WINSTON-SALEM — Winston-Salem/Forsyth County Schools, in collaboration with Modern Automotive, will showcase student art at a Spring Arts Extravaganza at the Milton Rhodes Center for the Arts in downtown Winston-Salem. The “Extravaganza” is one of the region’s largest and most popular art shows and features the best artwork from elementary, middle schools and high schools in the system, including painting, drawing, sculpture, photography and mixed media. Hundreds of students, parents and family members, teachers and art enthusiasts attend.

This year the Spring Arts Extravaganza will be two separate events — a joint event for middle and high schools, and a separate event for elementary schools.

The middle school and high school exhibition will be held Tuesday, March 5, through Saturday, March 9, at the Sawtooth School in the Milton Rhodes Center for the Arts (251 North Spruce Street in Downtown Winston-Salem). Judging will be done on Wednesday, March 6, and ribbons placed. A reception, which is free and open to the public, will be held from 5 to 7 p.m., Friday, March 8. Modern Automotive’s “Artists of the Future” contest winners and certificate recipients will be announced at the March 8 reception.

The elementary school exhibition will take place Tuesday, March 26, through Monday, April 1, in Mountcastle Forum at the Milton Rhodes Center for the Arts. Judging will be done by Modern Automotive representatives on Wednesday, March 27, and ribbons placed. The elementary school reception, which is free and open to the public, will be held from 5 to 7 p.m., Friday, March 29.

Modern Automotive’s “Artists of the Future” elementary school contest winners and certificate recipients will be announced at the March 29 reception. Opening night will have special, hands-on art activity for kids sponsored by The Sawtooth School for Visual Art, and children may take their work home as souvenirs.

Randy Eaddy, president and CEO of The Arts Council, said, “Enhancing arts education in our Winston-Salem/Forsyth County schools and touching every student is one of our core missions. Study after study has shown that arts strengthen the educational process, help keep at-risk students engaged, and create the kind of creative thinking that is important for success in the 21^st century.” Eaddy noted that The Arts Council, in partnership with Wells Fargo, provides “Arts in Education” grants that benefit nearly every child in the school system each year.

“When parents and others come to these annual exhibitions, they see immediately the amazingly high level of art instruction our students receive across all disciplines. It is a source of great pride for students, teachers, friends and relatives and the entire arts community,” Eaddy said. “Our annual Community Fund for the Arts is in full swing right now, and we let potential contributors know their dollars will help The Arts Council and the school system keep offering this vital arts programming. It’s a wise investment in the futures of our children that produces huge dividends.”

Modern Automotive, which has six dealerships in the region with its flagship operation — Modern Chevrolet — in Winston-Salem, will award Sawtooth School scholarships valued at $250 each to winners in each division, along with a family membership to the Sawtooth School. In addition, the students will appear in a TV commercial for the company. Runners up will receive student memberships in the Sawtooth School. The art teachers of the three winners will receive certificates to purchase supplies for their classrooms.