Artist patron Joe Fafard and a group of Jr. High students proudly posed
for a newspaper photo op. during a recent sculpture program

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THE ARTISTS FOR KIDS TRUST was established in 1989 through a generous partnership among some of Canada's finest artists and the North Vancouver School District. Its mission, through the sale of original prints created by its artist patrons, is to build an art education legacy for the children of British Columbia. The Artists For Kids Gallery is home to a stunning collection of work created by its patrons. Artists For Kids provides a variety of art enrichment program opportunities for thousands of students of all ages each year including the popular Paradise Valley Summer School of Visual Art.

The primary objectives of the Artists For Kids Trust are to:

• Provide a variety of Fine Arts enrichment opportunities for learners in North Vancouver schools
• Provide a variety of Fine Arts enrichment opportunities for learners in the community at large
• Provide scholarships to graduating students from North Vancouver Schools
• Acquire for the community, a permanent collections of contemporary art created by premmiere Canadian artists
• To raise funds for the Artists For Kids Trust's school and community programs
• To establish and administer a legacy fund to provide permanent enrichment opportunities for students

A North Vancouver School Board initiative in support of visual arts programs for students has been awarded the third Minister’s Award for School Board Excellence.

The Artists for Kids Trust is an innovative and visionary concept created in 1989 by the North Vancouver board and celebrated Canadian artists Bill Reid, Jack Shadbolt and Gordon Smith . The concept is to purchase works of art from Canada’s foremost visual artists and produce limited-edition, original prints that are sold to raise funds for visual art enrichment programs in schools and in the community.

Since 1989, 28 outstanding contemporary Canadian artists from every region of the country have joined the three founding artist patrons as partners with the school board in the Artists for Kids Trust. The $10,000 award, sponsored by the Document Company Xerox and organized by the BC School Trustees Association, recognizes the innovative school board practices focused on student achievement. Education Minister Christy Clark recently presented the award at BCSTA’s Trustees Academy in Vancouver, BC.

"In competing for this award, British Columbia’s school boards demonstrate powerful ideas and practices for enhancing student success, which can be shared with the public and educators across the province and beyond," BCSTA President Gordon Comeau said. "This is a remarkable opportunity to showcase local success stories, to highlight the role of school boards in student success, and to engage local communities in public education by asking them to share in the important work of their schools."

In BC, previous awards have gone to the Maple Ridge-Pitt Meadows School Board for its Early Literacy Intervention Program, and the Vancouver School Board for its Inner City Schools Project.