Recognizing Albany High’s artists

The creative minds of Albany High School’s art students have been hard at work perfecting their craft this spring. Through a variety of field trips, guest artists, community partnerships and competitions, the students and staff have been busy immersing themselves in all things artistic.  

Most recently, Albany High sophomore Julianna Di Cioccio and junior Manuela Rowena Jimenez brought home first and second place respectively at the seventh annual Building Communities Youth Art Contest on April 22, a partnership between the Albany Barn and Albany County District Attorney’s Office. The contest challenged middle and high school students across Albany County to create artwork highlighting beauty in their community, and Di Cioccio and Jimenez earned the top two distinctions.  

On April 18, 44 Albany High students traveled to the Massachusetts Museum of Contemporary art (Mass MoCA) for a firsthand look at the “Examining Truths" exhibition. The tour allowed students to examine artwork as a means to assess their own assumptions about what makes something “true.” The trip was funded by Mass MoCA, and following the tour students participated in an art-making session to process and respond to the exhibitions and tour content.  

Albany High also flexed its artistic muscles at Bethlehem High School’s Media Arts Festival on April 13, with 18 students entering a variety of works at the creative event celebrating film, graphic arts, photography, electronic music, 3-D and web design.  

In addition to their work in the field, students and staff have also hosted community partners in their classrooms at Albany High. During the week of April 9, students welcomed RPI along with students from Abrookin Career and Technical Center’s Cosmetology Program for a unique interdisciplinary project on the art of corn-row braiding. Albany High also hosted a visit from Becky Brown of the Millay Colony for the Arts, a residency program and artists’ center located in Austerlitz.  

All of these engaging opportunities and more have been organized under the direction of Albany High’s dedicated Art Department staff—Kristine Monahan, Debbie Cronin, Diana Del Giudice, Ashleigh Johns, Diana Jordan, Kayla Ramundo, Thea Resila and Theresa Story—along with City School District of Albany Fine Arts Supervisor Kate Wright. 

To view pictures from these events, click here. (A Facebook account is not necessary to view this content. A window may display the text "To see more from Albany City Schools on Facebook, log in or create an account," but this can be dismissed by clicking "not now.")  

The mission of the City School District of Albanyis to work in partnership with our diverse community to engage every learner in a robust educational program designed to provide the knowledge and skills necessary for success. The district serves more than 9,600 students in 18 elementary, middle and high schools. In addition to neighborhood schools, the district includes several magnet schools and programs, as well as other innovative academic opportunities for students, including four themed academies at Albany High School.