Nov 2009

Children Art Foundation Forges a Collaborative Agreement with the Elizabeth L. Newman Guild Preschool in New York City.

By Tanapol Pachoei – Executive Director

We are pleased to announce that CAF will begin to provide educational support to the Elizabeth L. Newman Guild Preschool, housed on the Second Floor of the Jewish Guild for the Blind (www.jgb.org), located on 65th Street between Broadway and Central Park West in Manhattan.

The Preschool is a developmental program for children ages 3 to 5 who are blind or visually impaired, most of whom also have motor, hearing, and other disabilities. Classes are designed for 6 to 8 children with special education teachers and assistants. The preschool currently serves 33 children.

Children Art Foundation will recruit and provide professional established artists to volunteer their time spending two hours a week shifts on site at the preschool throughout the school year. CAF’s Visiting Artists will serve as Teaching Assistants (T.A.’s), working collaboratively with the preschool’s Art Therapist (Ms. Sarah Valeri) to enhance art education services. CAF’s T.A.’s will meet individually and with groups of students under the guidance of the Art Therapist, assisting the students to create art projects that will ultimately help develop the children’s overall skills and abilities.

CAF has committed to organize and publicize “Gallery Shows” to showcase the Guild School children’s art projects. These will take place in established art galleries in NYC.

Currently, CAF artists assisting in this collaborative teaching endeavor include Anna Kuyumcuoglu, Willie Baez, René Máynez and Tanapol Pachoei. The artists are working jointly with the Preschool’s Art Therapist, Sarah Valeri, and under the expert guidance of the school’s director, Dr. Linda Gerra.