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What they all have in common - getting students engaged in the arts and focused on the creative process. They also all need teaching artists, like Mitchell, to inspire the students with workshops and lessons that explore the artistic subjects of dance, theater, music and the visual arts.
The goal of the programs is to break down the narrow concepts of an art form and get the students on their feet actually experiencing it. That could be exploring how their body moves in a dance class, for example, or expressing complex emotions in a theater class.
“The students are up, they’re moving, they’re doing,” said Angie Melvin, program coordinator for the EFA Alternative Arts Initiative. “They get to express themselves and do some critical thinking through the arts.
“All of it is centered on the students and their experience and letting them explore the creative process with the guidance of professional teaching artists. We are looking for professional artists who are engaged and active in their art form, and it’s critical that they connect with students and also have really great communication skills, too.”
EFA is seeking teaching artists in dance, theater, music and visual arts and “would be eager to have a conversation with anyone that has some more specific skills, too,” like stage makeup or film and photography, Melvin said. Learn more about EFA teaching artist qualifications and apply online at www.efa-rep.org/apply by Thursday, May 17.
Since becoming a teaching artist last fall, Mitchell has found himself looking at dance with a fresh perspective in order to communicate more effectively with his students and to get them engaged. A teaching artist has to be patient and it can be humbling, he said, but the experience is very rewarding both personally and professionally.
“Any artist should consider being a teaching artist for EFA because it’s going to open your eyes and allow you to really think about your art form in a different way,” Mitchell said. “They’re looking for people who have a deep connection to the arts. I don’t think you need a degree to show that. Anyone could be a candidate if they have the experience.”
EFA Seeks Dynamic, Creative and Motivated Teaching Artists
Written by Matthew Vande Bunte, MLive Media Group
Scheduled around his work as a professional dancer and choreographer, Dasan Mitchell visits local schools to teach elementary and junior high students about creative movement. One day he can be at a school in Portage or Vicksburg with younger students and the next day he’s in Comstock or Schoolcraft teaching older students, with lessons at other schools across Kalamazoo County in between.
The lessons that the students learn give them more awareness of their bodies, which is important on its own and also seeks to strengthen the crucial mind-body connection, which benefits across all their schoolwork. Teaching students has also helped Mitchell to get even more in tune with his own artistry, improving his professional performances.
“It’s really nice that I get to learn from teaching children, and that it’s also helping me on a personal level,” he said. “A lot of the things I’m learning, even though I’m working with children, can help me with my other endeavors.”
While some artists are full-time teachers and others are strictly artists, Mitchell feels like he has the best of both. The Loy Norrix alumnus who graduated last year with a degree in dance from Wayne State University began working last fall as a teaching artist through the Kalamazoo Regional Educational Service Agency’s award-winning Education for the Arts (EFA) program.
As Mitchell tours with the professional Wellspring dance company in Kalamazoo and choreographs works for local dancers, he also travels across the county leading hands-on workshops in dance fundamentals, such as how to use the body to express feelings, images and ideas.
“The schedule is super flexible so I’m able to create my own schedule and availability,” he said. “I have my own artistic values and things I want to do career-wise, so the flexibility allows me to do those and not just be a teaching artist. I’m able to do both.”
EFA runs three separate programs for elementary and middle school students across Kalamazoo County:
The PACE Program introduces students to elements of dance and theater, giving them the opportunity to take an idea and run with it. It teaches them to think in new ways and problem solve through creative experimentation guided by their teaching artist.
The Aesthetic Education Program partners teaching artists with classroom teachers in a series of lessons that take students on an in-depth exploration of a performing or visual work of art. It teaches the students to use their imagination, develop analytic skills and make connections between art and their own lives.
The Alternative Arts Initiative involves workshops for students in alternative schools and special education programs to participate and engage in the arts. It teaches essential life skills and more through experiences in dance, theater, music and visual arts.
The lessons that the students learn give them more awareness of their bodies, which is important on its own and also seeks to strengthen the crucial mind-body connection, which benefits across all their schoolwork. Teaching students has also helped Mitchell to get even more in tune with his own artistry, improving his professional performances.
“It’s really nice that I get to learn from teaching children, and that it’s also helping me on a personal level,” he said. “A lot of the things I’m learning, even though I’m working with children, can help me with my other endeavors.”
While some artists are full-time teachers and others are strictly artists, Mitchell feels like he has the best of both. The Loy Norrix alumnus who graduated last year with a degree in dance from Wayne State University began working last fall as a teaching artist through the Kalamazoo Regional Educational Service Agency’s award-winning Education for the Arts (EFA) program.
As Mitchell tours with the professional Wellspring dance company in Kalamazoo and choreographs works for local dancers, he also travels across the county leading hands-on workshops in dance fundamentals, such as how to use the body to express feelings, images and ideas.
“The schedule is super flexible so I’m able to create my own schedule and availability,” he said. “I have my own artistic values and things I want to do career-wise, so the flexibility allows me to do those and not just be a teaching artist. I’m able to do both.”
EFA runs three separate programs for elementary and middle school students across Kalamazoo County:
The PACE Program introduces students to elements of dance and theater, giving them the opportunity to take an idea and run with it. It teaches them to think in new ways and problem solve through creative experimentation guided by their teaching artist.
The Aesthetic Education Program partners teaching artists with classroom teachers in a series of lessons that take students on an in-depth exploration of a performing or visual work of art. It teaches the students to use their imagination, develop analytic skills and make connections between art and their own lives.
The Alternative Arts Initiative involves workshops for students in alternative schools and special education programs to participate and engage in the arts. It teaches essential life skills and more through experiences in dance, theater, music and visual arts.
What they all have in common - getting students engaged in the arts and focused on the creative process. They also all need teaching artists, like Mitchell, to inspire the students with workshops and lessons that explore the artistic subjects of dance, theater, music and the visual arts.
The goal of the programs is to break down the narrow concepts of an art form and get the students on their feet actually experiencing it. That could be exploring how their body moves in a dance class, for example, or expressing complex emotions in a theater class.
“The students are up, they’re moving, they’re doing,” said Angie Melvin, program coordinator for the EFA Alternative Arts Initiative. “They get to express themselves and do some critical thinking through the arts.
“All of it is centered on the students and their experience and letting them explore the creative process with the guidance of professional teaching artists. We are looking for professional artists who are engaged and active in their art form, and it’s critical that they connect with students and also have really great communication skills, too.”
EFA is seeking teaching artists in dance, theater, music and visual arts and “would be eager to have a conversation with anyone that has some more specific skills, too,” like stage makeup or film and photography, Melvin said. Learn more about EFA teaching artist qualifications and apply online at www.efa-rep.org/apply by Thursday, May 17.
Since becoming a teaching artist last fall, Mitchell has found himself looking at dance with a fresh perspective in order to communicate more effectively with his students and to get them engaged. A teaching artist has to be patient and it can be humbling, he said, but the experience is very rewarding both personally and professionally.
“Any artist should consider being a teaching artist for EFA because it’s going to open your eyes and allow you to really think about your art form in a different way,” Mitchell said. “They’re looking for people who have a deep connection to the arts. I don’t think you need a degree to show that. Anyone could be a candidate if they have the experience.”