Spring 2025
Vol. 1
Embedded Files
April 2025
Hello, Arts Across the Curriculum Team!
Welcome to our Spring edition of the Arts Across the Curriculum/Arts Centered Education newsletter. We have officially published this newsletter for one year!
The purpose of our quarterly newsletters is to keep you informed of the ongoing creative work of our ACE programs, MAIN Events, as well as areas we have identified for further help in this work. We hope you enjoy this publication and we look forward to future collaborative engagement with you all!
Lauren Hanahan, Kristi Ponder, and Cynthia Williams Phelps, PhD
In this issue, you will find information about upcoming MAIN events, ACE Schools, resources for educators, and how you can help us reach out to potential partners.
Why Arts Integration Series
Join Us April 7, 2025
Join us April 7, for our final installment of Why Arts Integration? In this session, we will hear from educators in the field who are utilizing best practices of arts across the curriculum in their classrooms and how to best support preservice teachers. Attendees will learn more about the everyday application of arts integration and the positive impact it has on student learning communities.
MAIN and IDEA Joint Session
The Art of Transformation:
Harnessing Music and Theater for Social Justice and Education
Join Us May 5, 2025
Join Dr. Philip A. Woodmore as he delves into the transformative power of music and theater in addressing social justice, fostering community dialogue, and inspiring change. Drawing from his groundbreaking projects—Antigone in Ferguson, The Drum Major Instinct, and the upcoming Team M—as well as the innovative Theater of War model, this presentation highlights how art becomes activism. Discover practical strategies for integrating these ideas into K-12 classrooms, especially in the post-pandemic era, to build resilience, empathy, and connection among students.
ACE School Updates
ACE School Updates
We are continuing our work with Reed Academy cohorts in ELA and Science. Rachel Jamieson began her work with both cohorts in January to plan upcoming training sessions and will continue working with them monthly, or more often as desired by each cohort.
Kristi Ponder has arranged for theatre teaching artist Ed Reggi to work with Cayla Barnes and Locust Street Expressive Arts elementary school.
Lauren Hanahan has worked with Michael Dove and Shook Elementary to continue their arts integration collaborative goals. Rachel Jamieson will be working with the cohort at the end of March. Mark Pagano will be working with the group at the end of April.
Kristi Ponder has been working with Claymont Elementary to provide a visual arts teaching artist to assist in some elementary art classes.
Cynthia Phelps met with the curriculum coordinator to bring a teaching artist to Hazelwood School District for professional development work and student workshops.
Conference Highlights
Conference Highlights
MMEA: Cynthia Phelps & Jessica Ingraham ”Inspiring Creativity Together” elementary music workshop
MMEA: Cynthia Phelps Research Poster Session “The Role of Arts in Missouri Education”
MAESP: Locust Street Expressive Arts Elementary–Cayla Barnes, instructional mentor, and principal Julia Coggins “Unlocking Creativity: Arts Integration as a Pathway to Whole-School Success"
Elemental Exploration of music and art for 1-2 grade
Elemental Exploration of music and art for 1-2 grade
We are currently working on creating and gathering arts integrated lesson plans on our website. Here is our new Lessons and Activity Plans page. This will be available for teachers to use resources to further work with arts integration throughout the state!
Do you have a lesson plan that integrates arts and non-arts content?
Submit your lesson plan proposal to be added to our collection by clicking here!
Arts Integration Coalition
Arts Integration Coalition
The Arts Integration Coalition continues to meet on a quarterly basis. Our upcoming meeting is April 4 @ 11 a.m. Our coalition consists of the following organizations and representatives:
COCA - Janelle Velten
Columbia Public Schools - Breana Kavanaugh
DESE - Dr. Kendra Franks
JCCC - Kara Hettinger, Megan Rosbury
KC Ballet-Kim Trudell, Miyesha McGriff
KCYA - Carmen Eppright
Liberty Schools -Aaron Money
MAAE - Phyllis Pasley, Dr. Cynthia Williams Phelps, Lauren Hanahan, Kristi Ponder, Tom Tobias
MAC - Jenni Ryan, Rick Duplissie
Springboard to Learning - Betty Scheller
Springfield Schools - Jessica Wagner
SRAC -Leslie Forrester, Sarah Abele
Highlights from the Arts Integration Coalition February meeting tap here to read more
Highlights from the Arts Integration Coalition February meeting tap here to read more
COCA (Janelle): COCA Community Programs welcomed a new team member- TIERRA PARKS. Tierra will support the work of COCAedu and COCAbiz.
On January 9 COCAbiz worked with a cohort from the Washington University McKelvey School of Engineering to provide arts integrated professional development. Through our Artful Speaker workshop this group examined how to express complex scientific information verbally, visually and through writing.
Arts integrated residencies are up and running at Julia Goldstein ECEC and with the University City 3rd and 5th grade.
