Student artwork will once again hang in Clerk of the Circuit Court & Comptroller offices throughout Palm Beach County, with the return of the Clerks for Arts program in the 2023-24 school year.
The Clerk’s Office is teaming up with art teachers and students at Palm Beach County’s newest high school, Dr. Joaquín García High School, for this unique project where students create works of art to display for the public at office locations throughout Palm Beach County.
Students celebrate the completion of their work during a “gallery” opening, then their pieces are displayed for a year before being sold at an online auction. All proceeds raised from the auction go back to the school’s art program.
Palm Beach County Clerk & Comptroller Joseph Abruzzo said he is excited to bring back the Clerks for Arts program in partnership with the new high school.
“Clerks for Arts is a great opportunity for young artists to showcase their talents and have their art seen by the thousands of people who come to our offices each year,” Abruzzo said. “Studies show a relationship between the arts and students’ academic success, and it is our privilege to support programs that contribute to student achievement.”
As part of its partnership with Dr. Joaquín García High School, the Clerk’s Office donated a total of $2,000 to buy art supplies. Clerk’s Office employees who participated in a dress-down fundraiser during the month of August donated $1,000, and Abruzzo made a personal donation to match his employees’ contribution.
“This donation is just the start of what we believe will be a successful and longstanding partnership between the Clerk’s Office and Dr. García High,” Abruzzo said.
Clerks for Arts launched its first partnership with Conniston Middle School in 2016, raising more than $11,000 for the school’s arts education programs.
Dr. Joaquín García High School Principal Oscar Otero served as principal at Conniston during the first edition of Clerks for Arts and said the program provided valuable experiences to his students, in and out of the classroom.
He looks forward to taking the partnership to a bigger scale at Dr. Joaquín García High School.
“We are excited to work with Clerk Abruzzo and the entire team at the Clerk’s Office,” Otero said. “This is an excellent opportunity to show our entire community what the students at Dr. García High can do and share their artistic talents throughout Palm Beach County.”
