The Arts Philosophy

Here at Covenant, we believe the Arts are central to being human. If you are a living, created human being, young or old, then we would expect you to be exhibiting your creativity in any number of ways. Therefore, we provide a wide variety of experiences in the Arts for all of our students, Pre-K through Grade 12. Some of these are across-the-board requirements, some are electives for those who want to go farther, dig deeper and reach higher, and some are extra-curricular initiatives.

Jerry King, Arts Director

If our school is about the business of forming full, whole people, then doing some creative work in the arts is not so much an addition to an educational experience but a stream running somewhere right near the center of it.

An Interdisciplinary Approach

We understand the Arts rightfully occupy a place right at the heart of the school culture. So it is normal for us to work cross-disciplinarily, not only between sectors of our own department but also with Literature, Science, History, and even Math! A Gerard Manley Hopkins poem can be the launch point for a Visual Art project in typography, composition, layout design, and low-relief paper sculpture. Western hemisphere migratory flyways will appear as a two-story hanging curtain sculpture, seemingly of multi-colored abstract shapes, but actually depicting scientific data points. Every project we do has layers and facets from several other domains to ground and fortify media exploration and skill development.

    • Jerry King

      Arts Director

Meet the Arts Director

Mr. Jerry King has a BA in Studio Art from Kenyon College, where he arranged for and sang in an A Capella group, designed, acted, and painted for the theatre department, and helped launch the dance program. His Graduate work is in Art History, English as a Second Language (ESL), and Theology. 

After operating a graphic design and illustration business for six years, he and his wife taught college-level English in China. Returning to the States because of their expanding family, Mr. King entered full-time ministry, which became a 25-year endeavor including campus ministry, multi-ethnic urban pastoring, and serving as Senior Pastor for an L-Abri-like congregation.

Mr. King has written and staged various scripts, songs, and scores in churches, schools, and communities, and has assisted in local stage design work for Live Arts and Four County Players. 

Before coming to Covenant, Mr. King taught at Mansfield Christian School and Olney Friend School, both in Ohio, and Blue Ridge School in Virginia. 

    • Cee-Jay Renner-Thomas

      Hickory Visual Arts

    • Julie Nemeyer

      Lower School Music

    • Ethan Mitchell

      Hickory Theater

    • Riley Gildea

      Lower School Art

    • Dan Warren

      Hickory Campus Music

    • Andrew Irving

      Photography 3 & 4

    • Robyn Iler

      Photography 1 & 2, Yearbook

The Covenant School

Birdwood Campus | Lower School | Pre-K–Grade 5 |
1000 Birdwood Road Charlottesville, VA 22903 | 434.220.7309

Hickory Campus | Middle and Upper School | Grades 6–12 | 175 Hickory Street Charlottesville, VA 22902 | 434.220.7329
Located in Charlottesville, VA, The Covenant School is a non-denominational, private, Christian day school for Pre-Kindergarten through Grade 12. Students benefit from a challenging academic program, visual and performing arts, competitive athletics, and a wide selection of extracurricular activities.
Copyright © 2023, The Covenant School