Students from four Sarasota County elementary schools will spend a hands-on afternoon with the arts next week, as Any Given Child Sarasota returns to the Rosemary District for its second annual Paint, Print & Dance in the Rosemary event. Last year saw 35 rising third graders from Alta Vista Elementary School exploring their creative side alongside artists from Alfstad& Contemporary, Sarasota Contemporary Dance and Grace Howl Contemporary Art, but this year the program expands to include third grade classes from Gocio Elementary, Tuttle Elementary and Emma E. Booker Elementary as well.

The program comes as an offshoot of Sarasota County Schools’ Summer Learning Academy programs, which are designed to not only help students advance their learning during the summer months, but also prevent what educators refer to as the “summer slide,” when students can actually regress due to lack of stimulation. Designed to be academically engaging while encouraging a strong STEAM approach, cultural exploration plays a key role.

“By taking students to places they may not have experience with, we’re hoping to get them excited about learning, and know that experiential learning can happen beyond the classroom,” says Brian Hersh, program director for Any Given Child Sarasota. “In that way, students can start to see why learning matters and to see what it can translate to in the real world.”

And so, Monday through Thursday of next week, each class will spend one afternoon in the Rosemary District, dividing into groups of three and rotating through what Hersh refers to as “The Rosemary Triangle.” At Sarasota Contemporary Dance, the students will learn about different types of dance, as well as exploring their own abilities and the joy of movement, while at Grace Howl Contemporary Art each will try their hand with the paints. In the wake of Alfstad& Contemporary’s closing, its spiritual successor and Sarasota’s newest printshop—Alfstad& Editions—picks up the slack, with artist Chris Schumaker again showing the kids the ropes.

Each student will bring home a souvenir or two, Hersh says, but the greatest takeaway will likely be unseen. “Impacts are always different for each student, which is incredibly valid,” he says, and educators never know what will resonate with an individual pupil. “That’s why we have to keep giving different opportunities to our students, because we may not know what sparks their interest, but we owe it to our students to find out.”

The next step, Hersh says, will be to get the parents involved. 

Pictured: Chris Schumaker helping Alta Vista students at the 2018 inaugural Paint, Print & Dance in the Rosemary event. Courtesy of Any Given Child Sarasota.

With a plethora of local favorites, Mattison's Restaurants has decided to extend their Savor Sarasota specialized lunch and dinner menus through July. The menus, available at all three Mattison’s locations, offer a 3-course lunch special for $16 and a 3-course dinner for $32, Mattison's offers superb entrees at a superb price. Known for their local ingredients, casual atmosphere, and Chef Paul Mattison's distinct flair on quintessential American dishes- this offer is one you will not want to miss. Whether you're craving their classic Niman Ranch Spaghetti Bolognese featuring noodles submerged in their traditional slow-cooked meat sauce or have a hankering for their flourless chocolate espresso torte smothered with fresh raspberries and crème anglaise, Mattison's will allow you to indulge your tastebuds without indulging your wallet.  

Mattison’s City Grille, 1 North Lemon Ave., Sarasota, 941-330-0440

Mattison’s Forty-One, 7275 Tamiami Trail, South Sarasota, 941-921-3400

Mattison’s Riverwalk Grille, 101 Riverfront Blvd., Bradenton, 941-986-9660

Mattison’s is a member of Nosh, SRQ magazine's content marketing program for local restaurants. Image provided by Mattison's. 

Click here to visit Mattison's website

Fawley Bryant Architecture (FBA), a full-service architecture and interior design firm with offices in Bradenton and Sarasota, has announced that Sarah Colandro has been awarded the honor of Fellowship by the American Society of Interior Designers (ASID). As the Society’s highest honor, the fellowship is awarded to less than 1% of all ASID members.

Serving as FBA’s Director of Interior Design for more than nine years, Colandro has been active on several ASID chapters, served on the ASID National Board of Directors, the Legislative Advisory Council, research panels, a special task force and on the International Board of the Interior Design Continuing Education Council. In addition to her national contributions, Colandro regularly mentors interior design students and supports interior design programs at local colleges. She also serves on the boards of the Manatee County Coalition on Homelessness, the Manatee Education Foundation and Leadership Manatee Board of Governors. 

Fawley Bryant Architecture

Frontier Airlines has announced it will add nonstop service from Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky International Airport (CVG) to the Sarasota Bradenton International Airport (SRQ). Service between CVG and SRQ will begin on October 10, 2019, with flights three times a week on Tuesday, Thursday and Sunday. Service is seasonal, and frequency and times are subject to change, so check FlyFrontier.com for the most updated schedule. To celebrate these new routes, Frontier is offering special introductory fares.

Frontier also announced that its nonstop service to Philadelphia (PHL) would return on November 14, 2019 with flights three times a week on Sunday, Tuesday, and Thursday. Frontier currently provides year-round service to Cleveland, OH (CLE) two times a week, on Monday and Friday. 

Frontier Airlines

Seven teens from Boys & Girls Clubs of Sarasota County were selected to participate in the Ocean Guardians Program at Mote Marine Laboratory & Aquarium this summer. After successfully completing a competitive application and panel interview process, the following Boys & Girls Clubs members were accepted into this 9-week program: Lei’Asha Battle, junior at Riverview High School; Jordan Blake, a junior at Sarasota High School; Gabriel Burger, a sophomore at North Port High School; Angelo Gutierrez, a senior at Sarasota Military Academy; Desmen Lee, a sophomore at Booker High School; Woodrow Stewart, a junior at Suncoast Polytechnical High School; and Cooper Zigmond, a junior at Sarasota Military Academy.

As Ocean Guardians, the teens will work side-by-side with Mote professionals to gain real-world experience and practice valuable job skills such as communication, public speaking, collaboration and time management while learning about the world’s oceans, exploring careers in marine science and ocean conservation and earning either a stipend or volunteer hours. 

Boys & Girls Clubs of Sarasota County

Richard R. Gans, a shareholder in the law firm of Fergeson Skipper has been honored by Super Lawyers with inclusion on two exclusive Top Lists—the Top 50: 2019 Tampa Bay Super Lawyers list and the Top 100: 2019 Florida Super Lawyers listing. Representing no more than five percent of lawyers in the state, Super Lawyers is a rating service of outstanding lawyers from more than 70 practice areas who have attained a high-degree of recognition and professional achievement. Using a multi-phase screening process that combines peer nominations and evaluations with independent research, the annual listing is intended to be a credible and comprehensive resource for those seeking legal counsel.

As a shareholder and past president of Fergeson Skipper, Gans concentrates his practice in wills, trusts and estates. He has been named to Super Lawyers consecutively since 2007 and has also been listed in Best Lawyers in America from 2010-2018. 

Fergeson Skipper

Ashley Oney has been named Lead Design Manager for Trade Mark Interiors, the Sarasota-based company specializing in custom interior design and event solutions for luxury residences, condominiums and executive offices throughout southwest Florida. Oney holds a bachelor’s degree in interior design and has experience working with both residential and commercial clients. She previously served as a lead designer for Bloomin’ Brands, a Fortune 500 company that owns such leading national brands as Fleming’s, Carrabba’s and Bonefish Grill, and as an interior designer for one of the country’s leading national model home companies. 

Trade Mark Interiors

There's still time to connect with the team at SRQ Magazine | Live Local and Love Local for the 2019 Readers Engagement Survey. We invite readers to share their thoughts on how they want to enjoy their time with the magazine—from the types of stories we cover to the way we lay them out in our pages. We want to know what you'd like to see more of in our coverage. Thank you for sharing your insights with us. Click below to take the survey before it closes on July 1st. 

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