The O’Donnell Foundation announces the recipients of the 2017 Excellence in AP® Arts and Music Theory Scholarship Awards.  The scholarship recognizes four outstanding high school seniors who have participated in or are currently participating in the O’Donnell Foundation’s AP Fine Arts Incentive Program at Dallas-area high schools, including three Plano-area high school students.

Each student will receive a $20,000 scholarship.  The 2017 Excellence in AP Arts and Music Theory scholarship recipients are:

• Colin Chan, Plano East Senior High School
• Jesse Tan, Plano West Senior High School
• Nicole Wojtania, Plano West Senior High School
• Justin Yan, Colleyville Heritage High School

The scholarship recipients, their families, teachers, school administrators and school board members were honored at a reception held on Wednesday, April 12, 2017, hosted by Edith and Peter O’Donnell at the Communities Foundation of Texas. 

At the appointed time, attendees took their seats as Deborah Moore, director for AP Fine Arts Incentive Program, welcomed all guests. Peter O’Donnell followed to congratulate this year’s recipients on behalf of him and his wife, Edith O’Donnell.  He recognized Edith’s life-long passion and many accomplishments in support of the arts, including the Advanced Placement Fine Arts Incentive Program. 

The AP Fine Arts teachers from the recipients’ respective schools then introduced each student, sharing the many attributes and achievements which made the award winner deserving of this prestigious scholarship.  

Each of the scholarship recipients revealed the value of art and music during their high school careers and how they view its ongoing importance in college and beyond.  All expressed their gratitude to the O’Donnell Foundation and the Communities Foundation of Texas, as well as their teachers and families for their ongoing support and inspiration.

Colin Chan, who plans to attend Rice University to pursue a double major in chemistry and art history, shared, “I hope to find a career in the medical field, all the while giving back to the arts community.  Art has given me a creative outlet; a chance to stretch my mind in ways not offered in any other study or class.”

Plano West Senior High School’s Jesse Tan, who will “most likely attend John Hopkins University in fall to study biomedical engineering,” thanked his AP Fine Arts teachers for challenging him throughout his high school career.

Tan said, “Some of the main tenants I have taken away as a student heavily involved in the fine arts include a spirit of creative innovation, a willingness to take risks, and an avid desire to tackle rigorous coursework.  My instructors for my fine arts courses have frequently challenged me to develop my own train of independent thought and to hone my sense of intellectual curiosity.  Whether it be through analyzing potential motives behind a piece of contemporary artwork or puzzling out the correct chords and harmonies in a musical composition, such stimulating courses have really served and encouraged me to foster an ambitious mind that looks to the future.”

Nicole Wojtania of Plano West Senior High School said, “Whatever I pursue in the future, my art and humanities classes have provided me with the tools to become a well-informed accomplished citizen who contributes to and meets the needs of a global society.” Wojtania plans to attend either Harvard University or MIT with the hope of majoring in biomedical engineering with a minor in business or economics.

Justin Yan of Colleyville Heritage High School credits his AP Music Theory class, with teacher Casey Muckley, as one of his most enriching courses. “Studying piano has taught me that successfully interpreting music relies on three things: paying attention to detail, never losing sight of the big picture. and always asking ‘why,’” he said. “Even though I plan to study computer science at Princeton University this fall, I believe that the lessons music has taught me are invaluable in any field.”

The O’Donnell Foundation sponsors the annual scholarship program to provide financial assistance to exemplary AP Studio Art, Art History, and Music Theory students so they can attend and graduate from the college of their choice in four years.   It is also hoped that the scholarship will encourage other promising AP Arts and Music Theory students to pursue excellence academically, personally and professionally. 

Selection criteria include academic performance, ability to think independently and creatively, strength of character and integrity, strong leadership, commitment to earning a college or university degree in four consecutive years with a 3.0 GPA, and knowledge and application of arts or music.  The 2017 Scholarship Selection Committee was comprised of community volunteers, business leaders and arts supporters including Hong Bass, Kathy Bishop and Harvey Mitchell.

Contributions to the Excellence in AP Arts & Music Theory Award Scholarship Fund may be made through the Communities Foundation of Texas.  For more information or to make a gift, visit www.cftexas.org. 

