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Arts Education Planning: A Coach in Every Corner

Our coaching program is based on the successful model pioneered with the Los Angeles County Arts for All Initiative.  Over the past 5 years, more than 20 coaches have been trained, using a combination of intensive workshops, working side by side with an experienced mentor through a district planning process, and creating and sharing new techniques within a professional learning community.


The Need for Arts Education Planning
Research has long substantiated the value of high quality visual and performing arts learning as essential to a complete education for all students. The California Arts Education Strategic Task Force recommended that the arts (dance, music, theatre and visual arts) be included in all school district plans.  (Findings and Recommendations 2007)


Services Provided to Districts
We bring knowledge of the strategic planning process, facilitation skills, and experience in arts education that will enable a district to:

Offering Technical Assistance in Two Phases
Phase I
Coaches provide technical assistance in conducting a needs assessment of arts education in the district, developing a comprehensive arts education policy, and developing a budgeted plan of action to address the identified priorities in the visual and performing arts.


Phase II
Coaches provide technical assistance to the district and community teams that have completed Phase I.  Through quarterly meetings, coaches will guide the teams in the implementation of the long-range plan; help assess progress; and adjust the long- range plan as needed.


Presenting… Our Arts Education Planning Coaches.
For more information on how to contact a coach, please email or call the California Alliance for Arts education at caae@artsed411.org or 626-578-9315.

Laura Bennett comes from a business background and decided to use her training and facilitation skills to connect more with arts education. Laura’s professional experience has been delivering training programs, facilitated quality circles, and large group facilitation for Bovo Tighe, a training and consulting company, and employment at Chevron in various capacities. While her job responsibilities were product/project marketing in nature, she was very involved with training and facilitation, particularly of customer focus groups and strategic planning activities. Laura currently serves as the California Alliance’s Partner Engagement Consultant, working in coordination with the Policy Director to provide ongoing support for new Local Advocacy Networks, including support for local initiatives and follow up action plans. She has also worked with individual schools and districts, addressing arts integration planning. Laura consults with Oakland Elizabeth House, a transitional residence for women and children, and with her Parish Community. Laura holds an MBA from St. Mary's Executive MBA Program and a BA in English/Diversified Liberal Arts from Saint Mary's College.

Peggy Burt is an arts education consultant with over 25 years experience in arts-related management. Currently Peggy is working intensively with the Wiseburn School District in Los Angeles County, coordinating their arts programs. Peggy has coached the Arts for All districts of Norwalk-La Mirada, Castaic Union and Burbank Unified School District. Peggy has recently facilitated the Education Retreat for the Orchestras of Pasadena, worked with the Orange County Department of Education to further align the programs and services of arts providers with Arts Advantage Districts, and worked with Pasadena Unified School District to redevelop their strategic plan for the next phase. She serves as an advisory board member to the Burbank Arts Education Foundation – a new foundation established as a result of the Burbank Arts for All plan. Peggy has served as coach mentor to Arts for All coaches and is co-author of the first edition of The Insiders Guide to Arts Education Planning published by CAAE. Peggy has also served on the panel to select arts organizations to be included in the LA County Arts Commission website portal LAArtsEd.org. Peggy has been affiliated with the California Alliance for Arts Education since 2001 and is delighted to be a part of the ongoing work of “ Coach in Every Corner.” Peggy holds a BFA in Dance from the University of Utah and a Master’s Degree in Library and Information Science from the University of Michigan.

Karin Demarest is a performing artist and arts education consultant living in Forestville, California. In 1996, she began working with Performing Arts Workshop in San Francisco, teaching creative movement as an artist-in-residence to Bay Area youth and teachers. In 2004, she returned to school and received her multiple subject teaching credential and a Masters of Arts in Teaching at the University of San Francisco. Currently, Karin works as an arts education consultant for the Sonoma County Office of Education and the Arts Council of Sonoma County, specializing in strategic planning as a means to catalyze district-wide change.

Suzanne Isken, Director of Education at The Museum of Contemporary Art in Los Angeles, has led education initiatives since 2001, following 10 years of service as coordinator of school and teacher programs and as gallery educator. Prior to joining the museum’s staff, she was an instructor for youth programs in architecture and environmental studies and maintained a private psychotherapy practice. Suzanne received an MSW degree from the University of Southern California in 1977. Awards include a certificate of recognition from The Los Angeles Unified School District in 1999 and she was named 2004 Pacific Region Art Educator of the Year by the National Art Education Association. In 2005, Suzanne co-authored a policy paper for the California Alliance for Art Education entitled Quality, Equity and Access and contributed to the catalog for The Asian Aesthetic at the LMAN gallery. Additionally, she has co-curated a permanent collection exhibition, Who We Are at Asheville Art Museum, North Carolina, with Terrie Sultan and co- authored an award winning website in conjunction with the exhibition Basquiat and co-authored the Contemporary Art Start Curriculum Guide. She serves on the executive boards of the California Alliance for Arts Education and Art Table.

