Family arts

Welcome to the RN&R’s first family guide of 2015. This time around, we’ve focused on fine arts, and the many ways in which creativity and self-expression benefit Reno kids and their parents.

With them in mind, we’ve included a Q-and-A with Washoe County School District’s fine-arts coordinator and music supervisor, Julye Neel, who tells us about the many ties between local schoolchildren, the University of Nevada, Reno, and award-winning organizations like the Reno Philharmonic. She also explains the arts’ crossover benefits in academia, and she imparts tips for parents on a budget: how to spend next-to-nothing on live music, for example, or forgo sticker shock when your child decides to play an expensive instrument.

Meanwhile, Ashley Hennefer—a self-dubbed theater nerd—relays some artsy coming-of-age tales of her own, and Jessica Santina delves into the details of UNR’s fine-arts outreach program, which serves tens of thousands of kids and has a $13 million impact on Northern Nevada each year. You’ll also meet Kia Crader, a veteran dancer who runs an all-ages special-needs program with the help of her sons, and offers a variety of other classes at her family-oriented studio.

If we can be sure of anything, it’s that everyone wants the best for their kids, that all family time is at a premium, and that a foray into the arts never hurt anyone.

So thanks for reading. And hey, feel free to turn this into origami when you’re done.

Georgia Fisher

Special Projects Editor