Background

Mississippi is blessed with many performers and visual artists who add to the quality of life in communities throughout the state. These artists comprise a group of citizens who can also add to the quality of instruction in our schools. In early 2007, the Mississippi Alliance for Arts Education received a grant from the Dana Foundation. The purpose of the grant is to train artists to work with teachers in school settings so that students may benefit from authentic experiences in specific art forms and to make cross-curricular connections among the arts and other core subjects. Since 2007, the MAAE has trained over 130 artists.

Good News!

In 2010, the Mississippi Alliance for Arts Education received additional funding from the Dana Foundation to offer three workshops for artists who wish to work in Mississippi’s K-12 schools and other venues. The goal of the workshops is to increase the number of artists included in the Mississippi Arts Commission’s Teaching Artist Roster. Schools that engage artists routinely consult this roster for a description of an artist’s skills and a recommendation of the quality of his/her work in the arts and in education.

The Workshops

In each two-day workshop, participants will learn to plan arts experiences for students and how to lead professional development workshops for teachers. Artists will learn to make connections between their art form and what students must know and be able to do. The 2010 series includes a Level II workshop for artists who attended a level Level I workshop between 2007 and fall of 2010. Workshop presenters will be teaching artists from the Mississippi Arts Commission's Teaching Artist Roster and artist/educators affiliated with the Mississippi Alliance for Arts Education.

Sample Agenda

Day 1:  10:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m.

The Role and Importance of Teaching Artists

Artists and Schools – Working Together

Day 2:  8:30 a.m. – 3:30 p.m.

Planning and Presenting an Arts Experience

Reflecting On Work With Students and Teachers

Workshop Dates, Locations and Deadlines:

August 31 - September 1, 2010 – Level I Workshop, Mississippi Department of Education, Jackson, Mississippi
      Application deadline: August 12, 2010

October 11 - 12, 2010 – Level I Workshop, Lynn Meadows Discovery Center, Gulfport, Mississippi
      Application deadline: September 23, 2010

November 8 - 9, 2010 – Level II Workshop, Lauren Rogers Museum of Art, Laurel, Mississippi
      Application deadline: October 21, 2010 

Workshop Application

Performing and visual artists will be selected for the workshops through an application process. Performing artists (dance, music, theatre, storytelling) are eligible to receive a $250 stipend for their participation as a result of the Dana Foundation grant. Visual artists may also apply for the two-day training sessions. There will be no fee for visual artists who are selected to participate through the application process. The MAAE will consider complete applications that are submitted by the stated deadlines. Late or incomplete applications will not be considered.

Who Should Apply?

• Performers and visual artists who have worked in schools offering performances, lessons, demonstrations, and/or professional development for teachers

• Certified arts specialists in the visual and performing arts who are available to travel to schools during the year or to present workshops in their art form during the summer

• Actors, dancers, musicians and visual artists who wish to work with students and teachers in schools

• Performers and visual artists who work in after school programs, juvenile justice centers, community arts projects, etc.

• Museum educators and performing arts center education specialists who work with groups of students or with teachers on a regular basis

• Performers and visual artists who are members of or work with community arts organizations

• Retired teachers, performers, artists and arts specialists

How to apply?

To submit an application on line (preferred), click here.
Note: Applicants will be notified of the status of their application, via e-mail, two weeks prior to the workshop date. Submitting an application is not a guarantee of acceptance into a workshop.

To download and print an application to submit by U.S. Mail, click here for pdf format
or click here for MS Word format.

Become a Teaching Artist!


What is a Teaching Artist?

A teaching artist is a practicing artist with the complementary skills and sensibilities of an educator, who engages people in learning experiences in, through, and about the arts.

 —Eric Booth, Teaching Artist

Why is it important for artists to work in schools?

The creative skills students develop through participation in the arts strengthen and enhance their preparation for living, learning and working in a changing world.

—Susan Sclafani, U. S. Assistant Secretary, Vocational and Adult Education

One of the best ways to nurture creativity, a necessity to prepare for a 21st-century workforce, is to have children learn and actively participate in the arts.

 —Robert Lynch, Director, Americans for the Arts

The purpose of arts education is not to create more artists...the purpose is to produce complete human beings who can function productively in a free society.

 —Dana Gioia, Chairman, National Endowment for the Arts

Inside of every human being there are secrets to unlock, there are treasurers to unlatch. We owe it to all children to make sure that whatever their talent is—theater, music, dance or painting—doors are open for them.

—Mike Huckabee, former Governor of Arkansas

Teaching Artist Workshop Partners, 2007 - 2010

Mississippi Arts Commission
Whole Schools Initiative
Delta Blues Museum, Clarksdale
Walter Anderson Museum of Art, Ocean Springs
Mississippi Department of Education
Lynn Meadows Discovery Center
Lauren Rogers Museum of Art
Arts Organizations
Colleges and Universities
Museums and Cultural Institutions
 

Contact:
Mississippi Alliance for Arts Education
Althea Jerome, Project Director
3307 Southaven Drive
Hattiesburg, MS 39402
Phone: 601-268-6906
Fax: 601-268-6906
Email: ajerome@comcast.net

Funding for this series of  performing arts workshops is provided
 by a generous grant from the DANA Foundation