Creativity and Other Boundless Resources
for Recession-Era Education
A day-long conference for educators and teaching artists

Tuesday October 27, 2009
9:00 a.m. to 4:45 p.m.
The Sheraton Syracuse University Hotel
Syracuse, NY

Overview / Workshops / Registration / Special Event / Scholarship

The New York State Alliance for Arts Education
in collaboration with
Partners for Arts Education and
Empire State Partnerships
is proud to present a day-long Arts-in-Education (AIE) conference.

This conference is designed for all educators: general classroom teachers, sequential arts and music teachers, school administrators, teaching artists, cultural organization education coordinators, school librarians, and interested parents.

Participants will gain insight and strategies on bringing the arts into the classroom and infusing and enriching the curriculum in all subject areas through the arts. Those new to AIE will discover where to begin the journey, and where to turn for resources. Veterans will gain new techniques for the planning, execution and evaluation of AIE programs. Our goal is for everyone to come away with a renewed passion for ensuring that the arts are an integral part of every student’s education.

This is the conference for YOU:

• the classroom teacher looking for ideas and new tools to use in the classroom, to engage your students and renew your enthusiasm for teaching

• the school administrator interested in achievement and learning for all students

• the special area teacher craving a definitive place for arts in the school environment

• the artist, using knowledge, creativity and specialized skills to inspire learning
(and to earn money!)

• the cultural organization administrator who desires a lasting community and school connection through sharing of knowledge and resources

• the visionary who identifies collaboration, cross-curricular learning and the arts as vital 21st century skills in today’s global community

Register Online - Click Here

This conference is designed for general classroom teachers, sequential arts and music educators, school administrators, teaching artists, and cultural organizations. 

$75 for NYSAAE Members (join TODAY and SAVE! - Click here to Join online!)
$95 Non-Members
$35 for Students (with valid college ID)
(Registration includes all workshops, keynote address, networking opportunities, and lunch)

Groups
Groups of three or more registering together are eligible for a 10% discount on registration. ($67 NYSAAE Member / $85 Non-member)
Groups may register online (please enter the same 'group name' for each registration) and submit ONE check to cover all registration fees. (Select 'send a check' option on online registration form.)

Teachers who attend may be eligible for up to six hours of professional development credit.

Registration Deadline Monday, October 19th 2009

Register Online - Click Here
Print & Mail or Fax Registration Form (PDF)

Discounted hotel rooms are available at
The Sheraton Syracuse University Hotel
$109 / night (single occupancy)
$119 / night (double occupancy)
Call 1-800-395-2105 to book a room
Mention NYSAAE Arts Conference to receive the discounted rate.

During this conference participants will choose from several hands-on workshops focusing on art-in-education programming, planning, execution, and evaluation. Each of the following workshops will be offered during the course of the day.

Keynote Address

Unfreezing Our Creative Assets
Summoning Our Courage and Releasing Imagination
with John J. Cimino, Jr. President, Creative Leaps International

In higher education, business and the business of educating our children for lives in the 21st century, we will achieve very little to advance our standing as a society unless each of us individually and via our institutions collectively invest wholeheartedly and with unfailing commitment in the development of the one resource native to all of us that we cannot deplete by over use, but which in fact multiplies with use, and that is our capacity for creativity and original thinking. Our world is too complex, the rate of change too rapid, the stakes too high for us to inch our way forward with the last century’s thinking. We must rather unfreeze our creative assets and summon our courage to release imagination into the world. Not as some fluffy cotton candy for a day at the fair, that’s not what we’re talking about at all. But rather as the crucial spark to innovation, new thinking, new levels of empathy and new solutions to the challenges at hand. This is the work of imagination today. This is where art and science and leadership and citizenship come together. Imagination, like freedom, is our birthright. And just as freedom can be lost unless cultivated, practiced and purposefully challenged to new levels of achievement, so too our creativity and imagination. We have some catch up to do in this nation in this regard. As educators, artists and business leaders, we are ideally positioned to lead the way. I suggest that we get on with it.

