Junior League seeks to beautify, inspire with Sabal Palm mural

Sabal Palm Elementary is a Community Partnership School, which means that they partner with local organizations in order to provide their students with additional resources.

One of Sabal Palm’s partners is the Junior League of Tallahassee, an organization whose mission is to advance women’s leadership for meaningful community impact through volunteer action, collaboration, and training.

This summer, the Junior League partnered with Sabal Palm to fund a mural for the school’s campus, brightening the entryway and integrating art into the fabric of the school, just as it opens on Thursday, Aug. 10.

Other partners include FAMU, Children’s Home Society of Florida, and FSU Primary Health, providing students with healthcare, mentoring, counseling, and other valuable resources for Sabal Palm’s student population.

“As an organization committed to helping the children in our community flourish, we look forward to this mural igniting imagination and inspiring young minds," said Carla Juarez Farley, President of the Junior League. "We hope that through art, we can help instill a sense of pride and belonging for the students, families, and staff at Sabal Palm Elementary.”

The idea for the mural came from Sabal Palm’s principal, Shannon Davis.

Davis said that when she first started as principal, she walked around the campus and noticed all of the white, sterile walls.

“It’s very institutionalized when you just see white walls around you,” Davis said. But she didn’t want just any mural; she wanted an inspirational mural that would boost campus morale and be representative of the student population she serves. “Students need to see other children that look like them,” Davis said. When the Junior League started their two-year partnership with Sabal Palm, Davis knew that a mural project would be part of their partnership.

The artists chosen to complete the mural, Sarah and Cosby Painter-Hayes, were selected by Davis and her team in-part because of their attention to detail in their representative work, perfectly capturing the twinkle in a child’s eye or the light behind a smile.

“Our design was inspired by the Junior League’s mission, Sabal Palm’s mission, and creating happy, healthy, and inspired students,” said Sarah Painter-Hayes. The design features a retro take on Sabal Palm’s school colors; red, white, and blue, with a representation of a young girl throwing a paper airplane. The airplane, while evoking thoughts of play and whimsy, is also a nod to Sabal Palm’s history as an airfield, prior to its transformation into an elementary school.

The Junior League of Tallahassee has a two-year partnership contract with Sabal Palm Elementary. Davis said that the Junior League helped her, “create a more friendly, inviting learning environment for students.” Some of their partner projects include campus beautification through planting flowers, creating a Zen Den for teachers to decompress, and now, a large-scale mural towards the entrance of the school.

Olivia Buschardt is the Community Director for the Junior League, meaning that she oversees all the organization’s community projects, including the Sabal Palm mural. Buschardt stated, “we’re seeing the mural as our lasting legacy at Sabal Palm.”

When asked about the importance of arts education for her students, Davis said, “arts education gives our students not just an outlet to be able to express themselves, but it also inspires them to want to do more… I couldn’t imagine life without art.”

It’s so important for a student to feel like they’re excelling at something, and for many students, that thing is art. Sarah noted, “arts education isn’t siloed, when you’re learning about art you’re learning about empathy and self-discovery, its community, its processing your emotions. Arts education is important for education as a whole.”

Placing a mural front and center on the school’s campus communicates the importance of a well-rounded education for Sabal Palm students, while also inspiring excellence in what they do. Towards the end of our discussion, Principal Davis said, “this is something I’ve wanted for a while… I’m really excited about it.”

Davis also reiterated that the mural project would not have been possible without the Junior League, expressing her utmost gratitude for the organization. The mural was completed just in time for teachers to return back to campus on Aug. 2, presenting them with something new, beautiful, and inspiring to get them excited for school to start on Aug. 10.

Sahara Lyon is the Arts Education Manager for the Council on Culture and Arts. COCA is the capital area's umbrella agency for arts and culture (tallahasseearts.org).

This article originally appeared on Tallahassee Democrat: Junior League of Tallahassee funds inspiring mural at school