{"id":14996,"date":"2026-04-15T16:43:07","date_gmt":"2026-04-15T20:43:07","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.vbcpsblogs.com\/core\/?p=14996"},"modified":"2026-04-16T10:45:15","modified_gmt":"2026-04-16T14:45:15","slug":"season-for-nonviolence-art-show-delivers-powerful-messages","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.vbcpsblogs.com\/core\/season-for-nonviolence-art-show-delivers-powerful-messages\/","title":{"rendered":"Season for Nonviolence art show delivers powerful messages"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"\"<\/a>
Entries in the Season for Nonviolence \u201cArt of Humanity\u201d art show featured poems and posters created by VBCPS students, family members and staff<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

By Cindy Butler Focke<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>
Jaydalynn Ranieri-Davis\u2019 poem was one the winners of the Season for Nonviolence \u201cArt of Humanity\u201d art show.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

The Season for Nonviolence was celebrated April 2 at Tallwood High School.<\/p>\n

Several hundred VBCPS students, staff members and families attended \u201cThe Art of Humanity\u201d show featuring poems and posters about the transformative power of nonviolence.<\/p>\n

Jaydalynn Ranieri-Davis\u2019 poem focused on being yourself.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe as a society have the majority versus minority,\u201d the Princess Anne High School junior said. \u201cWe as humans, love our labels, but they can suffocate us.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cLive your Truth, show your strength, stand your ground and be unashamed about who you are,\u201d Jaydalynn wrote in her artist\u2019s statement.<\/p>\n

Since 1998, the global grassroots initiative has commemorated the 64 days following the Jan. 30 assassination of social activist Mohandas Gandhi and that of civil rights leader Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. on April 4.<\/p>\n

Organized by the VBCPS Office of Opportunity and Achievement (OOA), the fourth annual poster and poetry contest spread awareness about the Season For Nonviolence.<\/p>\n

Participants were encouraged to display their thoughts and ideas on one of four themes: \u201cYour Voice Matters,\u201d \u201cResolving Conflict Peacefully,\u201d \u201cSupporting Each Other in the Spirit of Togetherness,\u201d and \u201cWhy Fit in When You Were Born to stand out?\u201d<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>
ODS third grader Emily Flores, left, attended the “The Art of Humanity” art show at Tallwood High School with her parents Susan and Gene Flores and sister Chloe. Her entry was titled “Peace in the World.”<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

The more than 400 entries were exhibited, along with 20 vibrant banners produced by various schools and offices. The 5-by-8-foot painted canvases supported the poetry and poster content themes and will be displayed in June and July in the Creative ViBe District, a key partner with VBCPS in support of the Season for Nonviolence.<\/p>\n

Emily Flores made a collage, titled “Peace in the World,” highlighting the symbol of peace and people holding hands. Peace is important, the Old Donation School third grader said.<\/p>\n

Her artist statement read, \u201cIf we show more kindness, peace, love and more in the world, we can have less problems and more resolution!\u201d<\/p>\n

Alexander Drum belongs to the Togetherness through Inclusion, Diversity, and Equity (TIDE) coalition at Bayside High School. His artwork, titled \u201cI Can\u2019t Do This Alone,\u201d depicted someone who wants to give up, but is encouraged by others to keep going.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis is about supporting each other in togetherness,\u201d Alexander said.<\/p>\n

VBCPS Chief of Staff Cheryl Woodhouse congratulated the evening\u2019s honorees. The art show depicted positivity and kindness, she said.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe are so fortunate to have students who are willing to display their thoughts,\u201d she added.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>
VBCPS staff members also entered the \u201cArt of Humanity\u201d art show celebrating the Season for Nonviolence. From left, ODS gifted visual arts teacher Leah Krueger, husband Josh Krueger, art teacher at Kempsville High School, son Mason, ODS visual arts teacher Tricia Campbell and daughter Luci.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Prizes were awarded for the top 10 posters and poems at the elementary, middle and high school levels, as well as the staff and family entries.<\/p>\n

ODS gifted visual arts teachers Leah Krueger and Tricia Campbell were recognized for their entries in the poster division.<\/p>\n

\u201cStudents are much more aware of what\u2019s happening around us,\u201d Campbell said. She stressed the importance of students having opportunities to formulate and express their ideas.<\/p>\n

Krueger agreed. \u201cArt unites people,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

OOA Director Ty Harris thanked Amber Hester and Rebecca Davidson of the VBCPS Office of Visual Fine Arts for their support of the project.<\/p>\n

Expression through art and literature helps include more people in the dialogue and \u201callows us to confront uncomfortable truths and dream of a better future,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

\u201cLet\u2019s keep the conversation going and art flowing.\u201d<\/p>\n

STUDENT HONOREES <\/strong><\/h2>\n

Poetry <\/strong><\/p>\n

Elementary School:<\/u><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>
Thoroughgood Elementary fifth grader Owen Rivera was recognized at “The Art of Humanity” art show for his poem titled ” Stepping Out of the Shadows.”<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Landon Cummings, Grade 5, Old Donation School; Sarah Edwards, Grade 5, ODS; Ivan Jones, Grade 5, Thoroughgood; Jake Kiernan, Grade 5, Trantwood; Hayden Klepacz, Grade 5, ODS; Owen Rivera, Grade 5, Thoroughgood; Athena Schoeller, Grade 5, Thoroughgood; Kennedy Skye, Grade 5, Thoroughgood; Tanshi Tella, Grade 5, ODS; Rileigh Young, Grade 5, Thoroughgood.<\/p>\n

