UNC Asheville Hosts Second Annual Celebrating Middle School Success Art Exhibition

UNC Asheville Hosts Second Annual Celebrating Middle School Success Art Exhibition

UNC Asheville will host the second annual Celebrating Middle School Success exhibition at Highsmith Art and Intercultural Gallery, featuring some 50 works of art by area middle school students. UNC Asheville Chancellor Mary K. Grant will host a reception, which is free and open to the public, from 3:30-6 p.m. on Monday, July 6, in the gallery in Highsmith University Union on campus.

The exhibition, which opens July 1, will showcase the talents of students from Asheville City Schools and Buncombe County Schools, and will honor the Middle School Success initiative conducted jointly by United Way of Asheville and Buncombe County. The initiative works to increase access to and the quality of after-school and summer programs at the middle school level, as a means of increasing high school graduation rates. UNC Asheville faculty and students play active roles in area after-school programs and in-school tutoring.

“I’m looking forward to meeting these incredibly talented students and their families,” said Grant. “These students are the future of our community and it’s wonderful to be able to welcome them to UNC Asheville’s campus and recognize their beautiful work. I also thank all of the community partners who made this exhibition possible. It’s uplifting to see so many groups come together in support of such an important initiative.”

Grant will be joined by many education and community leaders, including:

David Bailey, president/CEO, United Way of Asheville and Buncombe County

Pamela Baldwin, superintendent, Asheville City Schools

Tony Baldwin, superintendent, Buncombe County Schools

David Gantt, chair, Buncombe County Board of Commissioners

Gwen Wisler, Asheville City Council

Sara Pacifici, chair, Women’s Leadership Council, United Way of Asheville and Buncombe County

The Celebrating Middle School Success exhibit will be on view 9 a.m.-5 p.m. weekdays throughout the month of July, with free admission.

The reception is co-sponsored by UNC Asheville’s Education Department and Office for School and Community Outreach Programs and Partnerships; Dixon Hughes Goodman LLP; McGuire, Wood and Bissette Law Firm; HomeTrust Bank; Asheville-Buncombe Middle Grades Network; United Way of Asheville and Buncombe County; and Buncombe County Schools.

For more information, visit oscopp.unca.edu/cmss or contact Annie Burton, executive director of UNC Asheville School and Community Outreach Programs and Partnerships, at 828.251.6498 or outreach@unca.edu.