Juneau artist Jim Fowler has taught after-school art programs since 1998 through a collaboration between the Juneau Arts and Humanities Council and the Alaska Housing Finance Corporation. On May 25, he was recognized as he retires from teaching art at Geneva Woods and Cedar Park. The program lasted through the summer and was open to all kids for years, said JAHC executive director Nancy DeCherney. With the last grant cycle, it became school-year only.
Fowler started at Cedar Park in 1998 intending it to be temporary. “I enjoyed the kids and friendships we built and the Arts Council let me stay on,” he wrote in an email.
Years later, he moved to Geneva Woods. “Over the years I developed a tolerance for letting kids create messes that had no down side other than I had to clean them up,” he wrote.
DeCherney wrote that Corry Isabell, Juneau Family Investment Center manager, had said “I don’t think there is anyone on any of our sites who has made a greater impact on our kids.”
