COUNTYWIDE : Artists in Schools Program to Expand

An award-winning program that brings local artists into Ventura classrooms is being expanded to include elementary schools across the county, the director said.

The program, called Artists in the Classroom, has allowed elementary students in the Ventura Unified School District to learn fine-arts skills from professionals on a weekly basis.

Program Director Brian Bemel said inquiries from other districts across the county prompted the expansion.

“There seems to be a lot of interest in the program,” Bemel said. “We’re going to create a bank of artists we can count on as the demand increases across the county.”

Artists in the Classroom is funded jointly by Ventura Unified, the Ventura Arts Council and the Ventura Parks and Recreation Commission, Bemel said.

Artists receive $250 stipends for each residency stint, which consists of eight weekly 45-minute sessions, and $50 for supplies, Bemel said.

The expansion will occur only if the other districts are able to find their own sources of funding, Bemel said.

“We’re not going to be able to go out and make it happen for them.

These other districts are going to have to go out and build their own base of support.”

Interested artists should submit resumes and residency proposals to Artists in the Classroom, in care of the Ventura County superintendent of schools.