NYS Arts Ed Network News Fall 2008
In this Issue:
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Putting a TAP Grant to work:
Top: Studio assistant Brittany De Nigris operating the Vandercook press at Penland
Bottom: discussing artists' books in class
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Looking Farther, Getting Closer
Amid the busyness of our work on the ground every day, it's always a bit of a challenge to step back for a view of the larger picture, but the effort is always rewarded. When I look out over our state, as we mingle with the nation, the world, and our immediate neighbors, I'm seeing things through the lens of technical assistance – finding what we all need to make our work more compelling and more effective. PAE continues to provide assistance to you and our school, artist, and organization partners through CommonGround (see below) and through our TAP Grant program (also below), which has more than ever to offer.
So what else is out there that brings schools and communities closer to the learning so beautifully modeled by our ESP partnerships?
- Whole school partnerships, in which the arts are intrinsic to school improvement planning, is now an exciting prospect in cities across the country. (You can see some of what's going on at Keep Arts in Schools.) Schools are becoming the nexus of communities of cultural and community organizations that surround and support learning. Out-of-school, after-school, and 21st Century programs are all part of the mix, and enthusiastic about using the arts in ways that are often new to them. Some NYSCA Strategic Foundation Building Retreats are branching out to include broader participation as a result of this thinking.
- Scale-up systems that meet learning and cultural institutions where they are, acknowledging the good work that is already being done, and helping them to grow toward rich arts in education. A PAE “Arts In Mind” model of engagement levels begins to define elemental, access, alignment, integration, and professional development activity that creates a path to achieving fully integrated arts in education.
- Advocacy in a time of economic risk is even more important than ever. The local, state, and national voices that are overlapping to keep our issues and needs on the policy table are combining forces. Americans for the Arts, NYS Alliance for Arts Education, and NYSARTS are reminding legislators and voters that the arts in learning are a critical part of the global future of the United States. PAE maintains representation with each of these activist agencies to keep your daily assistance needs in the mix.
As always, stay in touch, keep your voice strong, and ask questions.
The folks here at PAE are here to maintain your excellence.
Laura Reeder, Executive Director
Technical Assistance
TAP Gives You the Chance to Grow
With the expansion of the Technical Assistance Program this year, PAE is able to make much more funding available to the field so you can grow as a teaching artist, teacher, or partnership. TAP funds are available for hiring AIE consultants, for attendance at workshops or conferences, and for the creation of partnership team retreats. Basically, it will support whatever your partnership needs to improve and/or expand your practice. Upcoming deadlines for TAP for 2008-09 are November 17, January 15, March 16, May 18 and July 1.
Here's what TAP funding has meant to one grantee:
"In August I attended a week long class in printmaking and letterpress at Penland School of Crafts, a national center for craft education located in the Blue Ridge Mountains. Penland's focus on excellence, its long history, and its inspiring retreat setting makes it a model for experiential education. We learned how to set type and print on older presses, stitch three different book forms, create photopolymer plates and stencils , produce monotype and relief prints and construct collage using a dry mount press.
"Since my return I have shared what I learned with two area teaching artists. I will be leading a pamphlet stitch book-making workshop for elementary school teachers in November. The Albany Institute of History & Art will implement a project-based partnership with Carroll Hill this year, and the techniques I learned at Penland will be integrated into the project. The TAP Grant that I received from Partners for Arts Education helped to put me on a new creative path that I hope to be able to share with others for years to come."
-- Erika Sanger, Director of Education, Albany Institute of History & Art
Submit Proposals for CommonGround 2009
Have you got research you're dying to share? Have you been using an assessment tool that helps you identify exactly what your students are learning? Have you found exciting new ways to bring the community into the classroom? We want to know!
It's time to start working on your workshop proposal for CommonGround 2009, to be held March 25 – 27 at the Crowne Plaza in Albany. You can check the guidelines and an application draft at our website to begin preparing your proposal. The deadline for submission is midnight on Monday, November 3.