Speaker:
John J. Cimino, Jr. President, Creative Leaps International
John Cimino is president and CEO of Creative Leaps International and The Learning Arts. Educated at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (biology & physics), the State University of New York at Albany (learning theory), and the Manhattan and Juilliard Schools of Music (music & voice), Cimino holds a uniquely interdisciplinary perspective and works across a variety of disciplines dedicated to learning and human development.
As a champion of the arts in education, business and professional life, Cimino has brought his "Concerts of Ideas" and other innovative programs into projects of the White House, the Center for Creative Leadership and the leadership training programs of dozens of Fortune 500 companies including GE, IBM, Pfizer and McDonnell Douglas as well as to numerous universities, business schools and institutes for professional development. Projects include presentations before the Global Leadership Forum (Istanbul), the International Organization Development Association (Guanajuato), the Organizational Behavior Teaching Society (Irvine, Ca), the Academy of Management (Chicago), the Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development (Alexandria, VA) and the Association for Managers of Innovation (Greensboro, NC).

Keeping the Arts in Mind
Syracuse City Schools have been steadily building a strong and exciting powerhouse of partnerships with community artists and cultural organizations through the Arts In Mind (AIM) initiative. This session will explore the effective tools that have enabled schools to leverage over $60,000 last year alone for creative educational practices. Art specialists, teachers, and AIM cultural partners will be on hand to share their experience.

Speaker:
Laura Reeder is the Founding Creative Director at Partners for Arts Education (PAE).
She is a doctoral student and instructor in Art Education at Syracuse University, she sits on the Arts Education Council with Americans for the Arts, and is Newsbreak Editor for the national Teaching Artist Journal. As a CNY art teacher, she founded PAE for educators to make more effective use of community cultural resources…it appears to be working.

Building Capacity Through Shared Inquiry: A Peer to Peer Session
Sponsored by: Empire State Partnerships
In this engaging and enlightening session, all participants will have the opportunity not only to learn about an arts partnership, but to contribute to its growth and improvement. Using a dynamic, inquiry-based discussion protocol, Phil Alexander will facilitate the examination of the partnerships strengths and weaknesses, inviting questions and feedback from all responders in the room. A staple of the NYS Council on the Arts nationally recognized ESP Summer Seminar, Peer to Peer has proven to be an extremely effective model for teachers, artists and administrators to get a new perspective on their work.

Speaker:
Philip Alexander is the Senior Program Officer of the Empire State Partnership of Support and Research, where he coordinates the ESP Summer Seminar and other programs in support of arts in education partnerships in New York. Since receiving a doctorate in the theatre and working in the realm of theatre education (in both the secondary and post-secondary sectors), Phil has expanded his to contributions to the field by serving as a grant reader for local and national agencies, coaching partnerships, and consulting for program and curriculum design. He's currently engaged in an investigation of the nature and qualities of creativity.

Empowering Education: Arts Specialist & Teaching Artist Relationships that Work…
Arts Specialists and community Teaching Artists have been collaborating in the classroom for years. A new generation of creative relationships is producing some expanded professional opportunities for schools and communities. Join us in a spirited conversation with artist-educator dynamic duos from urban, suburban, and rural schools.
Teachers and artists from Central New York schools and organizations who used resources from Syracuse Stage, Gear Up, the Partnership for Better Education, the Museum of Young Art, the Onondaga Historic Association, community parks, individual artist studios, and more will lead an interactive session to share the professional rejuvenation that comes from artist-educator relationships.

Evaluating the Success and Impact of Your Arts in Education Programming
Sponsored by: Partners for Arts Education
As just about everything moves to an evidence-based model, a closer examination of the way we measure learning through creative engagement has become essential. In this workshop, participants will learn the basic elements of a highly effective tool that is being used by arts education partnerships in NYS.

