Excellence and Innovation Awards
Website: https://artsaward.collegeboard.org/award.php?ep_ch=PR&ep_mid=11042582&ep_rid=173692873
To Learn more: https://artsaward.collegeboard.org/award.php?ep_ch=PR&ep_mid=11042582&ep_rid=173692873
To view last years recipients: https://artsaward.collegeboard.org/past-winners.php?ep_ch=PR&ep_mid=11042582&ep_rid=173692873
Great opportunity to connect
The MAEA’s new online group – R.S.V.P. ME – is scheduled to meet for the first time on Tuesday, February 3rd at 3:00pm.
This will be an online meeting via Zoom video conferencing. You will need to download a Zoom.us application, which will happen automatically when you to respond to an email invitation to join.
This date/time was chosen based on recent survey feedback. The meeting will be open from 3:00 to 5:00pm. You can join the meeting in progress within that time frame.
The agenda for the first meeting will be extremely flexible. This is your group and will be designed by participants as we go along to meet your needs and those of your students. However, please be prepared for introductions and to share a success story or art program hack, and a challenge or burning question.
To receive an invitation to join the meeting, please email R.S.V.P. ME facilitator Lisa Ingraham at lisa.ingraham@msad59.org with your name and email information. Please type R.S.V.P. ME 2.3.15 in the subject line.
You do not have to be a member of the MAEA to join this meeting, but if you are a member and would like to receive contact hours for participation include your full name in your email as you would like it to appear on your certificate.
I am looking forward to connecting with my art education colleagues from around the state!
Lisa Ingraham
Visual Arts Teacher, MSEd
Madison Elementary School
Secretary, Maine Art Education Association
lisa.ingraham@msad59.org
Bangor High Arts Academy
A great opportunity for student artists of all kinds is underway at Bangor High School. Renee Ordway has the story.
Americans for the Arts
January 28, 2015
Dear Arts Advocate:
As the 114th Congress begins a new season of legislating, we are already deeply concerned about education legislation being considered. Two weeks ago, the new chairman of the Senate education committee released a “discussion draft” to consider changes to federal education policies. The last authorization, known as the No Child Left Behind Act, expired in 2007, so this legislation is long overdue.
However, the current draft bill contains a number of provisions that would be terrible for arts education should they become law. Among the problematic provisions, this bill:
1) Deletes the definition of “core academic subjects,” which includes the arts!
2) Terminates the $1 billion 21st Century Community Learning Center after-school program, which supports arts education;
3) Terminates the small, but mighty, federal Arts In Education program which has supported over 200 model grant programs for over a decade;
4) Omits indicators of student access to the arts as part of annual state reporting (example is New Jersey’s report) that help identify the equity gap.
One positive development so far is that there appears to be bipartisan consensus that there is an over-emphasis on student testing. This has been a growing concern in the education sector as arts education advocates have made the point for years that the class time spent on testing has pushed the arts out of the school day.
The Senate education committee has invited public comments and we have prepared a simple way to provide them with feedback from supporters of arts education. Please take two minutes and send a customizable message to the Senate education committee by the end of Monday, February 2nd.
Want to take further action? Plan to join Arts Advocacy Day on March 23-24 and bring your arts education advocacy directly to Capitol Hill! Learn more about this event here.
Click the link below to log in and send your message:
https://www.votervoice.net/link/target/artsusa/JygM8b45q.aspx
Offering arts experiences for learners of all ages
This blog post is part of a series called Who Are They? where information is provided for the Maine Arts Ed blog readers to learn about community organizations and institutions that provide educational opportunities in the arts. You will learn that they are partnering with other organizations and schools to extend learning opportunities, not supplant.
Bay Chamber Concerts and Music School is the first organization being highlighted. Located in Rockport, they provide rich music opportunities for students of all ages in the mid-coast area. Monica Kelly is the Executive Director and you can learn more at http://www.baychamberconcerts.org/.
I was invited to join the Board of Trustees. At that time I had three young children who I was very determined to introduce to music, especially classical music. My childhood was spent surrounded by the arts as my mother was born in Rome, Italy and my father, Dublin, Ireland. Both of my parents were devoted art and music lovers and came from a heritage rich in cultural opportunities. I wanted the same for my children and Bay Chamber was an organization where I saw great integrity and great potential.
I immediately got involved in the education arm at Bay Chamber which, at that time, had a focus on a summer music camp called Next Generation for Maine students who had an interest in playing chamber music together. Along with this intensive program, Bay Chamber offered student matinee performances featuring musicians, dancers and artists that were part of their off-season concert series and a prize program called Young Stars of Maine.
Learning about the musical opportunities for children in our community brought me to found a youth orchestra in 2000, independently of Bay Chamber, called Odeon. We started with a very modest group of 8 students of all ages and abilities and grew to over 40 by 2006 when we were invited to merge with Bay Chamber Concerts.