Resources
Featured Websites
What do the presidential candidates have to say about education and the arts? Check out their positions on their websites:
John McCain's education platform
Barack Obama's education platform
Barack Obama's arts platform
You can also see a summary of the candidates' positions, including statements and speeches, at ArtsVote 2008, a program of Americans for the Arts Action Fund.
Media Buzz
Rand study examines building demand for the arts
A new RAND study for the Wallace Foundation urges policymakers in the arts and education to focus more on
changing public policies to strengthen and expand arts education. Although public funding through the National NEA and state arts agencies, coupled with financial support from major foundations and individual contributors, helped accelerate and sustain the growth of arts-producing organizations in earlier decades, support for arts education has declined, and they find that demand for the arts has not kept pace with supply. What role does arts learning play in the cultivation of demand? Go to the Wallace Foundation site, or click for a PDF of the study.
The Arts, Creative Learning, and Student Achievement
The 2008 Study of Arts Education in Colorado Schools says, "An arts education is essential to academic achievement . . . For today’s students to succeed in school, work and life, they will require a well-rounded education that thoughtfully weaves core subjects with the visual arts, music, theater and dance.. . . The benefits are clear: the new study shows public schools in Colorado that offer more arts education have higher academic achievement and lower dropout rates." The report encourages increased professional development to help teachers infuse the arts into other subjects. Read the full report.
Opportunities
Arts Mentoring for Special Needs Students
Side by Side NYS
Contact: Sharon Scarlata by email or call 518-486-7328.
Side by Side is a six week art mentoring program uniquely designed for children with special needs, ages 7-18, who have been recommended by their school as having an interest in working with a professional artist from their community, and would benefit from one to one instruction.
Depending upon individual need and experience, each student will be matched with one teaching artist from within the community who they will work with for the entirety of the program. The student/TA pair will meet for an hour and half, once a week for a period of 6 weeks. The course of study for each match will depend upon the individual artists’ area of focus, and will be determined by the artist and NYSAAE.
The program is presented by NYSAAE in conjunction with VSA Arts. More information is available at http://www.vsartsnys.org/sidebyside.htm
District-Wide Change in Arts Education
Los Angeles Music Center
October 27–28, 2008
Sponsored by Americans for the Arts and the Los Angeles County Arts Commission
Los Angeles County's successful initiative, Arts for All, is a series of policy changes and educational initiatives intended to institutionalize sequential K-12 arts education in Los Angeles County school districts. At this Knowledge Exchange Arts for All will be a lens for looking at how communities can work to support quality sequential K-12 arts education. Participants will share knowledge, grapple with key questions, and actively synthesize information for applicability to participant communities anywhere in the nation. Get more information.
News from Our Office
Coming Soon – PAE's Online Auction
We are excited to announce our first online auction to benefit PAE! For a few weeks starting in late October, you'll be able to bid on an exciting array of vacation packages, artwork, entertainment, merchant services, and other delights for yourself or for gift-giving. Look for details arriving in your mailbox soon.
If you would like contribute to our catalog of tax-deductible items or services for auction, or would like to become an auction sponsor, please contact Kristin Swift by email or at 315.234.9911.
PAE Welcomes Barbara Pollard to Board
PAE is very pleased to include Barbara Pollard as a member of our Board of Directors. Ms. Pollard is an arts-in-education consultant with extensive experience in program development, fundraising, planning, and evaluation. Her work with NYSCA, NYFA, New York City’s Department of Education, and numerous museums and performing arts organizations give her an expansive view of the field. Ms. Pollard serves as a panelist for the Center for Arts Education and New York City Education Roundtable. She has received Master’s degrees in Organizational Leadership and Education Administration from Columbia University and in Art History from NYU. We know she will be an asset and an inspiration to us!
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Our staff is always available to help you!
www.arts4ed.org or 315-234-9911
Executive Director: Laura Reeder
CNY Community Coordinator: Georgia Popoff
Conference Coordinator : RJ Rapoza
Funding Coordinator: Sue Stonecash
Special Projects: Kristin Swift
Network Coordinator: Connie Walters
(Click on a name to email.)
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The Arts Education Network News is a free service of Partners for Arts Education. All of our programs are made possible with public funds from the NYS Council on the Arts and individual sponsors.