About AP Arts

The O’Donnell Foundation’s Advanced Placement Fine Arts Program was founded twenty-three years ago to motivate high school students’ interest and success in rigorous college-level fine arts courses. This year, 137 teachers and 1,661 students from 16 Dallas-area high schools participate in the program. Courses include AP Art History, AP Studio Art Drawing, AP Studio Art 2D Design, AP Studio Art 3D Design, and AP Music Theory. Pre-AP courses may include any classes that prepare students for AP arts courses. The Foundation also provides superior AP and Pre-AP training in the schools that participate in the program.

Based on the 2016 College Board AP fine arts qualifying exam results of a “3” or higher, the Foundation’s grant schools account for 19% of the state’s qualifying AP Fine Arts exams; 29% of the state’s qualifying AP Art History exams, 25% of the state’s qualifying AP Music Theory exams, and 13% of the state’s qualifying AP Studio Art exams. Eight of the Program’s schools are included in the top ten state rankings for comprehensive AP Fine Arts schools (campuses that offer all three disciplines: AP Studio Art, AP Art History, and AP Music Theory). Eighty-nine percent of the Foundation’s AP Fine Arts students taking an AP Fine Arts exam in 2016 received a qualifying score. 

Since its founding in 1994, more than 19,000 arts and music students have benefited from the O’Donnell Foundation’s AP incentive programs. Last year, graduating seniors earned over $34 million in scholarships. 

The Nature Conservancy in Texas announces $250,000 was raised at Dallas Spring Party: Adventures on the Wild River, held on Friday, April 7, 2017.

Held at the Dallas Arboretum and Botanical Garden, over 285 guests attended the fundraiser, which supports conservation initiatives through the state of Texas.  The evening began with an outdoor reception on the Ginsburg Plaza. As musician Brannon Barrett performed, partygoers mingled over cocktails, including the signature cocktail, Canyon Sunrise, and hors d’oeuvres.  Tailwaters Fly Fishing Co. demonstrated the art of hand-tying flies as well as provided guests with fly-fishing instruction. 

At the appointed time, attendees progressed into Rosine Hall for the seated dinner. Guests began a salad course of field greens with apples, blue cheese, walnuts and dried cherry balsamic vinaigrette.  Laura Huffman, state director of The Nature Conservancy in Texas, followed with a brief welcome and a thank you to all in attendance, including statewide sponsor of events, Mary Kay Inc. and Dr Pepper Snapple Group, Inc.  Huffman gave an update on conservation in Texas, including the latest statistics on the state’s water conservation efforts, successes and challenges.

Dinner resumed with an entrée duet of baked salmon in phyllo with julienne carrots and salmon mousse and beef tenderloin with fried onions and green peppercorn sauce, served with loaded whipped potatoes, roasted squash, broccolini and globe tomatoes followed by a dessert trio of lemon bar, almond tuile and triple layer chocolate mousse.

 As guests finished their dessert, Huffman returned to introduce guest speaker, Pete McBride. 

As an award-winning National Geographic photographer, author, and documentary producer, McBride has traveled through 75 countries and roamed all seven continents, from the majestic peaks of Mount Everest to the natural wonders in his own backyard.  After a decade traveling throughout the world, as a native Coloradan, he began focusing his camera on a subject closer to his home and heart, the Colorado River.

Sharing his own breath-taking photographs, he took the audience on a trip down the 1450-mile Colorado River, showcasing its beauty as well as the many conservation challenges it currently faces.

Following remarks, patrons returned to the Ginsburg Plaza for post-dinner cocktails. As guests departed, they received postcards featuring images taken by McBride, as well as a hand-tied fly from Tailwaters.

Dallas Spring Party attendees included, Laura Huffman, state director, The Nature Conservancy in Texas; Lyda Hill; Suzanne and David Holl; Cecilia and Garrett Boone, Eilzabeth Boeckman; Jane and Pat Bolin; Terry and Steve Casey; Mary and Bo Howard; Ann and Matt Schooler; Vera and Bob Thornton; Joyce and Les Coleman, Stan Graff, Suzanne and Stuart Guthrie, Lesa and John Oudt, Gayle Sands, The Honorable Jeanne Phillips, Terry and John Norris, Sharon and Kip Tindell, Charlotte and Dan Blanks, Rodger Sanders; and Laura and Simon Whiting.