Through that merger, I joined the staff of Bay Chamber as Director of Education. Along with some very passionate board members, we began the long process of forming a music school and in 2011 the Bay Chamber Music School was born. As we were seeing school budgets for the arts cut dramatically in our area, our intention was always to supplement what the schools could do, focusing on private lessons, strings ensembles, and group classes for the very young. We recruited a faculty of professional musicians who have advanced degrees in their instrument and perform regularly in the concert hall. Through the generosity of our donors, we are able to offer a financial aid program that allows us to offer up to 75% of tuition to those who qualify. One of the important ways we try to distinguish ourselves as a music school is by offering many ways for student musicians of all ages to connect with each other and make music together in ensembles.
Today our music school sees an average of over 300 enrollments per year and reaches many, many more through our student matinee and community engagement programming. We have partnered with Carnegie Hall and the Passages program of Wayfinder Schools to offer the Lullaby Project, a song writing workshop for teen parents. This spring we are partnering with the Camden Conference to put on a series of Odeon concerts related to their theme, Russia Resurgent.
As the Music School continues to grow and thrive we are always looking for ways to partner with schools to work together to bring live music into the hearts and minds of as many young people as possible. On March 27th at 9:30am at the Camden Opera House, we are offering a free matinee to middle schoolers featuring the a cappella group Overboard. As I write there are still some spots available, so if you would like more information on hearing this dynamic and vibrant in action please contact me at monica@baychamberconcerts.org.
Jones Soda Co. Partners with Young Audiences and Veer
SEATTLE, WA – JAN 21, 2015 – Today Jones Soda Co. (OTCQB: JSDA), a leading premium beverage company known for its customer-designed packaging, announced its partnership with Young Audiences Arts for Learning (YA), a national nonprofit organization which provides arts integrated workshops and residency programs to public schools. YA partners with organizations across the United States to ensure the arts remain an integral part of youth education.
Jones Soda and YA began their partnership in early 2014 with the launch of the Jones Soda Photography Curriculum, which was created to teach children about the art of photography. For this significant cause, Jones Soda enlisted its original photographer and designer, Victor John Penner, to help teach the course and mentor students. Jones also brought in partner GoPro to assist the donation of cameras for this curriculum. At the end of each 10-week program, a winning student photo is selected to appear nationally on a Jones Soda label.
Due to the overwhelmingly positive response of the curriculum, which was originally launched at the Urban Promise Academy in Oakland, CA, Jones and YA partnered for a second time in 2014 to replicate the program at St. Martin de Porres High School Cleveland, OH, where student Brandi Herring had her photo selected to appear on a Jones label in 2015 across North America.
Jones Soda has aligned with Veer, a Corbis Corporation owned brand based in Seattle, WA which provides affordable stock photography, illustrations, and fonts to help fund the future of this program. Jones will offer the images of participating photographers for sale to the creative community through the Veer website and any royalties received by Jones from the licensing of photos through Veer will go directly to funding the YA network throughout North America.
Feedback on the program from Jones consumers has been extremely positive.
“Over the years, we at Jones have seen how much our brand can inspire kids to get into photography and the arts in general,” stated Jones Soda CEO Jennifer Cue. “This is truly a testament to the value of the Jones brand and its fans. Without taking essentially any resources away from our core business, we will be able to utilize the value of one of our key assets, customer submitted photos, and to give back to communities in a meaningful way. We look forward to expanding this curriculum into more schools in 2015.”
“We are thrilled to partner with Jones Soda whose innovative brand captures the essence of YA’s mission. It encapsulates the qualities we seek in the development of young people—to be creative and analytic thinkers that will help them persevere in school and their future careers” stated David A. Dik, Young Audiences Arts for Learning’s National Executive Director.
About Jones Soda Co.
Headquartered in Seattle, Washington, Jones Soda Co.® (OTCQB: JSDA) markets and distributes premium beverages under Jones® Soda, Jones Zilch®, Jones Stripped™ and Jones Sparkling Water brands and sells through its distribution network in markets primarily across North America. A leader in the premium soda category, Jones is known for its variety of flavors and innovative labeling technique that incorporates always-changing photos sent in from its consumers. Jones Soda is sold through traditional beverage retailers. For more information, visit www.jonessoda.com or www.myjones.com.
About Veer®
Veer makes it easier to be creative with an affordable selection of creative stock photography, stock illustrations, fonts and creative merchandise. Veer provides an uncomplicated shopping experience that lets customers stay focused on their creative work. Its visual elements help people add style to business, marketing and personal design projects from websites and blog posts to business presentations and ad campaigns. Veer is a Corbis Corporation brand and serves its global customer base through its website at http://www.veer.com.
About Young Audiences Arts for Learning
Established in 1952, Young Audiences Arts for Learning’s mission is to inspire today’s youth to expand their learning through creative outlets. As the nation’s largest arts in education learning network, they serve over 5 million young people each year in 8,984 schools and community centers across the country through its diverse network of 30 local affiliates.
Media Contacts:
Jones Soda Co.
Andrew Baumann
(206) 436-8711
abaumann@jonessoda.com
Young Audiences Arts for Learning
Marcus Romero
(212) 860-1563 ext. 108
marcus@ya.org
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