Arts Education
Mission
The mission of the Arts Education Program is to expand and enhance the curriculum of its partner schools by offering its students and their families’ exposure to the arts of music, dance and theater. Utilizing the resources of Georgia Tech, the Arts Education Program brings a new generation to the theater while reinforcing the educationally relevant aspects of that experience in the classroom as well as in the home.
Brief History
The Arts Education Program at the Ferst Center for the Arts was established in 1998 with a grant from the Lila Wallace - Reader’s Digest Fund. During the 1998-1999 school year over 500 students from Centennial Place Elementary School and their parents participated in interactive workshops and attended performances featuring world-renowned artists. The program also included a workshop by the Ahn Trio to LaGrange Academy in LaGrange, Georgia, further exposing children in underserved communities to the arts. The tremendous success of the first year led to the inclusion of Grady High School students for the second year of the program. Students participated in workshops with The Tokyo String Quartet, Paul Taylor Dance Company, actor John Amos, and Peking Acrobats, among others.
Discovering the Arts Continues
The partnership with Centennial Place Elementary continues in exciting ways each year. Students receive study guides and prepare in advance to participate in interactive workshops with selected world renowned artists in music and dance. Then the workshops are conducted by these artists who share their passion, background, and artistry with the students. In addition, students and their families attend performances by these artists at the Ferst Center as an integral part of the Arts Education partnership with Centennial Place.
After attending the workshops and performances, students are expected to acquire knowledge and skills based on the type of presentation. The body of knowledge and skills includes: learning about various cultures as represented by the performers, identifying various world nations on a map, conducting age-appropriate scientific experiments on the properties of sound, identifying various musical instruments by sight and sound, learning appropriate listening behavior, and learning basic terminology for each cultural genre presented.
As a part of the partnership the Ferst Center hosts the school’s Holiday Music Concert in December each year. Over 100 aspiring young singers and musicians from the school perform on the Ferst stage for their families and friends. In addition the Ferst Center continues to partner with Grady High School with age-appropriate studies and performances.
Program Support
This program, including artist fees and ticket subsidies, is made possible by the generous support of The Community Foundation for Greater Atlanta, the Fulton County Arts Council, Publix Super Market Charities, and operating support from the Southern Arts Federation and the Georgia Council for the Arts through appropriations of the Georgia General Assembly (GCA is a partner agency of the National Endowment for the Arts). Additional support is provided by the Georgia Institute of Technology.
For information on supporting this program please call Virginia Sheppard at 404-894-2481.Arts Education Study Guides |
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Dance Brazil Study Guide 2007 Earl Klugh Study Guide 2007 Parsons Dance Study Guide 2007 |
Pilobolus Study Guide 2007 Soweto Gospel Choir Study Guide 2007 |