What's New(s)!
Newsletter Summer 2008
Greetings from the Vermont Independent School of the Arts! Winter has finally!! ended and we are poised to enjoy our wonderful Vermont spring and summer.
We had a fabulous Spring Term Concert on May 20th. Private music instructors Paul Rivers, Jessica Mellott, Beth Telford, and Barbara Smith featured some of their students performing solos, duets and small ensembles. Piano instructor Jessica Mellott was presented with a bouquet of flowers in appreciation of her tenure at VTISA. She will be leaving in July to pursue her Masters Degree in Piano Pedagogy. The evening culminated with performances by the Steel Drum Ensembles directed by Scott Paulson. Thanks to all who attended and helped in making the evening a big success for our students.
As we approach the summer solstice, The Vermont Independent School of the Arts is preparing to have our handicap lift installed. We have begun our fundraising to match the $15,747.00 grant that we received from the Vermont Arts Council. We have to date raised $11,400.00. If you would like to make a donation to our matching funds please send a check to VTISA at PO Box 216, Sharon, VT 05065 and Thank You very much! We are enormously pleased that the Seven Stars Center will now be accessible to all in our community. Work on this project will begin mid-June and we expect it to take about a month. We will be doing the final finish work and painting ourselves. Anyone good with a brush who would like to help, give us a call!
Our classes will continue as scheduled, we have 2 new offerings this Summer: Acting Fundamentals and Introduction to Belly Dancing. Tai Chi and Qigong continue on Saturday mornings and Japanese Calligraphy and Brush Painting on Tuesday afternoons. Chorus and Circle Songs will run the end of July into August. Take a look at our ¡∫Programs¡Ö for more details.
In addition to our classes and workshops, private lessons in woodwinds, guitar, Cape Breton Style fiddle and piano are offered, as well as our core steel drum ensembles. We hope you will visit the Seven Stars, sign up for a class or for private lessons, or join an ensemble!
If you would like to be added to our mailing list, please call 802-763-2334 and leave your name and address, or e-mail us at info@vtisa.org.
We value your comments and suggestions! Please let us know if you have ideas for offerings, would like to get involved with programming or with one of our ongoing building projects, or would just like more information. We hope you will come to see VTISA and the Seven Stars Center as a vital resource for the people of Sharon and the surrounding communities.
Spring Swing Fling!!
Our first anual swing dance and silent auction held on April fourth was a BIG success thanks to all the wonerfull people who donated items and those who came and bid while having a great time dancing to the fabulous
East Bay Jazz Ensemble!
We raised over $2000 to re-establish our scholarship fund.
This fund enables those wishing to participate in one of our VTISA classes, to receive partial tuition assistance if needed. This past fall we supported a handful of students needing help. By re-establishing our scholarship fund we will be able to assist more students without diminishing our operating funds.
We plan to make this an annual spring event!
Thanks to the Anne Slade Frey Charitable Trust for making this event possible.
VTISA gets grant from VT Arts Council
Pictured: State representatives Jim Masland and Margaret Cheney, Gov Jim Douglas, Barbara Smith & Scott Paulson from VTISA, and Vermont Arts Council Executive director Alex Aldrich
On Friday, January 11th, the Vermont Arts Council announced their Cultural Facilities Grant recipients for 2008. Scott Paulson and Barbara Smith from Vermont Independent School of the Arts were on hand to accept a $15,747 grant to fund the installation of an elevator in their space in Sharon. All grants awarded from the Vermont Arts Council are matching grants. Since acquiring the 7 Stars property in Sharon one year ago, Board members at VTISA have been busy pinpointing building and program needs. "We have always known to make this building fully accessible to the public that handicap accessibility issues would need to be addressed," said Scott Paulson, founder and Artistic Director of VTISA. "We are extremely grateful to Board member Bob Johnston for putting so much time and effort into this grant project. It wouldn't have happened without him!" VTISA now has the task of raising the matching $15,747 to complete the project. Paulson hopes to see construction start this June. For more information about this project, or to offer assistance for VTISA to reach their goal, call 802-763-2334, email info@vtisa.org, or log onto www.vtisa.org.
Pictures of VTISA's very successful workshop series are now on display at the school, as well as calligraphy from Ginger Armstrong's workshop class. Come to one of our events and see what renovations have taken place since VTISA purchased the property one year ago, and preview plans for future renovations.
Brochures are available for our next term, which will feature new music, dance, and art offerings. Check on our Programs page to view our offerings.
For information about these events or programs at VTISA, please call 802-763-2334, or email at info@vtisa.org.
The Seven Stars Center has an amazing history. Built in the mid-nineteenth century on the Beaver Meadow Road, it was a Baptist Church for many years. In 1910, when the congregation had dwindled, the building was disassembled and moved to its present location, where it has served
as a Grange Hall, a Universalist Church, and a venue for community theater. The bell and clock in the tower are among the last remaining examples in Vermont of antique clockworks.
Restoration of the clock, which presently is not functional, is one of VTISA's future projects.
Purchase of the Center would not have happened without the hard work and dedication of our Board. In April, 2007, a wonderful group of volunteers painted the performance hall and created a vestibule in the front entryway. A Building Committee was formed to determine methods of meeting our needs, which include handicap accessibility, new windows, soundproofing, and safety items such as modernized doors. We are in the process of applying for grants and private funding to provide resources for these improvements, and hope to move forward with several projects during 2008.
We hope you will visit the Seven Stars, sign up for a class or for private lessons, or join an ensemble! Our Winter/Spring term begins in January, and there are many new offerings.
If you would like to be added to our mailing list, please call 802-763-2334 and leave your name and address, or e-mail us at info@vtisa.org.
We value your comments and suggestions! Please let us know if you have ideas for offerings, would like to get involved with programming or with one of our ongoing building projects, or would just like more information. We hope you will come to see VTISA and the Seven Stars Center as vital resources for the people of Sharon and the surrounding communities.
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