections are made with writing, listening, speaking, patterns, geometry, math by counting and exploring comparative terms, symbols and mathematical sequencing, light and shadow, animal families, communities, families, career options, history of the Native Americans, U.S. History, Geography.

In the video below, Mary, Gigi and Lori speak about the instrinsic benefits of Arts in Education and how the Rockwell Museum can help students meet NY State mandated standards.

To read more about these tours and the exciting experiences awaiting people of all ages at the museum, check out the GST BOCES web-page http://www.gstboces.org/iss/artsineducation/rockwell2009.htm.