Grant Testimonial – Jason Blair

The Dublin Education Foundation played a crucial role in our school’s artist residency. Utilizing funds through the DEF, we were able to collaborate with Columbus Based artists Stephanie Rond and April Sunami. 

The focus of this collaboration was on creating positive disruptions and empowering students to find their voice and instill a sense of agency in every child. We were fortunate to engage in many unique experiences to cultivate student empowerment through the arts. We were able to utilize the talents of Stephanie and April, as well as the dance group Transit Arts. The students created many artifacts to celebrate this collaboration as well. 

A large mural adorns the hallway of Eli Pinney Elementary school, titled Hopes and Dreams. It is filled with whimsical bubbles that hold the precious hopes and dreams of the children of Eli Pinney. The collaboration also featured a Tiny House of Kindness in the form of an old dollhouse that was repurposed into an exhibition space for students. Each month students curated a different exhibit about kindness, connection, empathy and compassion. Tiny artworks filled the space and invited other students to take a peak and see all the ways they might grow these essential capacities as well.

Now that the residency has ended, there are many ways it still continues today. The mural is a constant reminder to tread lightly as the school is filled with the hopes and dreams of the children that walk the hallways of Eli Pinney. The Tiny House of Kindness is an active exhibition space where students regularly exhibit works that seek to empower and illuminate positivity in a myriad of ways. This grant was a gift on many levels. It enabled us to provide resources, experts, and the time needed to create a meaningful experience that was both transformational and empowering. 

We are so thankful to the Dublin Education Foundation for providing support so that our students may engage in experiences that help them develop mind, their heart and their hands.