Mississippi Arts Commission: News

"Celebrating Our Creative Spirit" to be focus of the tenth annual whole schools summer institute

DATE:            June 23 , 2008

CONTACT:     Susan Dobbs, MAC Public Relations Director, 601/359-6030, sdobbs@arts.state.ms.us

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE 

JACKSON— The tenth annual Summer Institute of the Mississippi Arts Commission’s Whole Schools Initiative will offer educators new and innovative ideas for classroom arts integration.  The Institute, themed “Celebrating Our Creative Spirit,” will be held on the campus of The University of Mississippi July 20 – 24, 2008.  

Approximately 300 teachers, artists and administrators from more than 40 schools will gather in Oxford to study everything from the Mississippi Curriculum Framer to ballroom dancing.  The Institute’s highly professional training will give educators the inspiration, knowledge and skills to lead their students toward the goal of reaching their full potential.  

“The Mississippi Arts Commission is proud to celebrate ten years of providing this outstanding professional development opportunity to educators from across the country,” said Malcolm White, Executive Director of MAC.  “This agency is dedicated to prove the value of teaching the arts across the curriculum and what an arts-infused education can mean to the students of today and tomorrow.”

Classes will begin after lunch on Sunday, July 20th with a series of special workshops and arts experiences, followed by a performance by the award-winning improvisational theatre ensemble, Wavelength.   The group uses humor, laughter and spontaneity to train, motivate and inspire educators.  Since 1980, Wavelength has presented to over 1.5 million educators in over 2000 school systems.  The group will also be offering special classes throughout the week.

The Institute will be filled with opportunities to learn how to teach math through dance, critical thinking and problem solving through visual art, and how hands-on, sensory lessons in the garden and kitchen can be translated into core subject lessons.

Since 1992, the Commission has provided grant funds, technical assistance and professional development opportunities to Mississippi schools. It is the goal of the Commission to assist schools in the development and implementation of arts-based, interdisciplinary curriculum. The Summer Institute was created ten years ago to offer comprehensive professional development opportunities educators need to deliver effective arts-infused instruction. In addition to the Institute training, participating Whole Schools receive up to $8,000 a year in grant support, several retreat opportunities during the school year, plus a Field Advisor to offer assistance, support, advice and training.  

The Whole Schools Initiative is open to kindergarten through 12th grade teachers and strives to engage everyone from principals to parents to work toward integrating the arts into existing school curricula in order to further prove the powerful role the arts play in learning. 

Visit the WSI website at www.mswholeschools.org to learn more about Whole Schools and the annual Institute.  For more information about the Mississippi Arts Commission, visit http://www.arts.state.ms.us/.

The Mississippi Arts Commission is a state agency funded by the Mississippi Legislature, the National Endowment for the Arts, the Wallace Foundation, The Phil Hardin Foundation, Blue Cross Blue Shield of Mississippi Foundation and other private sources. The Whole Schools Summer Institute is funded by a generous contribution from Donna and Jim Barksdale.

The Commission serves more than 1.7 million Mississippians through grants that support programs to enhance communities across the state; assist artists and arts organizations; promote the arts in education and celebrate Mississippi’s cultural heritage. The Commission is the official grants-making and service agency for the arts in Mississippi

 

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