GRANTS • GRANTS • GRANTS
Where the funds raised go:
Sonoma Valley School District
& Community Grants for the
2023-2024 School Year
Our 2024-2025 grants will be awarded soon. Below is a summary of the 2023-2024 grants awarded.
Our 2023 Sonoma Plein Air Festival was a huge success thanks to the generosity of our wonderful artists, patrons, donors, volunteers and art buyers. With the over $175,000 raised, the Foundation was able to fund grant requests for arts education for many Sonoma Valley public schools plus community partners Art Escape, Sonoma Arts Guild, Boys & Girls Clubs of Sonoma Valley, La Luz Center, Sonoma Community Center and Sonoma Valley Museum of Art.
Are you a Sonoma Valley teacher or organization interested in applying for a grant for the first time to help forward your arts education plans for your students? Connect with us HERE.
The Sonoma Plein Air Foundation (SPAF) is thrilled to announce the following 2023-2024 school year grants to local schools and organizations, in alphabetical order:
Altimira and Adele Harrison Middle Schools
SPAF Grants provide all the supplies needed for the visual arts education programs and projects offered by Art Teacher, Cheryl Coldiron for the 2023-2024 school year at both of Sonoma Valley's Middle Schools. Almost 200 students are served at the two schools under the instruction of Ms. Coldiron.
These visual arts programs include an introduction to art history and art appreciation, where students learn to observe, analyze and interpret. All Middle School art lessons aim to develop hands-on skills and visual literacy. The grants also enable student visits to art museums beyond Sonoma Valley to expand their perspective and appreciation for a variety of art forms. They develop their own creativity and hand skills, an understanding of beauty and proportion, and experience opportunity for self expression.
SPAF Grants provide all the supplies needed for the visual arts education programs and projects offered by Art Teacher, Cheryl Coldiron for the 2023-2024 school year at both of Sonoma Valley's Middle Schools. Almost 200 students are served at the two schools under the instruction of Ms. Coldiron.
These visual arts programs include an introduction to art history and art appreciation, where students learn to observe, analyze and interpret. All Middle School art lessons aim to develop hands-on skills and visual literacy. The grants also enable student visits to art museums beyond Sonoma Valley to expand their perspective and appreciation for a variety of art forms. They develop their own creativity and hand skills, an understanding of beauty and proportion, and experience opportunity for self expression.
Middle School works from Ms. Coldiron's Leather Tooling project
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"Overall, this program creates avenues for students to use their hands, use the artistic side of their brains, have a calm place to relax and express themselves in different modalities and have opportunities for experiences that they may not normally have. Thank you Plein Air for the opportunity to continue to provide this amazing experience for kids! |
Art Escape
Art Escape's grant supports four different art programs: one for 2nd-8th graders from all Sonoma Valley schools, one for Sonoma teens and two for students specifically at El Verano and Flowery Elementary schools:
- The Friday After School Art program started in 2015 and attendance has grown over the years. Participants have the opportunity to experience a variety of art projects while meeting and interacting with students from across the Valley.
- Art in the City for Teens provides several Sonoma teens an opportunity to visit art venues in SF such as the Palace of the Legion of Honor.
From teens who participated:
"It was my first time going to the city and now I know how different it is from Sonoma!"
"The trip was really fun and informative regarding art and art history."
"I loved it because of all of the different types of art we got to see." - The El Verano School program continues the vision of former Principal Maite Iturri for a permanent art-forward beautification of the school's courtyard, with the installation of mosaics providing students exposure to Mexican culture and art, reflecting Mexican traditions and heritage.
- The Flowery School program for grades 3-5 will attend afterschool art classes at Art Escape during the school year. This ongoing partnership in arts education introduces students to a variety of art mediums and techniques; projects are often related to current holidays so students also learn about other cultures and customs.
Arts Guild of Sonoma
The Arts Guild of Sonoma's Grant enables them to hold a student art show featuring public high and middle school students in the spring of 2024. The Arts Guild provides materials, hangs the paintings, displays the works for 30 days and staffs the gallery at no charge to students or their teachers. Students, their families and the Sonoma Valley community can then enjoy viewing these 'masterpieces'!
The Arts Guild of Sonoma's Grant enables them to hold a student art show featuring public high and middle school students in the spring of 2024. The Arts Guild provides materials, hangs the paintings, displays the works for 30 days and staffs the gallery at no charge to students or their teachers. Students, their families and the Sonoma Valley community can then enjoy viewing these 'masterpieces'!
Boys & Girls Club of Sonoma Valley
With their Grant, the new Mental Health Services group will be able to explore the addition of Art Therapy as a tool for supporting the mental health of young children. Funds will be used to provide the supplies needed to provide art therapy using various art forms such as drawing and painting.
With their Grant, the new Mental Health Services group will be able to explore the addition of Art Therapy as a tool for supporting the mental health of young children. Funds will be used to provide the supplies needed to provide art therapy using various art forms such as drawing and painting.
Creekside High School
Creekside High School's Grant supports three programs:
Creekside High School's Grant supports three programs:
- The art supplies needed for their Art Elective classes
- Raku Clay programs
- A field trip to a San Francisco museum.
Kenwood School/Kenwood Education Foundation
First year a Grant recipient. This Grant supports hands-on art supplies, such as: various mediums, paints, brushes, clay and books to support art education for Kenwood School students in grades K-6. Have fun Kenwood students!!