For more information about The Nature Conservancy in Texas, visit www.nature.org/texas. 

About The Nature Conservancy

The Nature Conservancy is the leading conservation organization working around the world to protect ecologically important lands and waters for nature and people. We address the most pressing conservation threats at the largest scale. Thanks to the support of our more than 1 million members, we’ve built a tremendous record of success since our founding in 1951, including the protection of more than 119 million acres of land and thousands of miles of rivers worldwide.

Since 1964, The Nature Conservancy in Texas has been committed to protecting our state’s sweeping landscapes, from rugged coastline to winding rivers to rich longleaf pine forests. With an expansive network of scientists, staff and partners, The Nature Conservancy is on the front lines, protecting the lands, waters and coasts that we all depend on. Our ambitions are bold, and our commitment unwavering. By 2020, we seek to have an unprecedented 1 million acres in Texas in conservation. We will protect the freshwater systems that provide drinking water to 25 million Texans. And we will restore healthy fisheries, reefs and shorelines in critical locations in the Gulf of Mexico.

Ready, set, go! 

Please join the “big kids” of yCPD, Community Partners of Dallas’ young friends group, for the third annual yCPD Field Day on Saturday, May 13 at 2 p.m. at The Rustic, located at 3656 Howell Street in Dallas.  Team of 6 is $350; sponsorships begin at $500.

Chaired by Tanner Hartnett and Crystal Lightbody, the 21 and up event will include traditional field day activities for teams of six, such as wheelbarrow and three-legged relay races, a noodle toss and more, as well as bites, drinks, live music, entertainment and emcee Jennifer Myers, FOX4-TV.  Event proceeds will benefit the abused and neglected children of Dallas County served by CPD.

For team sales and sponsorship information, contact Shelby Kwait, 214.624.7621 or shelby@cpdtx.org, or visit www.communitypartnersdallas.org.

TACA (The Arts Community Alliance), with chairmen Nancy Carlson and Lynn McBee, welcomed more than 800 attendees to the 2017 TACA Silver Cup Award Luncheon, presented by JPMorgan Chase & Co. and Neiman Marcus, on March 7, 2017 at the Hilton Anatole.

The day began with a patron reception in honor of this year’s awardees, Nancy A. Nasher and Walter B. Elcock, recognized for their outstanding volunteer leadership and contributions to the arts in North Texas.  Sponsors, past recipient and family members joined Nasher and Elcock in the Wedgewood Ballroom as they mingled and enjoyed harpist Alison Read.  On view were portraits by Gittings of the 2017 Silver Cup Award recipients.

During the reception, Donna Wilhelm, TACA board chairman, presented the recipients with a beautifully wrapped Neiman Marcus box, which upon opening revealed the prestigious Silver Cup awards bearing their names.  The 2017 honorees were then joined by some past recipients in attendance, including Rebecca Fletcher, Jim Wiley, Caroline Rose Hunt, Don Glendenning, Kern Wildenthal, Elaine Agather, Lucilo Peña, Brad Todd, Ruben Esquivel, John Eagle, and Elaine Agather, for a commemorative photo.

As patrons and luncheon guests proceeded to the Chantilly Ballroom, members of the Uptown Players, a TACA Grand Award recipient, entertained with a theatrical performance encouraging guests to take their seats. Mistress of ceremonies Lee Cullum, syndicated columnist and television commentator, welcomed everyone to the 39^th Annual Silver Cup Award Luncheon.

Rabbi Nancy Kasten led the invocation, followed by Cullum’s return to the podium to introduce TACA Grant Award recipients Baya Kakouberi, artistic director of the Blue Candlelight Music Series, and Quinlan Facey, both on piano.  As Kakouberi and Facey played, attendees enjoyed a lunch of a trio of dips served with crudité and pita chips, followed by a second course of chicken salad in bib lettuce, a pimento cheese quiche, a quinoa salad with diced vegetables, and dessert of chocolate truffle, mini lemon curd and blueberry tart and a macaroon.

