PLCS Summer School students are spending a full week immersed in visual art, guided by district art teachers Kurt Swanson and Gail Sherrell through a multi-day creative project that is as delicious in concept as it is educational in practice. The week-long enrichment experience invites students to design, plan, and ultimately produce a painted representation of a stacked ice cream treat entirely of their own invention.

The project kicked off on June 9 with the ideation phase, during which students brainstormed the flavors they wanted to feature in their creations and used crayons to plan out colors and patterns. This initial step emphasized the design process — encouraging students to think intentionally about color relationships, composition, and personal expression before putting brush to paper.

Dedicating an entire week to a single sustained art project reflects a purposeful approach to enrichment that mirrors how professional artists work: through planning, revision, and the slow development of an idea into a finished piece. For many students, this kind of extended creative engagement is a highlight of the summer program.

Art teachers Swanson and Sherrell bring their expertise as PLCS visual arts educators to the summer school setting, ensuring that the enrichment experience is grounded in sound arts instruction. Papillion La Vista Community Schools is committed to supporting the arts as a core component of a well-rounded education, and initiatives like this week-long project demonstrate that commitment throughout the year — including over the summer.