ArtsEd Digest

Volume 1, Issue 9 - July 14, 2009

Welcome to ArtsEd Digest, the new and improved face of the AEP listserv. The ArtsEd Digest is an online publication that allows for the easy access to vital and timely information about arts education from our partners and from the field. It is published twice a month, on the second and fourth Tuesday. Items for inclusion in the upcoming listserv must be submitted by close of business on the first and third Fridays of each month. For example, items for the Digest to be published on Tuesday, July 28 should be submitted by close of business Friday, July 24.

New from the Arts Education Partnership

AEP National Forum Information - "Charting a Course for the Arts and 21st Century Learning"
Registration open now for the Fall National Forum on October 2-3, 2009 in Cambridge, MA! Join us for a lively exploration of the connections and synchronicities between the arts and 21st century learning. This meeting will be hosted by Lesley University. Come early and stay late – participate in our Day of Service activity, an artist lecture on the Lesley Campus, and enjoy all that Cambridge/Boston has to offer!

Confirmed sessions and speakers include:

Opening Plenary: “Take Back the Mic,” an exciting presentation by dynamic performer, artist and activist Derrick Ashong, of the musical group Soulfege
Plenary Panel: “Education Leadership: Redesigning Learning Systems for the 21st Century." Confirmed panelists include Carol Johnson, Superintendent of Boston Public Schools, and Paul Reville, Massachusetts Secretary of Education
Plenary Panel: “Navigating New Waters: Arts Learning and Higher Education Policy, Research and Practice.” Confirmed panelists include Shirley Brice Heath, linguistic anthropologist and international scholar on learning in the arts, and Martha McKenna, Provost, Lesley University. Respondent: David Haselkorn, Associate Commissioner of the Center for Educator Policy, Massachusetts DESE
Plenary Panel on Statewide Initiatives for 21st Century Learning and the Arts. Confirmed panelists include Ken Kay, Executive Director, Partnership for 21st Century Skills, and Susan Sclafani, Director of State Services, National Center for Education and the Economy

Check for updates on confirmed sessions and more information on this Forum by clicking here.

NAEP Arts 2008 - New Toolkit Items Posted
New information on the NAEP Arts 2008 Report has been posted on the Arts Education Partnership's website at http://www.aep-arts.org/NAEP.html.

National Endowment for the Arts to Convene National Summit on Careers in the Arts for People with Disabilities

Contact: Liz Stark, 202-682-5744, starke@arts.gov

Washington, D.C. — More than 70 percent of people with disabilities are not in the labor force, and those who wish to pursue a career in the arts face difficult challenges. On July 22-24, 2009 the National Endowment for the Arts will convene the National Summit on Careers in the Arts for People with Disabilities at the Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts in Washington, DC. This multi-agency summit will gather more than 100 experts to evaluate progress and develop new strategies to advance educational and career opportunities in the arts for people with disabilities. The first such gathering since 1998, the summit’s highlight events include a keynote speech by Kareem Dale, Special Assistant to the President for Arts, Culture, and Disability Policy and two free, public performances by artists with disabilities.

For more information on the public performances and for the full release, please go to http://www.arts.gov/news/news09/Disability-summit.html.

New Project Zero Study -- The Qualities of Quality: Understanding Excellence in Arts Education

Many children in the United States have little or no opportunity for formal arts instruction, and access to arts learning experiences remains a critical national challenge. Additionally, the quality of arts learning opportunities that are available to young people is a serious concern. Understanding this second challenge—the challenge of creating and sustaining high quality formal arts learning experiences for K–12 youth, inside and outside of school—is the focus of a new report from Project Zero at the Harvard Graduate School of Education.

The Qualities of Quality: Understanding Excellence in Arts Education addresses the multiple challenges of achieving and sustaining quality in arts education, across major as well as emerging art forms in rural, urban, and suburban settings. The report is available as a free download from Project Zero and The Wallace Foundation. Hard copies of the report are available from Project Zero at http://www.pzpublications.com/414.html.

Access, Equity, and Quality in Arts Learning Conference - June 18-20, 2009, Seattle, WA

Representatives of arts learning initiatives supported by the Wallace Foundation, the Ford Foundation, the Hewlett Foundation, the Heinz Endowment, and the Grable Foundation—came together on June 18-20 in Seattle for the Access, Equity and Quality in Arts Learning Conference. This conference, planned by the Wallace Foundation with ongoing input from AEP and hosted by Americans for the Arts, provided a unique opportunity for the participants to share ideas; learn from one another; and consider how, seen together, their work constitutes a potent and systemic effort to transform education through arts learning.

Materials from this conference including PowerPoint presentations can be found under the Ford Arts Ed Initiative section of the Arts Education Partnership website under Resources.

CAST "Spolights" VSA Arts' Teaching Practices

CAST is pleased to announce that VSA arts’ teaching practices are currently “Spotlighted” on our website as an excellent example of how the arts can be effectively integrated into core curriculum giving students many more options for accessing, expressing and engaging in learning. This Spotlight on VSA arts explores how the community of teaching artists and managers in VSA arts Massachusetts are using CAST’s research-based UDL Guidelines as a framework to guide their discussions about effective teaching practices. Bravo VSA arts!

Over the past 25 years, CAST has worked to improve instruction and learning, with an initial special focus on individuals with disabilities. Universal Design for Learning (UDL) theory (Rose & Meyer, 2002; Rose, Meyer, & Hitchcock, 2005) serves as a foundation for CAST’s ongoing program of research and development. At the heart of UDL is the recognition of the vast individual differences among students and of the ability of a flexible curriculum to optimize learning for all students. Students with and without disabilities have opportunities to access, participate, and progress in the general education curriculum, with high expectations for their educational outcomes.

Through the UDL Spotlight on the CAST website, we hope to stimulate discussion in the field. CAST will promote the UDL Spotlight features through regular email updates reaching a broad array of educators, national education organizations, policy advocates, curriculum developers and funders. We encourage you to nominate other innovative initiatives, products and practices for recognition. An online nomination form is available at http://udlspotlight.wordpress.com/nominate/.

Employment Opportunity - Executive Director, Perpich Center for Arts Education (PCAE)

The Board of Directors of the Perpich Center for Arts Education (PCAE) is seeking an Executive Director. The Perpich Center for Arts Education (PCAE) was created by statute in 1985. The center is dedicated to improving K-12 arts education for all Minnesota students and educators through innovative programs and partnerships centered in the arts. A 30-acre campus in Golden Valley houses the Center’s three main components: The Professional Development and Research Group (PDR), the Arts High School (AHS), and the PCAE Library.

Working with a management team and a staff of 88, the Executive Director provides leadership and direction in matters of policy, personnel, budgeting, growth and change for the agency. The Executive Director is appointed by the PCAE Board of Directors, who are appointed by the governor. The Executive Director must maintain a close working relationship with the Board in carrying out its policies and directions. The Executive Director must work closely with all external and internal stakeholders, the governor, the legislature, the relevant state offices, and artists and educators statewide.

Board review of applications will begin August 14, 2009. Applications may be submitted by mail, email, or online at http://www.careers.state.mn.us. For further information on the position, agency, or application process, please contact Steve.Greenberg@pcae.k12.mn.us or 763.591.4718.

This message is from the ArtsEd listserv. ArtsEd hosts discussions and communications for the Arts Education Partnership which demonstrates and promotes the essential role of arts education in enabling all students to succeed in school, life and work.

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