Press Release: 20 Schools Reached by the Artists in Education Residency Grant Program

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:

CONTACT:

Samantha Clarke

AIE Manager

609.984.7019

[email protected]

20 Schools Reached by the Artists in Education Residency Grant Program (AIE)

AIE provides an artist in residence in schools throughout New Jersey

Caption: Teaching artist Josh Robinson leads a warm-up for the students of Washington Avenue Elementary School. Photography by Driven by Design Creative Agency, LLC.

Trenton, NJ. January 6, 2021: This school year, the Artists in Education Residency Grant Program (AIE) is pleased to announce that it will be awarding 13 long-term residencies throughout the state of New Jersey. Many of the proposed projects will be held virtually and include art forms such as theatre, Latin dance, photography, and more. In addition to the 13 new grantees, AIE will also be funding 7 residencies that were not able to complete their projects due to the COVID-19 crisis in the 2019 – 2020 school year.

The Artists in Education Residency Grant Program is a co-sponsored project of the New Jersey State Council on the Arts and Young Audiences Arts for Learning New Jersey & Eastern Pennsylvania. The program is carried out in partnership with regional partners, including Appel Farm Arts & Music Campus, Count Basie Center for the Arts, and Morris Arts.

AIE grants (in value of $11,000+) place professional teaching artists in classrooms for long-term residencies that can be offered in all arts disciplines and at all grade levels. AIE grants are available to any New Jersey School, Pre-K through 12th grade. The twenty-day (minimum) residency provides professional development in the visual, performing, and literary arts, classroom workshop days with a professional teaching artist, and a community-based culminating event. AIE residencies focus on direct learning about the arts and the processes of creating art, including the skills, techniques, and concepts of the art form.

The 2020 – 2021 schools who received the grant are:

• Atco Elementary School (Atco)
• Broad Street School (Bridgeton)
• Charles C. Polk Elementary School (Roselle)
• Farmingdale Public School (Farmingdale)
• Gerald H. Woehr Elementary School (New Egypt)
• Greenwood Elementary School (Hamilton)
• Jackson Liberty High School (Jackson)
• James Monroe School (Edison)
• Morris-Union Jointure Commission (New Providence)
• Mott Elementary School (Trenton)
• Ocean Road School (Point Pleasant)
• Seth Boyden Demonstration School (Maplewood)
• Walter C Black Elementary School (Hightstown)

The 2019 – 2020 schools who will be receiving a partial grant, due to COVID-19 closures during the previous grant year:

• Bradley Beach Elementary School (Bradley Beach)
• Broad Street School (Bridgeton)
• Hawkins Street School (Newark)
• Middle Township High School (Cape May Court House)
• P.G. Chambers School (Cedar Knolls)
• Stony Brook Elementary School (North Plainfield)
• Washington Avenue School (Pleasantville)

“In this challenging time, we are thrilled that the New Jersey State Council on the Arts has made it possible for us to reach more New Jersey schools and students with artist in residence programs,” says President and CEO of Young Audiences Michele Russo. “We know these experiences are a lifeline for some students who are struggling and feeling disconnected. Guided by the innovation and creativity of our teaching artists, collaborating teachers and students, we are prepared for amazing things!”

“These projects raise our school’s profile in the community and help earn us the reputation of being a place where interesting and dynamic things are happening, where we foster a culture of the arts,” says Kirsty Sucato, English Language Arts teacher at Bradley Beach Elementary. “This generates a lot of pride for staff and students. Graduated students often return and talk about their emotional connection and engagement with the school and the arts within the context of past grants.”

“I love this residency,” shared Rigoberto, a student at Broad Street School. “I felt more creative and passionate about art because art could be so many things in life.”

AIE congratulates all of the schools participating in the Artists in Education Residency Grant Program, and we wish them a great school year with their teaching artist.

The application for the 2021 – 2022 Artists in Education Residency Grant Program is available to the public. For schools interested in receiving feedback on a completed draft of their application, AIE provides an early bird deadline of February 5, 2021. The final deadline for applications is March 5, 2021. Schools that are interested in applying can go to AIE’s website www.njaie.org to learn more about the grant program, access the application, and connect with resources to assist with the application process.

To keep up to date on AIE, follow us on Facebook and Twitter (@NJArtistsinEd).

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About the New Jersey State Council on the Arts

The New Jersey State Council on the Arts, created in 1966, is a division of the NJ Department of State. The Council was established to encourage and foster public interest in the arts; enlarge public and private resources devoted to the arts; promote freedom of expression in the arts; and facilitate the inclusion of art in every public building in New Jersey. The Council receives direct appropriations from the State of New Jersey through a dedicated, renewable Hotel/Motel Occupancy fee, as well as competitive grants from the National Endowment for the Arts. To learn more about the Council, please visit www.artscouncil.nj.gov.

About Young Audiences Arts for Learning New Jersey and Eastern Pennsylvania

Founded in 1973, Young Audiences Arts for Learning NJ & Eastern PA is the premier arts-in-education resource in the region, providing teaching artist-led performances, workshops, residencies, and teacher professional learning programs to schools in all 21 counties of New Jersey and the 7 easternmost counties of Pennsylvania. Young Audiences’ extensive professional artist roster represents all art forms—from dance and theater to music, language and visual arts. Since its founding, the organization has reached over 15 million children in its nearly 50-year history.

A not-for-profit organization, Young Audiences’ mission is to inspire young people and expand their learning through the arts. Students are the center of our work. Our vision is that every child will have rich and meaningful arts experiences as part of their education. YA continually strives to create spaces that are diverse, equitable, and inclusive to all students and is committed to providing students of all identities, backgrounds, and experiences with arts education in which their creativity, cultures, abilities, and identities are validated, included, and nurtured.

YA’s programs are accessible to all socio-economic, ethnic, cultural, and geographic communities, and are designed to strengthen the arts in schools, meet local and state curriculum standards, and enrich cultural life in New Jersey and Pennsylvania communities.

Young Audiences is the first arts education organization designated as a major service organization by the New Jersey State Council on the Arts and, as part of the national network of Young Audiences, Inc., was awarded the National Medal of Arts by President Clinton. Young Audiences programs are made possible in part through a grant from the New Jersey State Council on the Arts/Department of State and Pennsylvania Council of the Arts. Additional funding comes from foundations, corporations and generous individuals. To learn more, visit www.yanjep.org. To be “social” with us, follow us on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter @YAAFLORG.

CONTACT:

Samantha Clarke

AIE Manager

609.984.7019

[email protected]