In school residencies exploring the world premiere of Kaleidoscope Crown and scheduled to begin in March 2025.
COCA Community Programs next training for the arts integration cohort (formed in Sept 2024) is March 7, 2025.
Register for Leading Ladies (February 20-21, 2025). COCAbiz’s Leading Ladies leadership training program provides participants the opportunity to hone their personal leadership brand and style while building relationships with other inspiring female-identifying leaders. This arts integrated professional development encourages participants to expand their creativity and develop effective leadership skills.Leading Ladies | COCA - Center of Creative Arts
KCYA (Carmen) We’ve introduced four new arts integration in-school residencies: 2 in creative writing, 1 in visual arts and 1 in dance. They have had good reception so far. Our Community School of the Arts (CSA) put together Lion King Jr this past January. We’re now in the midst of Spring Session classes and have finalized our Spring Break Camps and Summer Camps offerings. We’re excited to welcome a new CSA Manager at the end of the month.
KS/MO Partnership in Education (Aaron/Kara/Carmen) Kara and Aaron were at the Kennedy’s Center Conference. We hosted Kassie Misiewic in late January. Kassie went to several schools (Shawnee Mission school district, Liberty School district and AFIA) and worked with teachers and PreK-2nd grade students. KCYA hosted a free, public PD session on 1/29 with 24 school teachers. We’re starting to plan our July Arts Integration Symposium and brainstorm on artists for the 25-26 school year.
KC Ballet (Kim Trudell/ Miyesha McGriff) We have just welcomed 55 new R.O.A.D. scholars to attend classes during the day here at KCB. These students will spend the next 12 weeks learning ballet and jazz techniques here at the Bolender Center. At the end of the 12 weeks, they will have a showing for family and friends to show their progress.
Springboard to Learning (Betty) We hosted a Poetry Out Loud regional competition on 2/6 with four schools competing. Louisa Blackmoore of Crossroads College Preparatory School will represent the St. Louis City Region at the state level this Spring. We are planning a fundraiser at Top Golf on 4/6, MADE at Magic House sponsored field trips on 3/6, Art of Baseball game sponsored by St. Louis Cardinals, Wise Write festival at the Sheldon on 4/14 and Summer Camp in SLPS in June.
Springfield Regional Arts Council (Leslie/Sarah)The SRAC was honored by the Missouri Arts Council on Arts Advocacy Day with Arts Education Program of the year for our year-round Growing Up in the Arts programming for at-risk students in grades K-8 and annual Arts Integration Conference.
Springfield Public Schools (Jessica) Recently attended the Any Given Child Exchange hosted by the Kennedy Center. I attend multiple sessions on Arts Integration that I’m hopeful to bring back to SPS. Some great sessions included using Arts Integration for English Language Learners and to keep meetings engaged and joyful.
In collaboration with SRAC to finalize dates for the upcoming Arts Integration Conference in July.
Arts Integration Symposiums
Arts Integration Symposiums
Once again, we look forward to the summer Arts Integration Symposiums offered through KS/MO Kennedy Center Partners in Education, as well the Springfield Regional Arts Council. This year, MAAE will sponsor an exhibit booth at the SRAC Arts Integration Symposium.
The KS/MO Partnership symposium will be held July 15 & 16 at Liberty High School Performing Arts Center. We will share more information as we get it. Stay tuned.
Arts Integration Sponsorship
Arts Integration Sponsorship
This year, MAAE collaborated with the KS/MO Partners in Education program to support funding for Missouri teachers to participate in many rich, experiential learning opportunities to grow their Arts Integration toolbox. Many teachers started in July of 2024 at the Arts Integration Symposium, then spent the year continuing their Arts Integration journey as Teacher Leaders in their buildings. As part of that process, they completed online seminars, participated in in-person workshops to build their skills, worked 1:1 with Focus 5 Teaching Artists, and then reflected and shared their experiences with other educators across the state. This has also been an exciting year, as our MAIN events have been added as an option for Teacher Leader requirement fulfillment. This has brought new and exciting faces to our MAIN events and discussions.
3 ways to help us raise money for our ACE programs: grants, volunteer time, donors.
Do you know of a grant that aligns with the mission of Arts Across the Curriculum ?
Are you or anyone you know, interested in volunteering time to help us reach our funding goals?
Are you aware of someone that would donate to our cause?
Let us know and help us reach our goals!
We welcome newsletter feedback!
We welcome newsletter feedback!
What you would like to see in our quarterly publications?
What you would like to see in our quarterly publications?
Thank you for your ongoing support and commitment to the work of our Arts Across the Curriculum and
Thank you for your ongoing support and commitment to the work of our Arts Across the Curriculum and
Missouri Alliance for Arts Education.
Missouri Alliance for Arts Education.
~Lauren, Kristi, & Cynthia
~Lauren, Kristi, & Cynthia
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