First year a Grant recipient. This Grant supports hands-on art supplies, such as: various mediums, paints, brushes, clay and books to support art education for Kenwood School students in grades K-6. Have fun Kenwood students!!
La Luz Center
In their first year as a Grant recipient, La Luz Center targets most of their grant to support the Avenue Artistica & Film Camp which are part of their Casa de la Cultura initiative launched in 2021. These 2 activities will take place in the summer of 2024 to continue building and engaging Sonoma Valley youth residents. Additionally, a portion of the grant will the Creative Circle which is a monthly meeting of parents & children at which hands on art projects are completed. Emphasis is on the importance of art in regards to mental health.
In their first year as a Grant recipient, La Luz Center targets most of their grant to support the Avenue Artistica & Film Camp which are part of their Casa de la Cultura initiative launched in 2021. These 2 activities will take place in the summer of 2024 to continue building and engaging Sonoma Valley youth residents. Additionally, a portion of the grant will the Creative Circle which is a monthly meeting of parents & children at which hands on art projects are completed. Emphasis is on the importance of art in regards to mental health.
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Sassarini Elementary School
Sassarini School's 2023-2024 Grant supports the operation of the Maker Lab, a space designed for thriving creativity. Team work, a growth mindset and creativity development is embedded in each lesson and emphasized throughout the school year, Whether it's students building robots or a cardboard working arcade, imagination is going full blast here! Sonoma Charter School
This year's Grant funds the acquisition of supplies to support the expansion of the ceramics program, the printmaking program and the sewing studio for the Sonoma Charter School students (grades TK thru 8th). |
Imagination at the Sassarini Maker Lab in action!
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Sonoma Community Center
With their SPAF Grant, the Sonoma Community Center intends to provide a range of opportunities for the youth of Sonoma Valley to engage in creative & educational art activities:
With their SPAF Grant, the Sonoma Community Center intends to provide a range of opportunities for the youth of Sonoma Valley to engage in creative & educational art activities:
- Wednesday Afterschool Program will be offered weekly for children in grades K thru 8th. The arts and wellness program includes art classes, a movement session and a culinary class.
- The Creative Summer Camps program is a series of 1 or 2 week art camps for youth ages 6-17. The camps are taught by professional teaching artists and offer high-quality arts activities in a variety of creative disciplines. Curricula responds to state visual arts standards and helps participants deepen their understanding of social, cultural and historic contexts through the exploration of artistic ideas and works.
- A portion of the grant funds Art at the Market which offers free art activities at the Tuesday Night Farmers' Market. For the 6th year, SCC staff will provide instruction, tools, materials & space for fun and fulfilling hands-on art activities.
- In conjunction with the SV Mentoring Alliance and Creekside High School, SCC will conduct both Art classes and Trashion Fashion design classes. In Trashion Fashion's structured afterschool activity, students learn the basics of costume design using recycled materials and loads of imagination to and design and even model a 'trashion fashion' costume on the runway at the Center's annual Trashion Fashion Show.
Beautiful student art on display at the annual end-of-year SVHS Art Show. Works span a range of medium including photography, graphic design, ceramics, painting, drawing, printmaking and metal jewelry making.
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Sonoma Valley High School
This year's Grant to SVHS provides the amazing multi-disciplinary team of Art Program teachers Aaron Anderson, Andy Mitchell, Renate Kuprian, Monica Mueller and Media Arts Program teacher, Peter Hansen with an essential range of supplies and equipment to support exciting hands-on experiences for their students learning 3-D Design, Drawing & Painting, Photography, Digital Graphic Design and Video Production. These funds help support the vision of these dedicated teachers in providing creativity development and a vibrant arts education experience for SVHS students.
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From SVHS Teachers:
"Art keeps kids in school; too often young adults get lost in this world they do not feel a part of. In Art Class, students find their voices, new skills, passions, and inspiration...Our students are problem solvers, creative and our world's modern innovators."
—Aaron Anderson, Art/Art Design
"Thanks to Plein Air Foundation, teachers can purchase quality materials enriching students' art experience. Students really get excited when they see the different media they can explore with, and for this we are truly grateful."
—Renate Kuprian, Art/Art II
"Participating in art classes helps students learn who they are and to see the world through the eyes of others...They get to dream, inspire and create. As we become more of a visual society, the arts are now more important than ever."
—Andy Mitchell, Photography & Graphic Design
"Students are provided with great opportunities to learn, explore and express themselves through the Plein Air grant. We are able to get supplies in a variety of mediums so everyone can try multiple modalities, and find their niche."
—Monica Mueller, 3D Design: Ceramics/Art
Sonoma Valley Museum of Art
This year's Grant to the Sonoma Valley Museum of Art supports several pilot programs for their Re-imagining Art Education under development:
This year's Grant to the Sonoma Valley Museum of Art supports several pilot programs for their Re-imagining Art Education under development:
- An expansion of the Family Make-in events
- Hands-on experience days in the gallery & visual art studio
- Exploring studio programming for teens
Woodland Star Charter School
The Woodland Star School's SPAF Grant provides funds to support the Waldorf approach to art education integration across all classes for students in grades K-8. The emphasis is on the graphic arts/drawing & painting and also extends into sculpting and the fiber arts.
The Woodland Star School's SPAF Grant provides funds to support the Waldorf approach to art education integration across all classes for students in grades K-8. The emphasis is on the graphic arts/drawing & painting and also extends into sculpting and the fiber arts.
