News
Case Studies on Arts for All Districts Demonstrate Value of Planning
Los Angeles, California
9/24/09 The Los Angeles County Arts Commission has released a new report entitled, Arts for All: The Vanguard Districts—Case Studies from the First Five Years. Authored by Griffin Center Executive Director, Dr. Lynn Waldorf, the report provides an in-depth look at the progress, challenges and outcomes of the first 11 school districts to join the Arts for All initiative and create, adopt and implement five-year plans for arts education.
A countywide effort, 34 of 81 Los Angeles County districts have joined Arts for All since its inception in 2002. With a goal to improve K-12 learning opportunities in dance, music, theatre and visual arts, the Vanguard District case studies demonstrate the value of starting any ambitious project with an inspired vision and structured planning process. This study is especially useful for state arts education leaders and school district administrators who recognize the value of learning from a variety of school districts’ trials and triumphs in developing sequential, standards-based arts programs for every school. It provides a wealth of information on effective strategies for implementing, sustaining and stewarding arts education initiatives.
Susan McGreevy, Griffin Center’s Senior Director of Arts Education Policy and Practice has been a planning coach for a number of districts participating the Arts for All initiative through the California Alliance for Arts Education’s A Coach in Every Corner program. For more information on creating an arts education plan for your district or organization, contact the Griffin Center.
Tools of the Mind Enables Children to Succeed in Preschool, Kindergarten and Beyond
Denver, Colorado
9/27/09 The Sunday Edition of the New York Times has published a special section focused on educational programs that are making a difference for students. Among those discussed was Tools of the Mind®, an early childhood curriculum developed by educational psychologists in Denver, Colorado.
Dr. Kim Atwill, Senior Director of Literacy Research and Education at Griffin Center is partnering with the developers of the Tools of the Mind curriculum and additional staff from Metropolitan State College of Denver to provide professional development to classroom teachers and aides in Albuquerque, New Mexico, Olympia, Washington and Tampa, Florida.
Dr. Atwill is also collaborating with the Tools of the Mind team to develop supplementary instructional materials for use with sub-populations of students, including children who speak English as a second language and children with special needs.
Griffin Center to Provide an Innovative Arts & Literacy Intervention
Phoenix, Arizona
9/28/09 The Arizona Department of Education has announced that Inspired Instruction, LLC, the curriculum division of Griffin Center, was one of five organizations that have been awarded a contract as a Technical Assistance Provider to offer professional development and technical assistance resources in arts integration practices to Title I districts/schools eligible for federal stimulus funding (American Reinvestment and Recovery Act; ARRA).
Griffin Center senior staff members, Susan McGreevy-Nichols and Dr. Kim Atwill, will lead a team of seasoned arts integration coaches in guiding participating teachers through the Griffin Arts and Literacy Solutions (GALS) Professional Development Program. A method of literacy intervention, GALS provides instruction in the arts in a focused and intentional way designed to help students also expand vocabulary, increase reading comprehension and build reading fluency. The instructional materials and methods engage students in creative learning processes and address content standards in the arts and literacy.
A comprehensive professional development plan supports successful implementation of this program. As an additional technical assistance resource, Griffin Center consultants can assist districts and schools in updating their existing plan, using federal ARRA funds.
