Four months ago, the walls of DeWitt Clinton High School in Bedford Park were a dull shade of blue. With the help of local dentist Jay Fensterstock, the organization Publicolor, and 87 determined Clinton students, the walls of the school’s second floor and cafeteria now sport vibrant shades of 13 different colors.

“It’s so great to be doing a positive thing for the school,” Clinton junior Maria Shaikh said.

With the project nearly completed for the semester, seven students worked diligently on a recent Friday afternoon to improve the walls of their school while singing along to R & B music blaring from a nearby radio. In addition to touching up their own work, they also spent time repainting a graffiti-vandalized wall and a door that students had peeled the paint off of.

The project was born six months ago when Fensterstock, a Norwood dentist who has practiced in the Bronx for 30 years, went to a charity event for Publicolor, a New York City organization founded in 1996 that encourages creativity and collaboration in public schools throughout the five boroughs. Since 1999, Publicolor has helped to repaint 26 school buildings and 18 community sites in the Bronx.

After learning about Publicolor, Fensterstock thought about the high school down the street from his practice that he described as “drab, institutional, boring [and] in need of a lift.” Fensterstock agreed to fund the project, and in September, Clinton began recruiting interested students to help after school.

“The program allows kids to see the project from beginning to end,” Fensterstock said.

 “It keeps them out of trouble and gives them a sense of being, belonging and accomplishment.”

Painting the school has inspired junior Ellissia Dyer, who wants to become a carpenter. Before joining Publicolor, she had been in disciplinary trouble throughout her time at Clinton. Now she is one of seven Clinton students chosen from the basic Paint Club program to participate in the three-day-a-week paid apprenticeship program, Community of Leaders Organizing Revitalization (COLOR), which offers tutoring sessions and Life Skills/Career Exposure workshops next semester.

The basic Paint Club, a Publicolor program where students learn painting skills and transform schools into “energized environments that feel safe and special,” began at Clinton in early September.  A school-wide vote determined the colors for the walls.

Publicolor site leaders Dave Sokoloff and Adriano Vazquez were sent in to supervise the project. Both agree the students at Clinton are great and do “a high quality job.”

The program is run every day after school and on Saturdays. Students enjoy participating for a variety of reasons. Sophomore Nazim Kharodia said she loved transforming the walls from “a really dull color” into one “that now looks nice.” Junior Ruth Vincent calls her time painting the school “a stress reliever,” while junior Kwame White thinks it’s a great opportunity to meet new people in a school of 4,422 students.

The project concluded on Dec. 15 for the first semester, but students say they’re excited to get back to work in January painting the walls of another floor. In just one afternoon, three teachers walked by, complimented the student workers and thanked them for their hard work.

“Studies have shown that these upgraded schools get better attendance, and teachers are happier as well,” Fensterstock said. “Happy teachers and happy students make a great school.”