Along with an annual art contest, the program makes a resource and curriculum guide available to teachers interested in integrating the visual and language arts. Green, Gail Weinsheimer of Tyndall Elementary School, Mary Sheesley of Tommy Smith Elementary School and Kimberly Hudson of the Northwest Florida Visual Arts Center led a Dream Makers workshop at the Florida Art Educators Association conference in Tampa this year. The foursome is now coordinating the Dream Makers program in the Bay District Schools system, and is preparing the county for its duties as host of the contest's Southeastern Region. Bay County teachers were introduced to the Dream Makers curriculum guide during a workshop at the Visual Arts Center on Thursday. Vicky Ross, who teaches at Callaway Elementary School, conjured a tropical setting for her model bear.
Volcanoes explode and flowers grow tall.
Murray Shipes, a teacher at Waller Elementary School, created an underwater mountain for fish, sharks and an octopus. I attended a workshop to study the water systems of this area, and I relate that to my art,'' Shipes said. It was a unique Christmas for me. In March, a jury of local teachers and artists will select 80 pieces of student artwork to represent the Southeastern Region in the national exhibit. D.C. Artwork will be chosen with an eye toward presenting a variety of styles and media, Green said, and as much as 15 percent of the chosen work can be from students in Bay and surrounding counties.