Cullum then introduced Elaine Agather, a 2008 TACA Silver Cup Award recipient and chairman of JPMorgan Chase & Co. in Dallas, Silver Cup co-presenting sponsor, who spoke about the company’s commitment to supporting TACA and the arts and her congratulations to the honorees.

Wilhelm shared TACA’s mission as champions of artistic excellence in performing arts organizations, and the nonprofit encourages innovation, collaboration and engagement through financial support, stewardship and resources.  In 2016, TACA distributed $1.5 million in grants and supported approximately 3,000 performances and productions, attended by more than one million individuals in North Texas.  In 50 years, TACA has grown from a single annual charity event to a year-round comprehensive provider of grants and services, having provided more than $26 million to the local arts community. 

Ginger Reeder, vice president of corporate communications for The Neiman Marcus Group, Silver Cup Award co-presenting sponsor, introduced the 2017 Southern Methodist University Meadows School of the Arts performers, Ndumiso Nyoko, tenor, and Brian Bentley on piano.  Nyoko and Bentley mesmerized the audience with their performance of “La donna e mobile (Woman is Fickle) from Rigoletto by Giuseppe Verdi (1813-1901).

2016 Silver Cup Award recipient James E. Wiley, Jr. along with Jeremy Strick, director of the Nasher Sculpture Center, via video, introduced 2017 recipient Nancy A. Nasher. 

Nancy Nasher is the president and owner of NorthPark Center. A graduate of The Hockaday School, Princeton University and Duke University School of Law, she has dedicated her professional and personal life to the betterment of Dallas as a real estate leader and one of the city’s greatest advocates for the arts.

Thanking TACA for this tremendous honor, Nasher remarked that through her exposure to the arts early on from her parents and throughout her life, including many art forms such as sculpture, painting, symphony, opera, dance and theater, helped shape her into the person she is today.

“I have the unique opportunity to advocate for the arts through my work at NorthPark Center, a retail establishment which brings together culture, commerce and community like no other shopping center in the world.  We view NorthPark as a ‘shopping museum’ with over 150 modern and contemporary artworks on display.  We also view it as a venue for the performing arts, offering our visitors free access to the most important cultural institutions in our region, including the Dallas Symphony Orchestra, The Dallas Opera, the Dallas Black Dance Theatre and countless other professional, community and school groups,” she said.

As well, Nasher shared her pride in her family’s support of the arts through the creation of the Nasher Sculpture Center 14 years ago in Dallas’ Arts District, which has since become the crown jewel of Dallas and a world-class destination for the visual and performing arts.  She thanked her family, friends, advocates for the arts and longtime colleagues, with special recognition to her husband David, and her children Sarah, David and Isabelle.

In closing, she said, “Art has the ability to connect individuals and the power to elevate communities.  It creates dialogue, fosters ideas, challenges perspectives, inspires creativity and is a common bond for all people that transcends social, geographic, economic and political boundaries.”

2016 Silver Cup Award recipient Rebecca Enloe Fletcher along with John Eagle, 2011 Silver Cup Award recipient and trustee of Dallas Museum of Art, via video, introduced 2017 Silver Cup Award recipient Walter B. Elcock.

Elcock is unique among volunteers who support the arts.  He is a trustee of the Dallas Museum of Art, having previously served as chair, president and interim director.  Prior to that, he retired from Bank of America after 39 years in various management roles.

Under his leadership, Bank of America has become a reliable sponsor of exhibitions and programs at the Dallas Museum of Art, as well as a source of significant support for the AT&T Performing Arts Center, Booker T. Washington High School for the Performing and Visual Arts and the Nasher Sculpture Center. He is a graduate of University of North Carolina in Chapel Hill with a bachelor’s degree in psychology and studio art. 

Elcock began by thanking those who nominated him, before sharing how he became interested in the arts.

“Arts and culture were not a staple in my family growing up.  We were literate and enjoyed music, but it was not a central theme,” he said.  “For me it all started just trying to get a blind date, who was an art major, interested in me; never knowing I had found the two great loves of my life at the same instant.  For better or worse and certainly richer or poorer, all that I could get credit for needs to go to my muse Laura.”

