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Visual art teacher Katherine Hudson and band and chorus teacher Rodney Milton started Aycock Middle School’s annual Celebration of the Arts three years ago as a way to celebrate and bring awareness to Youth Art Month.

“Aycock takes pride in the arts,” Hudson said. “This event is a way to showcase the hard work of the students and to celebrate the importance the arts have in our school.”

This year’s Celebration of the Arts, which is open to the community, is from 5 to 7 p.m. Tuesday in the school’s auditorium. Admission is free.

The Art Club will have activity stations where students can do arts and crafts, and there will be performances by the school’s chorus and newly created step team and gospel choir. There will be face painting and caricatures, and student and faculty art will be auctioned as a fundraiser for the art department. Starting bids will be around $5.

“We have opened this event to the community as a way to reach out and invite everyone to be a part of our school through experiencing the arts,” Hudson said. “The event will have activities suitable for all ages.”

Light refreshments will be served and donations will be accepted for the art department. Hudson said the arts celebration also is a great opportunity for students who do not take arts courses to have an avenue to enjoy the arts at Aycock.

“They have the chance to interact with other people through the vehicle of the arts,” she said. “The event gives students the opportunity to see that art is not just a hobby but something to value and truly celebrate.”

Contact Jennifer Atkins Brown at 574-5582 or jennifer.brown@news-record.com.