The New York State Council on the Art's, Arts in Education division has developed a multi-purpose tool called the Evidence of Teacher and Student Learning Template (affectionately referred to as ETSL) to:

• support the collaborative planning of an arts-integrated unit,
• document the teaching and learning experience,
• and examine the student learning that results.

It’s also a terrific tool for reflecting on your own learning as educators, for sharing the work of a partnership and for advocacy efforts. The ETSL available as an on-line tool for NYSCA-funded partnerships and as a power-point document for downloading to any interested educators, artists, schools or cultural organizations.

Speaker:
Amy Chase Gulden, who joined the NYSAAE board in 2006, was director of Studio in a School’s Long Term visual-arts residency program for seven years before starting to consult in 2005. Her projects include visual arts curriculum writing, professional development design and creating & evaluating school & cultural organization partnerships. Her specialty is documenting teaching practices and student learning in the arts, as a way to capture, reflect on, and share effective practices with teaching communities.
For the past three years Amy has been working with NYSCA, through a grant to the School Works Lab (founded by Dr. Robert Southworth), to provide assessment assistance using the Evidence of Teacher & Student Learning Template to ESP funded partnerships. In addition to her work with NYSCA and the SchoolWorks Lab, Amy is also the New York regional director for Visual Thinking Strategies, a research-based, learner-centered, art-viewing method used by museums and schools. Amy is a visual artist and writes a weekly column, “The Gallery”, about contemporary artists Apartment Therapy.

Resources for Arts Inclusion
Sponsored by VSA Arts - A national organization working to create a society where all people with disabilities learn through, participate in and enjoy the arts.
Does your community arts education program reach all the members of your community including young children, older adults, and people with disabilities? This workshop explores how to create flexible arts programs that meet the needs of the greatest number of participants, a key concept of Universal Design for Learning. As a participant, you will:

• explore ways to differentiate instruction in order to reduce barriers for students with physical, cognitive and/or behavioral disabilities, as well as to engage various types of learning styles
• learn strategies for designing program supports to increase student participation, creativity and choice
• discover practical and low cost ways to make the learning environment and programming fun, engaging and inclusive of all.

Speaker:
Mary Liniger joined VSAarts in October of 2007. As director of education services, she is responsible for creation and implementation of professional development and resources for educators, including the VSAarts Institute, the Start with the Arts early childhood learning resource, and the Teaching Artist Fellowship program. Before joining VSA arts, Ms. Liniger was the arts education coordinator and the ADA/504 coordinator for the D.C. Commission on the Arts and Humanities, a state arts agency. She also worked for the Kennedy Center’s education department and for The Source Teen Theatre, an afterschool theater program for underserved youth.

Real-Time Resources for the Artistic Learning
Central New York is home to hundreds of cultural resources that can be integrated into educational settings. Partners for Arts Education and the Cultural Resources Council have a combined clearinghouse of resources, grants, expertise, and ideas that make the arts available to everyone. This session will offer practical information about accessing funds, materials, and people that can make creative learning realistic in a recession era.

Speakers:
Susan Stonecash, Partners for Arts Education

Sue Stonecash coordinates the local art$TART and statewide Technical Assistance Program (TAP) grants. She prepares the applications, assists and nurtures applicants, coordinates panels, manages the finances, and visits the granted partnerships, encouraging and facilitating community artists coming into classrooms to partner with teachers and students to achieve academic and artistic curriculum goals. With a BS in Education from Northwestern University, Sue has a special interest in the challenge that educators have to bring their curricula alive utilizing the arts.

Stephen Butler is a native of Onondaga County. He received his BA in Theatre from Oswego State University and relocated to New York City. During his years in NYC Stephen worked as the Director of Membership/Programs for the Alliance of Resident Theaters/New York, the Alliance of New York State Arts Councils and at several producing organizations including Manhattan Theatre Club, the Hudson Guild Theater, and Creative Alternatives of New York, a drama-therapy organization serving the greater metropolitan region. Stephen is also a National Endowment for the Arts fellowship recipient in Strategic Planning. He returned to Syracuse and obtained a Masters of Arts in Public Administration from the Maxwell School at Syracuse University. Before coming to CRC he was the Executive Director of the Mental Health Association of Onondaga County.

