Arts Grow supports youth in the arts by recognizing middle school students who show exceptional artistic promise or have overcome challenging circumstances to pursue the arts. Nominated by community members, Arts Grow students will benefit from arts outreach opportunities, arts stipends, community recognition, and invitations to special events.

Community members are invited to nominate middle school students with strong interest in the arts to participate in the Arts Grow program. Selected students will receive community recognition for their artistic endeavors, special arts tickets and tours, and more. The goal of this program is two-fold: to raise community awareness of young artistic talent, especially in underserved communities, and also to support the students’ pursuit of the arts by supplying them with extra arts resources, opportunities, contacts and mentors.

Community Arts Education Handbook

Download the PDF of this resource for Charlottesville-Albemarle educators. This handbook is filled with information about arts opportunities for K-12 school groups to take advantage of during the academic year. Some listings offer specific dates of arts performances, while others describe free school tours that can be scheduled, and still others explain learning experiences that artists can provide in your school.

Artists or arts organizations providing programming for school groups can contact info@charlottesvillearts.org to be listed in the next Community Arts Education Handbook.

Arthur C. Greene Rising Star Awards Celebration

Each year, Piedmont Council for the Arts recognizes The Arthur C. Greene Rising Star Youth Incentive Awards. Winners of this award are high school juniors and seniors selected by their teachers for their outstanding talent and promise in the arts. In 2011, for the first time ever, PCA hosted a month-long exhibition honoring the Rising Stars at the CitySpace Gallery. To view a scaled PDF of the exhibition, click here.


The 2011 Rising Star Award recipients are:

Tiffany Ames, Tandem Friends School
Patrick Bond, Monticello High School
Sarah Christensen, The Covenant School
Alex Clayton, St. Anne’s-Belfield School
Alex Funk, Western Albemarle High School
Emily Gardiner, Monticello High School
Anna Gilliam, The Covenant School
Emily Hays, Charlottesville High School
Christen Johnson, Renaissance School
Sarah Knarzer, Albemarle High School
Jack LaViolette, Charlottesville High School
Morgan Munson, Murray High School
Mike Pajewski, Albemarle High School
Paige Rammelkamp, Western Albemarle High School
Zoe Rosner, Charlottesville High School
Abigail Velie, St. Anne’s-Belfield School
Anna Webster, Western Albemarle High School
Claire Wolanski, Monticello High School
Frank Wu, Albemarle High School

Browse Former Rising Stars

The Storyline Project

PCA’s successful Storyline Project continued in 2011 with the theme of nature. The annual collaboration with The Bridge Progressive Arts Initiative, SiteWorks, The Thomas Jefferson Center For the Protection of Free Expression, and Charlottesville Parks & Recreation led students on walks through Charlottesville and encourages them to develop their creativity through the arts. This year, the project led campers on hikes along the Rivanna Trail and again culminated in the design and creation of a chalk mural on the Free Speech Monument downtown. An exhibition celebrating the project and the students’ work was also held at the CitySpace Gallery during the month of September.

Piedmont Council for the Arts, The Bridge PAI, The Thomas Jefferson Center For the Protection of Free Expression, and CCDC collaborated with Pete O’Shea once more to present the StoryLine Project. The 2010 StoryLine engaged Charlottesville Parks & Recreation campers and volunteers in collaborative mural design and storytelling inspired by a walking expedition of the historic Vinegar Hill neighborhood and Downtown Mall. Check out photos from the 2010 project here!

The 2009 Story|Line Project joined local artists and designers with young people (grades 4-6) in the Parks and Recreation Summer Camp to explore and interpret the places where they live. The project centered on a walking expedition of the neighborhoods of downtown Charlottesville, during which participants learned to use close observation and creative expression as a means of understanding spaces, places, and the stories that enrich them. The project culminated with a collaborative mural on the Community Chalkboard. A micro-exhibition to share and celebrate the project took place in August 2009 at the Bridge Progressive Arts Initiative. Check out project photos here.