At a Gloversville Central School District Board of Education meeting, three art teachers described the district’s five-year effort to run teams in the Olympics of the Visual Arts and asked the board for financial support and possible compensation for after-school time. Lisa Gouda, elementary art teacher at Boulevard Elementary, said the program “is literally the most exciting part of my year every year.”

The teachers told the board the statewide contest run by the New York State Art Teachers Association requires student teams to produce long-term design work, research, portfolios and on-demand challenges; participation also uses supplies and staff time. Gouda said she initially paid registration, t-shirts and materials out of pocket and that middle- and high-school teachers receive no additional pay for after-school work with participating students. “Over the last 5 years, I’ve kind of started OVA in this district…everything was out of my pocket,” she said.

April Meyer, a middle-school art teacher, and Janelle Krause, a high-school art teacher, described student benefits including project-based learning, historical and cultural research, and repeated student engagement from year to year. Krause said her high school painting team won first place last year and that students frequently chose to stay after school to work on projects.

Board members responded positively and asked staff to explore funding structures, including possible compensation for teachers’ time. A board member said the item “seems like it’s a yes” for club approval pending a deeper funding discussion.

The teachers estimated current participation levels: about 20 students at the elementary level across three teams, two to three middle-school teams of roughly five students each, and a high-school team of about 10 students in the most recent year. They noted membership and registration fees paid by the district cover some costs but membership and certain supplies remain paid by staff.

The board did not take a formal vote on funding at the meeting; members directed staff to report back with options for funding and compensation structures so the board could consider budget implications.

Board members and the presenters agreed the program aligns with district goals for project-based learning and critical thinking and asked staff to return with a recommended funding mechanism and any required board approvals.