Kids may not be hopping on a bus and heading into the Great Outdoors away from home, but thanks to the team at South Arkansas Arts Center, summer camp isn’t out of the equation. As a response to the Arkansas Health Department’s directives about day camps not operating as usual this year, SAAC will offer a series of fun, flexible and free online camps for students of all skill levels. The first class begins June 1, and registration is now open.

“It’s hard for us to imagine a summer without our wonderful campers filling the building every day,” said SAAC executive director Laura Allen. “But we are so excited about the prospect of offering our students a virtual option that will be able to fit every family’s schedule and budget. These tuition-free, virtual lessons will be available to any budding artist at any age!”

Many of SAAC’s Arts Academy teachers will be available through virtual class videos that will be streamed directly on computers, tablets or smartphones. Students can complete these classes on their own schedule and at their own pace. The most exciting part? Virtual Summer Camps and the accompanying bag of art supplies will be available free of charge to the entire community thanks to grant funding from the SHARE Foundation and the Union County Community Foundation, as well as corporate sponsorship by First Financial Bank, according to a press release.

Beginning the week of June 1, a new set of free virtual lessons will be released each week. Videos will be available directly on the SAAC website and through their Facebook page. Students can choose to complete the lessons day by day, week by week, or save them up to complete all at once in an art extravaganza. Students will be able to access visual art with Maria Villegas, Jorge Villegas, Mike Means, and Katie Harwell, as well as story telling and ballet with Stephanie Lowrey, Elizabeth Wood, and Cami Lowrey, and performing arts with Jacob George, according to a press release.

Free art supply bags are available for the first 250 students who register, as well as a free SAAC T-shirt while supplies last. Registration is not required to access the lessons, just to receive the free bag of art supplies. Parents can sign students up by filling out the form on the SAAC website, or register over the phone at 870-862-5474. The SAAC teachers are eagerly waiting by the phones!

For more information on virtual summer camps, please call the SAAC office at 870-862-5474 or visit the website to sign your kids up for this fun way to experience art in a new way. SAAC is located at 110 East Fifth Street, El Dorado, Arkansas.