Patty Larrick has been involved in arts education for more than 30 years. She has taught visual arts at every level, K-university. She was the first director of the Bay Area California Arts Project at San Jose State from its inception in 1990 to 1999. The site was involved in developing the structures for professional development that became the base for many of the institutes still offered. From there, she became Arts Coordinator for the Palo Alto Unified School District where she learned that it is possible to both plan and follow through with implementation that makes a difference. The work was pragmatic, but always guided by an understanding of community expectations in relation to a guiding vision. In Palo Alto she had every opportunity to develop pilot programs, implement professional development and oversee long-range arts education planning for the district. Over the years, she has been an advisor to West Ed in the development of the National Board certification for teachers of secondary visual arts and a member of the statewide committees that wrote the content standards in 2001 and revised the VAPA Framework in 2004. Recently she moved to the high county of Tuolumne County, thinking she would retire, and continues to consult to schools and districts.

Liz Lindsley, EdD began her career as a classroom teacher, then migrated into a professional visual arts career and began working as an artist in the schools. As Director of Arts Education for the Cultural Council of Santa Cruz County she directed county-wide arts in education programs including artist trainings, Summer Arts Institutes and launched a technical assistance program in arts program planning which served all schools in the county in conjunction with the Community Foundation of Santa Cruz County. She focused her doctoral research on professional development in the arts for the elementary teacher that was taking place at two “arts infused” schools she coordinated in Santa Cruz County modeled after the A+ Program in North Carolina. For the last four years she has provided leadership trainings for the Arts For All Districts in Los Angeles County and facilitated strategic plans for the arts in districts and counties throughout the state. She is a professional visual artist and credentialed teacher with over 25 years of experience at all levels. She co-authored two California Alliance publications, The Insider’s Guide to Arts Education Planning, Creative Collaboration: Teachers and Artists in the Classroom, and has contributed to the Teaching Artist Journal.

Susan McGreevy-Nichols is an independent national arts education consultant and part-time faculty at Loyola Marymount University/Los Angeles. Her recent consulting work has her coaching districts in Los Angeles County as part of the Arts for All initiative and in Northern California in Alameda County as a part of that county’s initiative Revitalizing Classrooms Through Arts Learning: Strategic Plan. As a teacher at Roger Williams Middle School in Providence, Rhode Island from 1974-2002, Susan founded and developed that institution’s nationally renowned middle school dance program. The program treated dance as a core subject and emphasized the creating, performing and responding processes as they link to the arts and other disciplines. She is the developer of a cutting edge reading comprehension strategy that uses text as inspiration for original choreography created by children. This literacy-based methodology combines the creative process with reading instruction. In 1995, Susan was honored as the National Dance Teacher of the Year. Susan McGreevy-Nichols is the co-author of five books: Building Dances (1995), Building More Dances (2001), Experiencing Dance (2004), Dance about Anything (2006) and Dance Forms and Styles (in production).

Mary Mc Laughlin is an arts education consultant with a wealth of experience in facilitating school and district planning, coaching and mentoring teachers and artists, and coordinating arts programs. Trained in England, Mary was a special schools teacher and teacher trainer in London for seventeen years. She holds post-graduate certificates in general education and vocal music from London Universities. On emigrating to the USA in 1997 she quickly became involved with the California education system; teaching choral music K-8, working with special projects to develop planning in schools and providing professional development for artists and teachers. For almost a decade she has worked as a consultant coach/mentor for the Cultural Council of Santa Cruz, coordinating the artist mentor program. Trained in coaching and mentoring skills by the Santa Cruz New Teacher project and in facilitation methods by the Institute of Cultural Affairs, her work has been infused by these methodologies since 2001. She further developed her coaching skills in 2005 by graduating as a life-coach from the Institute of Professional Empowerment Coaching. For many years she was a teacher-leader for The California Arts Project and from 2003–2006 was the program coordinator for BayCAP. From 2006- 2008 Mary was the Santa Cruz arts coordinator and regional arts lead for Region 5 at the Santa Cruz COE under the auspices of CCSESA. As an independent consultant she has worked as a coach/facilitator/leader with teachers and administrators throughout the state and at state-wide level conferences.

Dana Powell Russell, EdD has worked as an educator, program director, and evaluator in the arts and education for more than 20 years. Since 1996, she has specialized in strategic planning and program development for preK-12 school visual and performing arts programs. Her clients have included traditional, charter, and private schools in districts ranging in size from one elementary school to 40 K-12 schools. Dana completed training in group facilitation, strategic planning, and implementation through the Institute of Cultural Affairs and--with these methods and others as a springboard--she develops processes and deliverables that address the unique needs, context, timeline, and budget of each client. In addition to her consulting practice, Dana is a faculty member with the Teaching and Learning Through the Arts program at Lesley University, leading graduate-level courses in arts integration and curriculum development for preK-12 educators. Dana earned her EdD in Learning and Instruction from the University of San Francisco, where her research focused on creativity and the personal, academic, and professional factors that influence arts teaching practice. She holds an MA in Museum Education from John F. Kennedy University and a BA in Visual Arts from UC San Diego. Based in San Jose, California. Dana is available for projects both within and beyond the state. To learn more about Dana's practice and read endorsements from her clients, please visit: http://www.danapowell.org.

