To the editor:
"Look, Mom! My artwork is on display at a museum!"
What a wonderful exclamation for a parent to hear.
On Wednesday, March 30, the Salem Education Foundation saw its mission come to life in the Atrium, Ideas Studio, and Arts and Nature Center at the Peabody Essex Museum.
For two hours, hundreds of children and their families learned about the major Pop Art artists through both traditional and interactive art displays created by Salem's elementary schoolchildren. And in the end, Haven From Hunger received hundreds of cans and dollars for their food pantry.
This collaborative grant, dreamed up by Paige Covello from Horace Mann and Mary Tuttle from Bentley, and executed by all the elementary school art specialists and their students, was living proof of the power of collaboration and community involvement in our schools.
The Salem Education Foundation takes great pride in the support we receive from the local community to advance academic outcomes for Salem's students. Since 1996, we have funded nearly $450,000 for innovative projects that enhance the public school curriculum.
The districtwide collaborative art event displayed not just one but two examples of the types of activities we fund. With the addition of the Fresh Trash performers from Collins Middle School, two projects funded through SEF were on display.
When originally conceived, using the space at PEM was but a dream. Through the hard work of Janey Winchell and Gavin Andrews at the PEM and Principal Kevin Andrews at Horace Mann, it became a reality.
We are grateful to the PEM, to our teachers and principals and to the hundreds of parents and caregivers who came out in support of their children. We are making real for our kids the importance of exploring culture through human expression and instilling a love of learning and good citizenship.
This is but one example of how we can bring our community's rich assets closer to our schoolchildren and our schools' successes closer to our community.
We thank all those involved and look forward to strengthening both this partnership and building more.
Sarah Morrill
President
Salem Education Foundation
Salem
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