🎤 MAAE Is Connecting Across Missouri

MAAE will be represented at several upcoming professional gatherings:

• STAM (Speech and Theatre Association of Missouri) September 17-19, 2026. I’ll be attending as an exhibitor and would love for you to stop by and say hello!

• MAEA (Missouri Art Education Association) — Fall Conference October 2-3, 2026. Visual Arts Educators —  You won't want to miss this! 

• GAM (Gifted Association of Missouri) — October 16-17, 2026. Phyllis Pasley will be presenting and highlighting the important connections between gifted education and the arts.

• MOSHAPE (Missouri Society for Health and Physical Educators) November 12-13, 2026. David Shafer and Merle Hall will lead a square dance workshop, demonstrating just one of the many ways the arts can connect learning across disciplines.

✨ ELEVATE Is Back!

If you’re looking for meaningful professional learning without adding another trip to your calendar, I hope you’ll join us for ELEVATE, MAAE’s free, online professional learning series. Each month, we bring educators together to learn from inspiring practitioners, share ideas, and build connections across disciplines and across Missouri. Our September ELEVATE session features filmmaker and educator Alexander Wiley, who will explore filmmaking in the classroom. And there’s much more to come throughout the 2026–27 series! Even better, you can earn a PD certificate and graduate credit through Lindenwood University for participating.

🎨 And There's More Ahead

We’re already looking toward Fine Arts Education Day 2027, continuing to strengthen dance education connections across the state, and developing new ways for MAAE to support you in your classrooms and communities.

Basic Guidelines 

• Brevity

• Address by their title: Senator… Representative…

• If you get a “no” - be aware that there may be little you can do in that moment to change their mind.

• Be courteous to maintain a positive relationship and leave behind a brief list of talking points with evidence and contact info.

• Respect boundaries - briefly greet at a grocery store of such, but set an appointment to discuss issues.

In Person Meeting Guide

• Schedule 1-2 weeks in advance if possible

• Dress: Business or Business Casual

• Show up 5 minutes early

• Developing a positive relationship with staffers can support your goals - Staffers not only perform secretarial duties, but they also serve as scheduler, policy advisor, chief of staff.

• Leave behind a clear concise position paper with your contact info.

Phone Call Meeting Guide

• Be brief

• State the following

  • your name

  • who you’re representing

  • if you’re a constituent

  • why you’re calling and

  • what response you would like: (return call, email, support for a bill.)

• If there is background info, are talking points - send them via email and refer to that email in the voicemail.

• Thank them for their time.

• Don’t call back repeatedly, or leave an angry voicemail.

EMail Guide

• Be brief

• Include an attachment with no more than 1-2 pages to back up your case.

• If a large group is sending the same email, take a moment to add a personal touch.

• Copy staff on emails.

Now more than ever, we need arts heroes. We need arts teachers who inspire a child for a lifetime; the communities where the arts make it a great place to live, work and create; leaders who make the arts happen; artists and arts organizations whose creativity makes us glad to be alive; and the philanthropists whose generosity makes it possible.

Categories include: Arts Education, Arts Organization, Creative Community, Individual Artist, Leadership in the Arts, and Philanthropy.

Deadline: Noon, Tuesday, September 8, 2026 

Learn more and nominate here.

The O4A Fellowship is a 16-week, intensive part-time program that equips one fellow in each of 4A Arts' partner states to work closely with a State Arts Advocacy Organization (SAAO), such as Missouri Citizens for the Arts. Fellows build advocacy capacity through digital organizing, SAAO membership engagement, and participating in local arts initiatives. They do consequential work for their state while contributing to a cohort of peers doing the same across the country. For those interested in learning more or applying, please visit the O4A Fellows application. To learn more about the work of 4A Arts, please visit their website.


About the Fellowship

The O4A Fellowship is a 16-week, intensive part-time program that equips one fellow in each partner state to work closely with a State Arts Advocacy Organization (SAAO) to build advocacy capacity from the ground up. Fellows are the first field layer of 4A Arts' growing national network. They do consequential work for their state while contributing to a cohort of peers doing the same across the country. Fellows are expected to work independently, think strategically, and leave something lasting behind.

What Fellows Do

Fellows can expect to do any of the following:

Member Recruitment & Civic Engagement

• Conduct outreach to prospective SAAO members — arts organizations, artists, educators, and advocates not yet in the network

• Audit existing SAAO membership to identify who is active, disengaged, or untapped

• Reach out to current and prospective members to engage in arts advocacy opportunities

• Co-facilitate advocacy workshops for SAAO members using 4A Arts' framework

Content, Storytelling & Digital Engagement

• Attend 1-2 local arts events per month and capture photos, video clips, and quotes; use pre-built Canva templates to turn content into 2 to three social media posts per week

• Monitor SAAO social accounts daily and respond to comments, questions, and mentions and encourage engagement.

