In an age when arts education in public schools can find itself on the chopping block, parents in the Dieringer School District are making sure their program never runs out of Monet.

Students of Dieringer Heights and Lake Tapps elementary schools recently collected their paintings into two hallway spanning murals. Each student’s square is an emulation of Wassily Kandinsky’s “Color Study: Squares with Concentric Circles.”

Lake Tapps principal Connie GeRoy points out the unique personal flair lent to each design. On one painting, a student formed the circles out of a checkerboard pattern. On another, a single circle emanates a sunburst of dots forming concentric rings. Other students eschewed entirely the concept of each circle being a single solid color, creating interlocking semi- or quarter-circles.

Different versions of the same core design were the point of Kandinsky’s famous 1913 painting. In the halls of these two schools, the idea is merely crowdsourced.

GeRoy said projects like the mural were made possible by the hundreds of hours put in by Art Docent program leader Kimm Lytle and volunteers.

The murals were created under the Art Docent program, sponsored by the Parent Teacher Association and led by Lytle.

Fifty parent volunteers teach 40 classes spread across both elementary schools.

“This program is a huge success because of all the time and energy these volunteers give each month,” Lytle said. “They organize the art lessons, collect the supplies, give a short lesson about an artist who has impacted the art world, and complete an art project inspired by the artist.”

Each parent volunteer teaches an average of six art classes over the course of a school year.

More information about the program is available from www.artdocent-dieringer.com.