Karin Schnell is currently an arts consultant. She served as Director of Programs & Education for Arts Orange County, a nonprofit local arts agency for over seven years. She has worked as Curator of Education at an art museum, cultural arts coordinator for a city, and visual arts coordinator at an annual county fair. She has taught graduate level courses for UCI Extension and CSU Fullerton in Museum Studies and Introduction to Arts Management. She is currently President of the Board of Dana Point Coastal Arts and serves on two City of Dana Point subcommittees. She was recently appointed to the countywide John Wayne Airport Arts Commission. In 2007-08, she assisted with the Orange County Department of Education’s Arts Advantage program, working with four school districts seeking to make informed decisions about the improvement and implementation of arts programming in K-12 schools.

Yael Zipporah Silk is a Research Associate at UCLA’s Center for Research in Evaluation, Standards, and Student Testing (CRESST). Her current projects focus on evaluating efforts to integrate literacy skills into biology and US history high school classes, as well as designing a theory of action for the Los Angeles Philharmonic-led Youth Orchestra LA initiative. In addition to UCLA projects, Yael provides consulting services to various cultural organizations with a focus on program evaluations, outcomes assessments, and staff capacity building to sustain dynamic program development. As part of the Arts for All initiative in Los Angeles County, she most recently coached the Redondo Beach Unified School District. Under her direction, the school district developed a K-12 arts education policy, strategic plan, and budget, and has already begun implementation. Yael is a Barnard College graduate with a degree in music composition. She earned a master’s degree in arts education at the Harvard Graduate School of Education where she focused her studies on best educational practices, research methods, and music development. Her advisor was Howard Gardner.

Julie Ulmer is an arts education consultant with more than 15 years of experience. Currently she provides direct technical assistance to schools and districts including professional development, program planning and facilitation. To date, Julie has assisted over a dozen school districts throughout Santa Clara and San Mateo Counties. Julie is also working with the California Alliance for Arts Education organizing a local advocacy group in San Mateo County as part of a larger state-wide effort. In addition, she is a credentialed elementary teacher working as the Writing and Language Specialist at Meadows Livingstone School in San Francisco. Julie holds an MA in Museum Studies and a BA in Art History. Her hobbies include cooking, Muy Thai Kickboxing and ceramics.

Wesley J. Watkins, IV, Ph.D. cultivated his passion for arts education in the Stanford University School of Education Undergraduate Honors Program. He conducted research for his honors thesis at the Stanford-in-Oxford Programme, engaging and learning from music educators at both local elementary schools and world renowned secondary institutions like The Bedales School, Eaton College, and The Yehudi Menuhin School. After earning a Ph.D. from the International Centre for Research in Music Education at the University of Reading, Dr. Watkins immediately applied his knowledge as an arts education consultant in the Bay Area, working at the district, school, and classroom levels. In his work as a consultant, he supported district leaders in Emeryville and San Lorenzo as part of the Alameda County Office of Education’s Alliance for Arts Learning Leadership, and led eight OUSD school leadership teams to build teacher capacity in the arts through work with the Arts Learning Anchor School Initiative. At the classroom level, Dr. Watkins created and taught a long-term music integrated curriculum to 5th graders called The Jazz & Democracy Project. As a member of the Coaches in Every Corner Program, Dr. Watkins assisted in strategic planning at the Santa Clara County Office of Education, and he played a major role in the strategic planning process which resulted in OUSD’s Master Plan for Arts Education.

Here’s what our partner school districts say:
“Both the training and coaching provided were phenomenal.  It helped us focus and progress on the job at hand. We are pleased with the strategic plan that was so skillfully and collaboratively developed.” Melinda Jaggi, Director of Curriculum & Instruction, Palmdale School District


“Our coach planned and conducted our meetings in a way that respected and involved the various stakeholders in the process.  Having an outside coach allowed me to participate as a member of the team. I am amazed at the work that was accomplished in such a short period of time and am proud of the plan we will be presenting to the Board.” Linda Welch, Assistant Superintendent, Educational Support Services, East Whittier City School District


“The San Diego County Office of Education strongly endorses the “Coach in Every Corner” program sponsored by the California Alliance for Arts Education.  The program is providing us with expert facilitation, as we are moving through a strategic planning process for our entire county.  Dr. Liz Lindsley, aided by her magic “Sticky Wall”, is a dynamic force in helping us craft the future of arts education for all students.”  I highly recommend the use of this program. Ron Jessee, Visual and Performing Arts Coordinator, San Diego County Office of Education


“Our Arts Education consultants [coaches] facilitated our vision, focus areas, plan and strategies; they also lead us through a step by step plan of implementation for our five year strategic plan.  Their professionalism, good humor and ability to think fast on their feet were crucial to our success.” Laura Wolford, Parent, Horace Mann Elementary School, San Jose

Check out our
Insider’s Guide to Arts Education Planning
Available online:
http://www.artsed411.org/insidersguide/index.aspx


This program is supported in part by the John F. Kennedy for the Performing Arts, the Boeing Company, and the Arts for All Pooled Fund. The California Alliance for Arts Education is a member of the Kennedy Center for Arts Education Network.

 



 
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