Regarding the recognition of the Silver Cup Award from his recent ‘tour of duty in the Arts District and at the DMA’ he remarked, “All this hoopla is recognizing someone for doing what he loves with people he loves.  I have been deeply rewarded by those experiences themselves.  You know what I mean.  For some it’s being backstage after a performance; for others, watching and listening to a rehearsal.”

He added, “Here’s a bit of advice for TACA and for all of you; let’s raise the bar a bit and make it more challenging for a cultural hedonist like me to be singled out.  In our world today, that new bar must be about courage… We have to face reality; we have communities of people living here who wonder when we will speak to their art or their culture.  We have communities of people who need art to provide sanctuary and hope.”

In conclusion he said, “I have no doubt we are fully capable of solving those issues and many more like them but only if we have courage to identify them, and in the context of the world we live in today, as it is and not as we wish it where.  I will close with a quote from a great American Angela Davis, ‘I am no longer accepting the things I cannot change.  I am changing the things I cannot accept.’”

After the Silver Cup presentations, keynote speaker Kate D. Levin who oversees the Arts Program at Bloomberg Philanthropies and is a former commissioner of the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs, shared her insights on the transformative impact of the arts on communities.

She spoke to the importance of research for cultural organizations in order to communicate their importance and impact on the community to city leaders who are going to invest scarce resources into their organizations.

She also shared that the challenge still remains for smaller cultural institutions, as it is more difficult to gauge their economic impact, as compared to larger institutions, which can track their success through attendance or economic activity.  To that end, Bloomberg Philanthropies is supporting small and mid-size cultural organizations in cities around the U.S., including Dallas, that contribute to local economy, identity, and quality of life.

Of the six cities in their current Art Innovation and Management (AIM) program, Dallas has been the most engaged with the highest participation rate in management seminars and greatest percentage of board members involved.

In closing, she said, “Culture is complex and it is endlessly important.  I’m excited about all you continue to do and look forward to all the future holds for Dallas.”

As the day came to a close, Cullum thanked all in attendance for their support of the TACA Silver Cup Award Luncheon and TACA’s 50^th year.

A special thank you to the 2017 TACA Silver Cup Sponsors:

Co-Title Sponsors - J.P. Morgan and Neiman Marcus; TACA Ticket Sponsor - Paradox Compensation Advisors; Valet Sponsor - The Dallas-Fort Worth Lexus Dealers; Program Sponsor  - NorthPark Center; Menu Sponsor – Charlie and Moll Anderson Family Foundation; Host- Hilton Anatole; Sforzando Sponsors ($25,000) - Nancy and Clint Carlson;  Laura and Walter Elcock; Carol and Don Glendenning / Locke Lord; and Nancy Nasher and David Haemisegger; Concerto Sponsors ($10,000) - Jennifer and John Eagle; Marguerite Steed Hoffman / Cindy and Howard Rachofsky; Gene and Jerry Jones; Holly and Tom Mayer / Betty and Steve Suellentrop; The Eugene McDermott Foundation; and Donna Wilhelm; Sonata Sponsors ($5,000) - Diane and Hal Brierley; Dallas Museum of Art; Dallas Symphony Orchestra; Claire Emanuelson / Pam Perella; Julie K. Hersh; Al G. Hill, Jr.; Laree Hulshoff / Barbara Daseke; Sarah and Ross Perot, Jr.; Vin and Caren Prothro Foundation; Catherine and Will Rose; Edward W. Rose III Family Fund of The Dallas Foundation; Peggy and Carl Sewell; and Karen and Jim Wiley / Wiley Property, Ltd.; Rhapsody Sponsors ($3,000) – Andrews Kurth Kenyon LLP; Crow Collection of Asian Art; Wanda Gierhart; Fanchon and Howard Hallam; Melinda and Jim Johnson; Helen and Frank Risch; RBC Wealth Management; The Dallas Opera; and Sharon and Michael Young; Minuet Sponsors ($1,500) – Anonymous; AT&T Performing Arts Center; Big Thought Board of Directors; Communities Foundation of Texas; Dallas Black Dance Theatre; Dallas Winds; Encore Park; Gwen and Leldon Echols; Greater Dallas Youth Orchestra; Pilar Henry; HEYCO Energy Group; Junior Players; Kitchen Dog Theater; Lisa and Peter Kraus; Tara Lewis and John Swords; Nasher Sculpture Center; Deborah and Jim Nugent; Karol Omlor / Second Thought Theatre; Rosewood Mansion on Turtle Creek; Sammons Center for the Arts; Kit Sawers; Shakespeare Dallas; Southern Methodist University; SMU Meadows School of the Arts; Southwestern Medical Foundation; Jill E. Tananbaum Family; Theatre Three Board of Directors; Thompson & Knight Foundation; TITAS; and Marnie and Kern Wildenthal; 50^th Anniversary Media Partner – PaperCity;  Silver Cup Award Luncheon Media Partners – MySweetCharity; Patron Magazine; Modern Luxury; and WRR Classical 101.1FM.

