By LESTER CHANG
Through recent action by the city's Arts Commission, the Euphrat Museum at De Anza College moved a step closer to getting funds for an ongoing program to bring art to low-income children in Sunnyvale.
At its Feb. 19 meeting, the commission voted to recommend that the Sunnyvale City Council approve $5,000 to support the program for the next fiscal year, said Gordon Markley, commission chairperson.
The museum plans to use another $5,000 in donations from Silicon Valley corporations and individuals for the program, said Diana Argabrite, a director of the museum's arts and schools programs.
As part of its overall budget for the next fiscal year, the council plans to take action on the request in June, said David Vossbrink, the city's community relations officer.
The after-school project is the only one of its kind in Sunnyvale, Argabrite said. Staged for at least five years, it is offered to participants--usually children from the third to the sixth grade--at no charge, she said.
They are introduced to paintings, sculpture, printmaking and drawings by artists from around the world, Argabrite said.
The program is currently being presented at Nimitz Elementary School, which is part of the Cupertino Union School District, and Braly Elementary School, which is part of the Santa Clara Unified School District.
Ellis Elementary School from the Sunnyvale Elementary School District will be added to the program in the spring, Argabrite said. The program started last October and will end in May, she said.
Japanese-inspired prints from the young participants are currently on exhibit at the Sunnyvale Public Library, she said.
As another way to get more children involved with art, students are bused to the museum to tour exhibits, Argabrite added.
This article appeared in the Sunnyvale Sun, February 26, 1997.
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