• Congratulations to Sydney Kissel, Diana Ovchar, Drew Schulz and Isabelle Stewart who were selected to participate in the 2017 Missouri Fine Arts Academy (MFAA), a three week residential program held June 4 through 24 on the campus of Missouri State University (MSU) in Springfield.  These four students are among the 115 talented high school students from across Missouri who represented a variety of artistic disciplines on the campus of MSU this summer.

    The MFAA seeks to help outstanding high school students achieve their artistic and personal potential and to cultivate their leadership capabilities. The Academy works to expand students’ horizons; to develop students’ flexibility and creativity while increasing their awareness of their future possibilities. Students have the opportunity to enhance their skills in the fields of dance, music, theater, writing, and the visual arts; to participate in intensive, stimulating activities of an interdisciplinary nature; and to explore the roles which the arts (and they as artists) can play in society.

    Participants are drawn from across Missouri and represent the diversity of the state. Students have the chance to make friends with other talented, enthusiastic artists who have demonstrated commitment to their artistic disciplines. The Missouri Fine Arts Academy operates under the auspices of the Missouri Department of Elementary and Secondary Education (DESE) and is fully funded by DESE this year. For more information about the Missouri Fine Arts Academy, please visit their website at www.missouristate.edu/mfaa/.