RANGELEY – Rangeley Lakes Regional School and VSA arts of Maine announce the receipt of a $1,000 Teamwork for Kids grant from the Maine Support Network. Additional funding also has been provided by Rangeley Friends of the Arts.

The grant will allow ninth-graders at Rangeley Lakes Regional School to work with local, visually impaired basket-maker Victoria Oakes to learn more about regional history and basketry through a VSA arts of Maine coordinated residency program.

The Teamwork for Kids grant was designed to provide opportunities for parents to become more involved in their children’s education through innovative educational opportunities.

A family gathering for students and their families will take place from 7 to 8:30 p.m. Friday, Oct. 14, at the Rangeley Lakes Regional School. Victoria Oakes, the Rangeley Historical Society and the Rangeley Lakes Region Logging Museum will present information. Refreshments will be served.

Ninth-graders will work with Oakes in making their own “pack baskets,” which have played a role in the forestry and fishing industries of the region. Student weaving will be documented throughout the residency, and the photos will be submitted to the Rangeley Historical Society archives.

In addition, students will compile an oral history of regional basketry through their English curriculum. The residency promotes full accessibility for students and community members to the arts and cultural lives of their communities, while supporting innovative and cross-curricular arts and cultural opportunities for all students.

“In addition to celebrating the art and abilities of people,” said Rachel Spatz, program coordinator, “this residency provides a rich cultural and educational resource to the students and community of Rangeley.”

VSA arts of Maine is a nonprofit organization and is Maine’s official affiliate of VSA arts, an international nonprofit organization founded in 1974 by Jean Kennedy Smith to promote education and lifelong learning opportunities in the arts for people with disabilities.

For more information, contact VSA arts of Maine at 761-3861 v/TTY, or visit www.vsartsmaine.org.