Viewpoint School wins Bravo award

By Daniel Wolowicz danielw@theacorn.com

Photo courtesy: Bonnie Toman Photography BRAVO-Robert Dworkoski, headmaster at Viewpoint School, is all smiles March 1 after accepting a Bravo Award on behalf of the Calabasas independent school.

Every child is an artist. The problem is how to remain an artist once we grow up.

—Pablo Picasso

Viewpoint School Headmaster Robert Dworkoski fosters Picasso’s belief that all children are artists. That philosophy was affirmed when his school recently won the 2005 Bravo Award for excellence in arts and education.

"It was an exhilarating feeling when they announced our school had won," Dworkoski said. "When I was up there on stage accepting the award, I was thinking about everyone who helped make it possible."

The awards ceremony took place inside the Millennium Biltmore Hotel in downtown Los Angeles on Tues., March 1 and was hosted by television personality Garry Marshall. This is the 23rd year for the awards ceremony.

The Bravo Awards are given annually through the education division of the Music Center of Los Angles County. There are three categories honored: arts specialist teacher, generalist teacher and all-around school.

Viewpoint is an independent kindergarten through 12th-grade school located in Calabasas and founded in 1961. The school beat 28 other L.A. County-nominated schools and 11 finalists to win the all-around school award. It tied with Crescenta Valley High School to split the $10,000 award.

Dworkoski attributes his school’s success to the teachers, parents, students and all those involved with volunteering at the school on a day-to-day basis.

Dworkoski said the timing of the award could not have been better as the school is in the midst of constructing a 400-seat theatre for students and the surrounding community.

"The $5,000 award money will be applied to the building expenses of our new performing arts center," Dworkoski said.

All schools within Los Angeles County are eligible. Once nominated by either a superintendent or principal, a school must submit a lengthy application that is ranked.

Lynda Jenner, Bravo Awards producer, said five screeners choose the top 20 applicants and then a nine-judge panel selects the finalists. This year, there were 12 finalists, four in each category.

Once selected, the judges travel to each school, visit classrooms, interview students and faculty, and conduct community meetings to interact with parents. Based on their observations, the judges then select the winners.

"I thought (Viewpoint) was a wonderful school," Jenner said. "The arts program there is a cornerstone of their education. It is very sequential, and the teachers have a lot of training, which is also very important."

Dworkoski pointed out that the heads of each art department are specialists within their chosen disciplines.

"For example, Kristin Herk-stroeter is the chair of our music department, and she holds a Ph.D. in music," Dworkoski said.

The headmaster also said the various arts are taught in each grade and include dance, filmmaking, orchestral music, jazz music, drama, painting, choir, drawing and ceramics. Students are required to play a musical instrument of their choosing by the fourth and fifth grade.

"Within children is the natural desire and eagerness to be artists," said Dworkoski. "And our jobs as educators is to help channel those talents."

According to Dworkoski, arts are interwoven throughout the regular school curriculum to help students better understand art history and how it relates to other fields of study.

Dworkoski applauds the students for their commitment to art, whether it’s before or after school or even on the weekends.

"Our goal is to allow all students to be artists themselves and have a lifelong appreciation of the arts and all they have to offer," Dworkoski said.