Dean Vaccaro, a U.S. History Teacher during the day and the Carver Lead Program Coordinator at our R.A.M.S. after-school program at Roton Middle School, shared these images of his students painting pumpkins in time to take them home for Halloween.

Stefanie Bronner, a Roton Middle School art teacher, inspired and led this project again this year.

Our after-school programs occur within the student's respective schools and are led by each school’s daytime certified teachers. Recreational, wellness, and cultural components enhance a variety of skills for children. Our primary goal is for all Carver students to transition to the next grade on time and prepared.

Along the way, another goal is for our students to have fun each day!

If you ask us, pumpkins are the best Halloween decorations. But unless you possess master carving skills, all those intricately carved creations can be slightly intimidating. An easy no-carve idea for pumpkins is to paint the gourds. It's fun for our students to show off their creativity (without having to deal with all those pumpkin guts). And that's not the only benefit to painted pumpkins — they also tend to last much longer than their carved brethren.