CTB/McGraw-Hill's 2011 Student Art Project Honors Miami-Dade Elementary School

MONTEREY, Calif., June 21, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- CTB/McGraw-Hill announced today that proceeds from the company's annual Student Art Project auction will be donated to Miami-Dade County Public Schools' students. The artwork was presented at the Council of Chief State School Officers (CCSSO) National Conference on Student Assessment June 19-22 at the Peabody Orlando Hotel. CTB matched the funds raised from the silent auction of the art to donate to Gulfstream Elementary.

The Student Art Project is a community outreach program established by CTB in 1994 to support the arts in education. This commitment aligns with CTB's founding mission - "to help the teacher help the child" - and provides art workshop resources and teaching assistance to schools selected to participate in the program.

This year, 28 student artists at Gulfstream Elementary were divided into two groups for a series of workshops in February. The theme of the workshops was "Tropical Images" influenced by Tahitian pareos, large thin panels of cloth used as casual clothing wraps.

California art educator, Jim Sarno, along with the school's art teacher, Susan Castillo, explored tropical themes with the students to create collaborative group clothes that were turned into large canvas giclee prints. Each child made individual small cloth prints, which they took home to share with their families.

"What makes this art project particularly noteworthy is that the student artists are either deaf/hearing impaired or autistic," said Sarno.

"My students had a wonderful learning experience under the creative expertise of Jim Sarno," said Mrs. Castillo. "They were genuinely inspired to express the beauty of nature."

Designed to bring creative enrichment to students and promote the arts in public schools, the Student Art Project also brings student artwork into CTB's Monterey headquarters and facilities across the country, integrating the company's business focus – students and education – with employees' daily work environment.

"Each year it is one of our great joys to support art workshops that spark the inspiration of the young minds that create these beautiful images," said Ellen Haley, president of CTB/McGraw-Hill. "We will also feature many of the pieces in our 2012 Student Art Calendar which we share with our customers."

More information about the CCSSO conference can be found at http://www.ccsso.org/NCSA/News.html.

About CTB/McGraw-Hill

CTB/McGraw-Hill has an 85-year record of innovation and excellence in assessment, and serves more than 18 million students in all 50 states and in 49 countries. One of the first American publishers to introduce objective, standardized achievement tests to schools, today CTB/McGraw-Hill is a leader in testing with recognized products for online interim and formative, adult, and language proficiency assessment. Dedicated to advancing the use of student performance data to inform instructional decision making, CTB/McGraw-Hill's innovation continues today with technologies that include Web-based assessment and reporting, student response device (clicker) software, and artificial intelligence for automated scoring of student essays. CTB/McGraw-Hill is part of McGraw-Hill Education, a division of The McGraw-Hill Companies (NYSE: MHP). McGraw-Hill Education is a leading global provider of instructional, assessment and reference solutions that empower professionals and students of all ages. For more information, visit CTB.com.

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SOURCE CTB/McGraw-Hill