Chapel Hill elementary school raises $7,000 for arts program

Rashkis Elementary School raised about $7,000 for the North Carolina Arts in Action program in a fundraiser Friday night.

All of the money earned from the eighth annual Family Dance Night and Silent Auction will go toward the school’s dance program.

Michelle Wood, the program’s liaison and the school’s physical education teacher, said about 500 people attended the event.

Wood said the money will fund the program during this school year and until the middle of the 2013-14 year.

The fundraiser included a dance performance by the fourth-graders and a silent auction for the parents in the school’s gymnasium.

There were more than 80 items up for auction, including paintings by the students and a basketball signed by Roy Williams.

The Arts in Action program exists in several states and was founded by Jacques d’Amboise, who also founded the National Dance Institute of New York.

Shirley Berger founded the N.C. affiliate of the program in 2006 at Rashkis Elementary.

“(D’Amboise) decided that fourth grade was able to handle the physical demands,” said Helen Maxwell, a fourth-grade teacher at Rashkis Elementary.

“It’s a special thing for this particular grade level.”

The program is now part of other schools in Durham, Wake and Orange counties. It is completely free for all students and funded by donations.

For 16 weeks out of every year, fourth-graders participate in one-hour weekly classes.

They dance to live music with the goal of gaining self-confidence and becoming familiar with different art forms. At the end, the students put on a performance for the school and community.

“Every year has a different theme,” Wood said. “This year’s is ‘Healthy Bodies, Healthy Minds.’”

This year, students recreated paintings by Vincent van Gogh.

“I just like being connected to what Vincent van Gogh did and get to do what he did,” said Natalie, a fourth grader at Rashkis.

The fourth grade painted Van Gogh’s “Road with Men Walking, Carriage, Cypress, Star, and Crescent Moon.”

“I liked the colors of the weeds that we made,” said Richard, one of Natalie’s classmates.

“It was a good combination of light and dark. It looked pretty real once it was painted.”

Maxwell, Natalie and Richard’s teacher, said the children enjoy the program and fundraiser.

“The goal is to have the students gain a deeper appreciation of dance, to have healthier bodies and minds, but mostly to have lots and lots of fun.”

Contact the desk editor at arts@dailytarheel.com.