Artist In Residence
Program Overview
Why bring art in the classroom?
The Artists-In-Residence (AiR) Program offers the promise of enhancing student learning by incorporating art (performing and visible) into the curriculum. Engaging students through the arts enhances student understanding, transfers knowledge, generates excitement, piques curiosity and develops interests.
Engaging & Evolving Minds
Artists allows students to engage, communicate and enjoy learning in ways outside of the standard curriculum. When students draw, write stories or act out concepts, the information is received as an enrichment to learning.
Interested in being a part of the Artist-In-Residence program? Click the For Artists tab above to begin the application process.
Art taught by working artists.
The Artists-In-Residence (AiR) Program provides opportunities for professionals to share their special talents with both students and teachers in the classroom.
Whether it's a spoken word artist (director/actor) providing instruction on writing poetry and essays or a musician sharing the connection between the use of patterns through math and music; professional artists bring knowledge and skills to you and your students from a practical point of view.
The Result
Bringing an artist in the classroom allows the teacher to become a learner alongside the student, offering new opportunities and perspectives. Students learn to process information in different ways cultivating a positive learning experience through:
Creativity, Collaboration, Critical Thinking and Understanding Concept.
When students get to meet and interact with an artists they not only learn skills, they see art as a valid and valued career options for themselves.
Teachers learn more about the program and request an artist for your classroom by selecting the "For Teachers" tab above.
For Artists
Thank you for your interest in the artist-in-residence program
Artists are an important part of our team and help us in many ways in the classroom. Artists who are partnered with Albemarle County Public Schools in the Artist-in-Residence program bring their special talents to our students to learn, listen and cultivate the diversity of many different cultures, ethnic differences and shared interests. As an artist you will collaborate with teachers to deliver lessons that can be 45, 60 and/or 90 minutes in length.
Are you ready to apply?
Complete the online application. The process will take about 15 - 20 minutes to complete. The application requires one (1) non-family member references that the applicant has known for at least one full year. Once this information has been submitted, we will call you for an interview. Completing an application does not guarantee acceptance into the Artist-In-Residence program. At the interview, selected applicants must successfully pass all applicable safety reviews which include a search of the Virginia State Sex offender registry.
For Teachers
So, you want to do a residency! Wonderful! An Artist Residency can be a powerful tool for transforming a school. Students learn about African drumming, enhance reading skills through storytelling and drama, build coordination through dance, but most importantly, change occurs on a personal level as participants gain greater self-esteem and confidence by being part of a creation.
what is a residency anywaY?
A residency consists of a curriculum-based art project (dance, music, theatre, storytelling, visual art or creative writing) developed and conducted by a teaching artist after careful collaboration with classroom teachers, arts specialists, and other educators involved in the project.
Residencies funded by the Office of Community Engagement must be a minimum of three (3) days (preferably consecutive). The activities chosen for the residency must be hands-on with students directly involved in the creative process. Performance or demonstration based activities in which students are primarily spectators are not considered residencies but may be funded through the school’s budget.
You must use an approved Artist-In-Residence approved by ACPS. A roster of teaching artists can be found by selecting the “Meet The Artists” tab above. Only approved lesson plans will be paid for by the Office of Community Engagement. Unapproved lesson plans do not meet the necessary guidelines but does not mean an artist cannot go to a school but it then becomes a function that must be paid from the school’s budget.
Why Do a residency?
Research shows that each child learns differently and processes information in their own individual way. By making the arts part of the curriculum, young people develop critical thinking skills, self-confidence, discipline, academic success, interpersonal skills and creativity. The arts teach all of us.
Artist residencies provide students with a unique, hands-on experience with an art form. They can also provide an innovative approach to solving a problem, achieving a goal, and learning to work together as part of a team.
how do schools pay for a residency?
An invoice is sent to the artist once the lesson has taken place and verified. Only approved lesson plans will be paid for by the Office of Community Engagement. Unapproved lesson plans do not meet the necessary guidelines but does not mean an artist cannot go to a school, but it then becomes a function that must be paid from the school's budget.
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2020-2021 Schedule |
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Duration |
Rate |
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30 – 74 minutes |
$130 |
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75 – 149 minutes |
$195 |
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150 – 224 minutes |
$260 |
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225 – 299 minutes |
$325 |
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Full Day – 300 minutes & up |
$455 |
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Lesson Pre-Planning 30 minutes or more |
$65 |
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DRT Meeting Presentation |
$65 |
who should be involved?
Hosting an Artist Residency in your classroom can be one of the most beneficial professional development opportunities a teacher can receive. It is equally rewarding for the artist who benefits from the collaboration and knowledge the classroom teacher brings to the project. All residencies should involve at least one (1) classroom teacher, the artist-in-residence coordinator, who collaborates with the arts, not only in designing the content of the residency, but also in team teaching the project.
Meet The Artists
GET TO KNOW THE ARTIST
The Albemarle County Public Schools Department of Community Engagement is proud to present the current Artist-in-Residence Program artists. These talented individuals represent a broad range of cultural, educational, and technical expertise that ties into our multi-cultural school curriculum. Their focus is to broaden the educational experience students are engaged in by providing them with a more in-depth understanding of the many cultural differences.
Blue O'Connell
Blue O'Connell, Growing up Chicago, Blue O’Connell’s childhood was enriched by the cultural diversity around her. As a child, the songs and stories of the American experience captured her imagination and ignited a deep love for music she shares to this day. She was awarded the Mildred W. Spicer Arts Fund Award created to recognize a local person for outstanding service improving artistic opportunities for people with disabilities.
Leslie Scott-Jones
Leslie M. Scott-Jones is a African-American southern woman from Charlottesville, Virginia, encompassing all that entails. She studied theater education at VCU. Leslie has been writing, singing, acting and directing since her teens. The world premiere of her first play Desire Moments was part of the 2014 Capital Fringe Festival. She has gone on to write several plays, novellas, and short stories. Book Ends, her first full length novel, hit the shelves Valentine’s Day Weekend 2016. Leslie has been active in Charlottesville community theater for over ten years. She is the Artistic Director of the Charlottesville Player’s Guild. Most recently you would've seen her starring in her own adaptation of Shakespeare's Hamlet called Hambone and directing Jitney by August Wilson at the Jefferson School African-American Heritage Center, which the CPG calls home. Leslie played Louise in Seven Guitars by August Wilson which ran in November 2017 with UVa.’s Drama Department. Leslie is the co-founder of EugeneMartin LLC, an artist development firm in Charlottesville, Va. She is mother to two children and Mimi to two grandsons.
William "Whit" Whitten
William “Whit” Whitten, founder of the Drum Call Center and director of the ensemble Drum Call and Friends, is lead drummer for Chihamba, a traditional African dance and drum troupe. Whit is also a percussionist with the ensemble Afrikan Drum Festival. Whit has studied with master drummers in North America and West Africa. He was sponsored by the U.S. government to tour Europe with the Cultural Music African Dance Company. Whit is a member of the Virginia Commission of the Arts’ Artist in Educator Residency Program. He is masterful at working with diverse people of all ages. Whit uses his drums and himself as tools to facilitate the building of bridges and creation of harmony within homes, schools, and communities.
For more information, please contact Ayanna Mitchell at amitchell@k12albemarle.org.