Embedding 21st Century Skills in the Creative Classroom
Creative teachers are the heart and soul of creative classrooms. Their creativity radiates outward filling their classrooms and the minds of their students with the excitement and joy of learning. They design multi-faceted lesson plans and work with their students to inspire imagination, self-confidence, self-expression and curiosity. They nurture research skills, creative problem-solving and collaboration and, in so doing, align their learning objectives with the Framework for 21st Century Skills. This workshop will offer participants the opportunity to immerse themselves in a 21st century learning environment, identifying, activating and facilitating the development of these 21st century capacities among one another. Educators at every level will be invited to build on their instincts, their individual teaching and learning styles and their techniques for creative engagement. Our goal is nothing short of transforming our classrooms into living laboratories for learning, creativity and the nurturing of confident, compassionate, entrepreneurial citizens. Come see what we can do together.

Speaker:
John Cimino, president: Creative Leaps International and The Learning Arts

*Workshop topics and speakers subject to change without notice.

Register Online - Click Here

Special Event

Creative Champion: A Celebration of Carol Terry
12:00 PM - 1:00 PM
The Syracuse City School District continues to expand the access to the arts for students at a time when other districts are making desperate cuts. Carol Terry has been a champion of creativity and innovation in education as the Field Coordinator of Fine Arts. She has generated excitement and rigor that brings community and classroom together through the arts. Join us as we celebrate her continuing legacy of learning.

A ticket for this luncheon is included with conference registration.
Ala carte tickets are available for $35 per person.
Additional donations in honor of Carol Terry can be accepted on the registration form.
See conference registration for to purchase tickets. Register online - click here.

Honoree:
Carol Terry is Field Coordinator for Fine Arts with the Syracuse City School District. She supervises Music, Visual Arts and Theater education. During her nine years in this position, the district has developed complete pre-k-12 curricula for the arts in addition to a wide range of sustained initiatives that integrate the arts into all facets of education. Partners for Arts Education was founded just months before Carol came to Syracuse, and her advisement has been essential to the design of many of our most successful endeavors.
Her philosophy that we need to educate all students to be knowledgeable in the arts and to be well-rounded, literate adults who will be a part of a global society drives her commitment to the learning. Her leadership with teaching staff, community teaching artists, cultural organizations, and higher education come together to provide rich experiences for the SCSD students that are unmatched by other upstate school districts. Carol has taught in the West Genesee and LaFayette School Districts and at the Onondaga Nation School.

Senator David Valesky and Senator Jose Serrano will be special guests to celebrate arts in education in Central New York. They will be joining us to highlight the importance of the arts to education and in the workforce of the 21st century and to commemorate the designation of October as Arts Education Month in New York State.

Scholarship

NYSAAE offers two scholarships to every professional development program we sponsor. Please submit an application for the Robert J. Ludwig Scholarship to be considered for the scholarship opportunity. For details on the Robert J. Ludwig Scholarships - click here

Applications for the Robert J. Ludwig Scholarship for this event must be received by October 2nd

Technical Assistance Program (TAP) PAE offers TAP grants for partnership planning, curriculum design, evaluation and assessment, and professional development in arts in education. Scholarship TAP is available for registration, travel, food and lodging associated with attendance at this Conference. Applicants should apply to the “Scholarship TAP category” on the TAP application - click here for details.

Applications for Scholarship TAP are due October 15th (EXTENDED!)

Exhibitor tables are $125 each. Electricity is an additional $35.
Exhibitor registration includes access to all conference events and one luncheon ticket.

Exhibitor Reservation Form (PDF)

Please contact Sharon at 518-486-7328 or sharon@nysaae.org to learn more!