During this unique event, the community joined together to launch the first-ever Cranford Artists' Studio Tour. Artists, students, teachers, parents, seniors and businesses all participated to make for a fun-filled, educational and creative experience. The tour, which was an overwhelming success, allowed ticket holders to meet local artists, tour their studios, and learn the artist’s techniques. Cranford artists who were on the tour included: Julie Roffe Barkin, Paul Casale, Robert Chavern, Dori Cudworth, Cynthia Dawley, Timothy Herlocker, Janet Hopkins, Alex Mambach, Neil Molinaro, Deb Leber, David Leber, Dianna Strom and Sharon Sutera. Over 300 people participated in the self-guided tour, which raised over $7,000.
The initiative was sponsored by JCAS, which partnered Cranford Schools and the Newark Museum for the project. JCAS’s President, Cranford artist Deborah Leber stated, “Our goal is to have visual art have more of a presence. This is a fantastic program…We took visual art out of the art classroom and combined it with regular subject matter…the kids loved it.” She worked closely with the school district to implement the program. Dr. Lawrence Feinsod, superintendent, and Dr. Richard Correiro, then director of curriculum, embraced the program. With the cooperation of Dori Cudworth, supervisor of Fine Arts, and Judith Podbelski, supervisor of Social Studies, the program took shape.
All 300 sixth graders in Cranford schools participated in the program as part of their cycle class. First, students visited the Newark museum. Then, they created an art project related to ancient civilizations. “This is an attempt to enliven the curriculum through project-based learning …to foster increased collaboration between disciplines … equip teachers with new strategies, skills and resources for building visual arts and language arts literacy,” Leber said. In addition to the students’ trips, teachers participated in professional development sessions covering topics such as how to design and organize an exhibition; how to write text panels and labels; how to present objects; how to prepare students to be docents and lead tours for the community. There was also a loan program with the museum to bring artifacts to the classroom throughout the school year.

Article by MaryAnn Matlock, DMC magazine editor
We saw the pyramids along the Rahway….Rahway River? Yes, because of JCAS’s “history through art initiative”, the ancient civilizations of Rome and Egypt came to the Cranford Community Center. In May of 2005, Cranford’s sixth grade students displayed their original works of art and cultural materials of the ancient civilizations.