Middle School: <\/u><\/p>\n

Isabella Locy, Grade 7, Princess Anne; Juliet Macchi, Grade 6, Virginia Beach; Ayden Solomon Rex Murtz, Grade 7, Bayside; Harleigh Rucka, Grade 7, Virginia Beach; Liya Ann Sabin, Grade 7, ODS.<\/p>\n

High School:<\/u><\/p>\n

Lily Ganti, Grade 12, Tallwood; Calvin Hartono, Grade 11, Ocean Lakes; Zander Hubbard, Grade 10, Ocean Lakes; Anna Keck, Grade 11, Ocean Lakes; Denae Kinglock, Grade 11, Landstown; Eleanor Lanier, Grade 9, Green Run Collegiate; Shayna Lovitz, Grade 11, Ocean Lakes; Jayda Ranieri, Grade 11, Princess Anne; Vihaan Shah, Grade 11, Ocean Lakes; Evan Wang-Li, Grade 11, Ocean Lakes.<\/p>\n

Artwork <\/strong><\/p>\n

Elementary School: <\/u><\/p>\n

Victoria Blythe, Grade 5, Fairfield; Nivek L. Elliott, Grade 5, Hermitage; Ember Gernhard, Grade 5, Rosemont; Haaliyah Hannah, Grade 4, ODS; Norayah Karim, Grade 5, ODS; Zoe L. Leftwich, Grade 5, ODS; Raelyn Michael, Grade 4, ODS; Ailynn Melolde Ott, Grade 5, Rosemont; Adrielle Myka A. Pancho, Grade 5, Indian Lakes; Chris Jacob Sabin, Grade 2, Centerville.<\/p>\n

Middle School: <\/u><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>
Alexander Drum was recognized for his artwork “I Can’t Do This Alone.” He attended “The Art of Humanity” art show with his mother Rocio Drum, left. His chemistry teacher Maureen Loflin also supported the Bayside High School junior.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Shruthi Giridharan, Grade 7, ODS; Nika Iziumskaya, Grade 7, ODS; Mason Krueger, Grade 6, Princess Anne; Juliet Macchi, Grade 6, Virginia Beach; Richard Pagan, Grade 8, Larkspur; Suki Qiu, Grade 7, Independence; Harleigh Rucka, Grade 7, Virginia Beach; Liya Ann Sabin, Grade 7, ODS; Leonardo Solis, Grade 7, ODS; Priyanshi Swain, Grade 6, ODS.<\/p>\n

High School:<\/u><\/p>\n

Pam Romanne Del Pilar, Grade 10, Landstown; Maha Dharshini.S, Grade 12, Princess Anne ; Alexander Drum, Grade 11, Bayside; Olivia Foster, Grade 9, Tallwood; Zaisha Ipac, Grade 11, Ocean Lakes; Jodie Jiang, Grade 10, Princess Anne; Dominic Savion Eli Jones, Grade 10, Landstown; Kamie Santos, Grade 11, Ocean Lakes; Bella Tian, Grade 12, Landstown; Vivian E. Wallace, Grade 10, Ocean Lakes.<\/p>\n

STAFF \/COMMUNITY HONOREES <\/strong><\/h2>\n

Poetry <\/strong><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>
ODS gifted visual arts teacher Tricia Campbell’s poster entry was one of the winners at “The of Humanity\u201d art show. \u201cYour voice matters,\u201d she wrote in her artist statement.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

LaQuisha R. Banks, Landstown High; Cateena L. Jackson, Landstown High; Dawn S. Jenkins, Tallwood Elementary parent; Emily Jowdy, Thoroughgood Elementary; Zhigen Lin, Achievable Dream High School; Heather McGovern, Fairfield Elementary; Andrea Smolin, Ocean Lakes High; Kimberly Young, Lynnhaven Middle; Meredith Yracheta, Rosemont Forest Elementary; Melissa A. Wallace, Transportation & Fleet Management.<\/p>\n

Artwork <\/strong><\/p>\n

Kimberly Banks, College Park Elementary; Tricia Campbell, ODS; Chicki Jester, ODS family member; Lisa Karim, ODS; Joshua Krueger, Kempsville High; Leah Krueger, ODS; Catherine Lawson, Providence Elementary; Mary C. McLaughlin Seys, Bayside Elementary.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>
Winners of “The Art of Humanity” poster and poetry contest were treated to a reception and presented ribbons and certificates at Tallwood High School April 2.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\"\"<\/a>
The fourth annual Season for Nonviolence poetry and poster contest was organized by the VBCPS Office of Opportunity and Achievement, led by Director Ty Harris.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\"\"<\/a>
Twenty canvas banners produced by beach public schools and offices were also displayed during “The Art of Humanity” art show April 2 at Tallwood High School.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

By Cindy Butler Focke The Season for Nonviolence was celebrated April 2 at Tallwood High School. Several hundred VBCPS students, staff members and families attended \u201cThe Art of Humanity\u201d show […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":12,"featured_media":15004,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[6,10],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-14996","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-community-connections","category-featured"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.vbcpsblogs.com\/core\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/14996","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.vbcpsblogs.com\/core\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.vbcpsblogs.com\/core\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.vbcpsblogs.com\/core\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/12"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.vbcpsblogs.com\/core\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=14996"}],"version-history":[{"count":16,"href":"https:\/\/www.vbcpsblogs.com\/core\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/14996\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":15030,"href":"https:\/\/www.vbcpsblogs.com\/core\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/14996\/revisions\/15030"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.vbcpsblogs.com\/core\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/15004"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.vbcpsblogs.com\/core\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=14996"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.vbcpsblogs.com\/core\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=14996"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.vbcpsblogs.com\/core\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=14996"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}