Brunswick Acres Elementary Wins $5,000 Grant from KRIS Wine to Support Arts Education Programs

NEW YORK --(Business Wire)--

KRIS, one of America's fastest growing Italian wines, in partnership with Americans for the Arts, the nation's leading organization for advancing the arts and arts education, has awarded a $5,000 grant to Brunswick Acres Elementary school (Kendall Park, New Jersey) in support of quality arts education programs. Funds from the third annual "Art of Education" grant program come at a crucial time as budget cuts threaten arts education programs across the country.

Receiving 16,000 out of 90,000 total votes cast by consumers on KRIS Wine's Facebook page, Brunswick Acres was the top awarded school in the KRIS Wine "Art of Education" program. Art Teacher Suzanne Tiedemann and her students got creative in encouraging votes by filming videos which included a parody of the popular song "Call Me Maybe" by Carly Rae Jepsen that reminded parents to "Vote B.A. Daily" (http://vimeo.com/51372195).

"I am blessed to be able to work with amazing students, parents and colleagues who were so dedicated to helping us win this grant," said Tiedemann. "This donatio from KRIS Wine will go a long way in helping supplement our significantly cut art budget for years to come."

With this grant, the school plans to support the "Shells for NJ Shores" program for which students will create and sell seashell themed artwork to raise money for Hurricane Sandy recovery efforts (http://shellsfornjshores.weebly.com/). "I would like to create an opportunity for my students that would raise awareness about Sandy, give them a voice and an opportunity to help with the recovery efforts for those who lost everything," said Tiedemann.

The remaining $20,000 has been awarded to the 15 schools that received the next highest votes during the contest. Schools in second through sixth place each received $2,000, and the remaining 10 schools received $1,000 each. Americans for the Arts will partner with KRIS to channel donations to the winning schools. For a full list of winners visit the Art of Education contest tab on KRIS Wine's Facebook (News - Alert) page.

About KRIS Wine

Handcrafted in Alto Adige using grapes sourced from Italy's most exciting growing regions, KRIS is a product of seventh generation winemaker Franz Haas and his wife, Maria Luisa Manna Haas. In KRIS, Franz and Maria have combined their expertise and passions to develop a series of contemporary expressions of classic varietal wines reflective of the unique personality of Northeast Italy. For more information, please visit www.kriswine.com.

About Americans for the Arts

Americans for the Arts is the leading nonprofit organization for advancing the arts and arts education in America. With offices in Washington, D.C. and New York City, it has a record of more than 50 years of service. Americans for the Arts is dedicated to representing and serving local communities and creating opportunities for every American to participate in and appreciate all forms of the arts. Additional information is available at www.americansforthearts.org.