From 1929 to 1995, the building originally housed Shumway Junior High School.

Recently, she funded the replacement of the seats in the Royal Durst theatre.

[9] Leslie Durst continues to be a part in helping art students succeed by giving out the Leslie B. Durst scholarship to VSAA students that will continue to pursue the arts in college.

[10] The Latin motto "Ars Longa, Vita Brevis", originally from Greek, translates to "Art Is long, Life Is Short".

Although, staff at the school frequently translate it to the somewhat less metaphorical and marginally erroneous "Life Is Short, Art Is Forever".