• Identify active engagers and follow up with a personal invitation to take a next step — signing up as an advocate, attending an event, or joining the SAAO. Flag these for the SAAO and log notable interactions in the shared pipeline for recruitment follow-up

State Specific Projects

• Design, execute and/or assist with projects tailored to the SAAO's needs and priorities, such as: a targeted recruitment campaign, a customized advocacy toolkit, a local advocacy activation, a survey on support for the arts, supporting statewide advocacy initiatives, and/or developing their adopt a legislator advocacy program

Structure & Support

Time commitment: approximately 15 hours per week for 16 weeks

Primary supervisor: 4A Arts Organizing Manager

Local guidance: SAAO Director

Cohort: Weekly virtual meetings for shared learning, troubleshooting, and guidance

Location: Remote, with work oriented toward a specific assigned state

Benefits

Fellows are part-time employees of 4A Arts and are not eligible for benefits. Fellowship dates are November 2, 2026 – March 12, 2027. Fellows will not work (and therefore will not be paid) during the weeks of November 23–29, 2026, and December 21, 2026 – January 3, 2027. Fellows are paid $25 per hour, up to a maximum of 15 hours per week. Mileage and travel expenses incurred for authorized work-related travel will be reimbursed.

Who We're Looking For

Must-haves:

• Experience in/knowledge about advocacy, nonprofit organizing, community outreach, and/or the arts

• Comfortable making cold and warm calls and following up persistently

• Able to use your smartphone to capture photos and video

• Ability to travel for arts events (Arts Advocacy Day at the Capitol, local performances, etc.)

• Willing to learn basic Canva skills for social media formatting (design experience a plus)

• Must work independently and manage your own time across a part-time schedule

• Are genuinely curious about how arts policy and advocacy works at the state level

• Communicate clearly - through writing, on the phone, and in facilitated settings

• Are organized and consistent with documentation and tracking

• Live in Missouri (1 fellow opportunity)
  
  

Great-to-haves:

• Existing ties to the arts community in your assigned state

• Graphic design experience

• Experience facilitating workshops or trainings

• Managed social media for a nonprofit or advocacy organization

ARTEFFECT Ambassadors is an online fellowship for educators working directly with students in grades 6–12 to foster the visual arts. 

Ambassadors learn alongside other high-level practitioners through visual arts-focused, project-based lessons centered on the inspiring and diverse stories of Unsung Heroes from history. During the school year, Ambassadors participate in a series of online professional development sessions and complete an innovative capstone project that engages their classrooms and communities.

Applications are due Monday, September 14, 2026, at 11:59 PM Pacific Time.

Learn more here.

Hello Missouri Educators,

I’m reaching out to share an exciting opportunity for your school: America’s Field Trip: Virtual Artist Residencies with Focus 5, made possible by Crystal Bridges celebrating America’s 250th anniversary through the arts. These residencies are FREE/NO COST for schools and bring high-quality, arts-integrated learning directly to your classroom—virtually.

To learn more about these Free Virtual Artist Residencies please go to: https://tinyurl.com/CrystalBridgesResidencies.

Taking place through December 2026.

While you are there, be sure to check out my virtual residency: Warhol’s Wild Adaptations (Grade 3- 5).

In this three-day high-engagement residency, students investigate how Warhol adapted and abstracted images in his animal series—and ask: How do animals adapt to survive, and how can we abstract that idea into movement? Studying the two strategies of adaptation and abstraction, they create original movement phrases that embody real animal adaptations. The result is pop-art thinking meets life-science insight—students don’t tell you what an adaptation or abstraction is; they show you.

Participation requires a minimum of 4 classes to take part. If you don’t have 4 classes, we can pair you with another school.

If you’d like to secure a spot, you can register here:

• Register: https://tinyurl.com/WarholAdapt 

You can also learn more about Focus 5 arts integration at www.Focus5ArtsIntegration.com

If you have questions I’m happy to help.
- Harlan Brownlee

Contact Harlan via email here.

The Missouri Arts Council Big Yellow School Bus grants provide up to $500 in transportation assistance for K-12 school field trips to arts education programs.

Eligible Projects: Field trips that demonstrate direct exposure to or integration with arts education. 

Maximum Award Amount: Up to $500 per year in transportation costs.

Application Deadlines: Rolling deadlines (must apply at least two months prior to the scheduled event date via Missouri Arts Council).

Eligible Funding Period: July 1, 2026 through June 30, 2027.

Learn more here.