Queens Preparatory Academy: Through Love and Hope, Dreams Can Flow

The mural at Queens Prep was the byproduct of extensive collaboration with the school’s art teacher, who helped identify and recruit students for the after school program and also provided access to several of her regular classes. The students chose the theme “Through Love & Hope, Dreams Can Flow,” as they considered life beyond graduation. They focused on two specific characters at the far side of the mural, united by love — represented by the hands forming a heart in the center of the mural — and embarking on a lifelong journey represented by students in the boat, moving forward to their goals.

In addition to our core Queens Prep students, the project drew students from all four of the schools in the co-located building who volunteered to help with the painting after school.

The QPA Lit student newspaper reported on the project:

Students and teachers participated in the creation of this mural, and acknowledge the importance of this collaborative effort. QPA sophomore Patrick Lopez says he was able to learn much more by painting with others. “Some people draw for themselves,” he said. “But when you draw for others you get more happiness.”

Senior Yvens Cantave agrees and shared that the program “helped bring students together.” He believes it helped them have a voice when expressing themselves through the visuals they were able to create.

Learning and Growing Together

QPA art teacher Mr. Akaloo admits he was honored to be part of the project. “It was a wonderful opportunity to learn from a different perspective,” he stated. “Not simply the technique, materials and tools used by these artists, but their process from beginning to end.” He also thinks such projects can invigorate student participation and motivate the community, especially since so many students and passerby were in awe of the activity and the beauty of the mural. “It was wonderful to see how the Thrive organization was able to extract the best sections of student work to recreate this powerful image at the front of our school building,” he said.