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Lessons Learned from Arts Education Partnership (Oct 2009)
by Amy Goldblas

These are some of my thoughts on the Arts Education Partnership (AEP) meeting, held last fall at Lesley University in Cambridge, MA. AEP holds a quarterly national meeting of State Arts Education program leaders, State Department of Education arts consultants, researchers, funders, teaching artists and arts organization personnel.

Derrick Ashong, activist, musician, and founder of Soulfege; creator of Take Back the Mic, " a movement to bring meaning back into today's music and challenge a new generation of youth to speak for themselves" was the opening speaker. His was a rallying cry for the power of the arts and their impact on culture. His message, "Culture is Everything", came through in his passion, his music and his deep understanding of history and culture. It struck me, during his presentation, that despite 30 plus years of dedicated work, hundreds of research studies proving it's value, the message of the impact of the arts on learning and life has not yet been articulated in a way that reaches beyond our insular community members to reach policy makers, legislators, parents, educators and those not "in the chorus". We haven't yet communicated the sense of urgency for this work that we practitioners in the field of arts in education feel. I found myself wanting to spend the two days at the AEP meeting, with representatives from arts in education from across the country, crafting "the message" in a way that might reach all people. In my opinion, the audience for the message is too insular and needs to be broadened.

Members of the NECAP steering committee and others who participated in the Cultivating the Field Think Tank presented a breakout session on "Building a Regional Consortium". We reflected on NECAP's beginnings and our goals for its continued growth to meet the diverse needs of teaching artists regionally. We spoke about the accomplishments and challenges of building a consortium dedicated to building the field of teaching artistry. People who attended reflected that the New England region has a potential national model in NECAP. While we often hyper-focus on the challenges of serving a diverse constituency with diverse needs, it was great to have an opportunity to see the consortium through another lens. It was affirming to hear feedback that a regional consortium in which participants are able to share vision, ideas, challenges and resources is unique.

Presenting the workshop offered the opportunity to reflect on our recent strategic planning retreat and the critical work ahead as we try to bring the services of NECAP to a broader constituency. The list-serve conversations that will be on our site in the next few months will provide additional opportunities for the NECAP Consortium to reflect the voices of all Teaching Artists. By sharing expertise, wondrous and worst experiences, we can build the field of Teaching Artists.

Amy Goldbas, a NECAP founding member since 1996, has been involved in arts in education as a teaching artist, museum educator and arts administrator since 1979. Most recently, she was Co-Director of The CT Higher Order Thinking Schools, a program dedicated to an arts integrated approach to teaching and learning. For 3 years, she was the CT State Arts in Education Program Manager. She's currently a consultant in arts in education program design working with schools and arts organizations.