This May, the Riverside Arts Center will host an exhibit featuring the work of students from Ypsilanti Community Schools.
RAC has hosted this exhibition, which is a partnership between the center and YCS, for the last four years, said Maggie Spencer, operations manager for RAC, in a written statement to The Eastern Echo.
Inclusion in the exhibition is open to all YCS schools, Spencer said.
"Art teachers select the artwork from student projects created throughout the school year, so the show is a wonderful reflection of what students have been making and learning across the district," Spencer said in the statement.
Spencer also noted that this exhibition will include work from the Ypsilanti Future History Project, an ongoing collaboration between Ypsilanti artist Nick Azzaro and YCS arts and social studies classes.
"Students have been responding to prompts about Ypsilanti's past, present and future, creating visual 2D and 3D works," Spencer said in the statement. "It's a really special body of work."
The prompts tackle influential people, events and landmarks, such as Benjamin Neely and his pro-union initiatives, and Lyman Decatur Norris and his role in the Dred Scott v. Emerson (later Sanford) case, the project website states.
Stacey Schwartz, the head of the art department at Ypsilanti Community Schools, said in a statement to The Echo that teachers from each school will be submitting 20 pieces of student artwork to represent the school for the RAC exhibition. One exception is teacher Jeff Trax, who teaches at two schools and will submit 20 works from each.
Schools featured include Erickson, Estabrook, Perry and Holmes elementary schools; Puentes Multilingual School; Ypsilanti Middle School; and Ypsilanti High School, as well as students from the online school program.
The opening reception for this annual exhibition will take place May 1, 2026, 5-7 p.m. at the Riverside Arts Center, located at 76 N. Huron St., Ypsilanti. The exhibition is open May 1-25, 2026. $5 donations are encouraged to help fund RAC and the expansion of its programs.
For more information, contact RAC at info@riversidearts.org, or call 734-480-2787.