The O’Donnell Foundation announces the 19^th annual Young Masters Exhibition on view February 25 - April 16, 2017 at the Dallas Museum of Art (DMA) in the Concourse Gallery. The exhibition features selected original works created by Advanced Placement^® Studio Art, Art History, and Music Theory students from ten Dallas-area high schools, participating in the O’Donnell Foundation’s AP Arts Incentive Program.

Three students from Coppell High School were selected for the exhibition:

Adhithi Baskar, Studio Art

Kirstin Boyer, Studio Art

Julie Choi, Studio Art

Selected by a panel of respected professionals from the arts and music fields, the 2017 exhibition features 65 original pieces chosen from 896 works submitted by AP Fine Arts students. The exhibition includes fifty-four 2-dimensional and 3-dimensional works of art created by AP Studio Art students, five essays analyzing works of art in the DMA’s permanent collections by AP Art History students, and six 4-minute original compositions by AP Music Theory students. 

Schools represented in the exhibition are Booker T. Washington High School for the Performing and Visual Arts (BTWHSPVA), Colleyville Heritage High School, Coppell High School, Creekview High School, Grapevine High School, Lovejoy High School, Plano East Senior High School, Plano Senior High School, Plano West Senior High School, and Richardson High School.

“The Young Masters Exhibition recognizes outstanding intellectual and creative expression in students participating in our AP Arts Incentive Program.  In its nineteenth year, the students’ work featured in the exhibition continues to inspire,” remarked Edith O’Donnell, founder of the program. “The talented students who participate in our program and complete rigorous AP arts and music coursework build essential skills to ensure their success in the 21^st century global economy, including stimulating innovation, cultivating critical thinking and developing a greater understanding of diverse cultures. I continue to be very proud of their accomplishments.”

The O’Donnell Foundation’s Advanced Placement Fine Arts Program was founded twenty-three years ago to motivate high school students’ interest and success in rigorous college-level fine arts courses. This year, 137 teachers and 1,661 students from 16 Dallas-area high schools participate in the program. Courses include AP Art History, AP Studio Art Drawing, AP Studio Art 2D Design, AP Studio Art 3D Design, and AP Music Theory. Pre-AP courses may include any classes that prepare students for AP arts courses. The Foundation also provides superior AP and Pre-AP training in the schools that participate in the program.

Based on the 2016 College Board AP fine arts qualifying exam results of a “3” or higher, the Foundation’s grant schools account for 19% of the state’s qualifying AP Fine Arts exams; 29% of the state’s qualifying AP Art History exams, 25% of the state’s qualifying AP Music Theory exams, and 13% of the state’s qualifying AP Studio Art exams. Eight of the Program’s schools are included in the top ten state rankings for comprehensive AP Fine Arts schools (campuses that offer all three disciplines: AP Studio Art, AP Art History, and AP Music Theory). Eighty-nine percent of the Foundation’s AP Fine Arts students taking an AP Fine Arts exam in 2016 received a qualifying score.

Since its founding in 1994, more than 19,000 arts and music students have benefited from the O’Donnell Foundation’s AP incentive programs. Last year, graduating seniors earned over $34 million in scholarships.

Admission to the Young Masters exhibition in the DMA’s Concourse is included with free general admission. For more information, visit www.apstrategiesarts.org or www.DMA.org.