April Newsletter
Congratulations! We are moving into the final portion of the school year and I know many of you are busy with contests, performances, and other end of the year events. Good luck to you and your students as you wrap up the school year.
Over the summer, there are many opportunities for virtual networking and there are also a few in person events happening! Be sure to
Good Reads
Comanche Elementary Students Learn African Drums for Black History Month
Lyric Theatre Announces 2021 Season
OKC's long-awaited First Americans Museum to open in fall with support from National Endowment for the Arts
The fine arts virtual meetings will be held on the second Thursday of every month at 4 p.m. on Zoom. This month's meeting will be held on Thursday, April 8. We will have time to discuss some new initiatives coming from the OSDE this spring/summer, and there will be time for networking with colleagues. All Oklahoma PK-12 arts educators are welcome to join the conversation!
In order to increase security for our virtual meetings we are implementing passwords for participants. When you log onto Zoom use the following login information. Please do not share this information publicly through social media or other spaces. You may forward this email to colleagues if they do not receive the newsletter.
OSDE C&I Encore Team is inviting you to a scheduled Zoom meeting.
Topic: Fine Arts Virtual Meet-Up
Time: Apr 8, 2021 04:00 PM Central Time (US and Canada)
Join Zoom Meeting
https://zoom.us/j/91040471677?pwd=OFdxSGFDNHA3NkNveU9zT3FlQ3Z0QT09
Meeting ID: 910 4047 1677
Passcode: OKFA
One tap mobile
+16699006833,,91040471677# US (San Jose)
+12532158782,,91040471677# US (Tacoma)
Dial by your location
+1 669 900 6833 US (San Jose)
+1 253 215 8782 US (Tacoma)
To further enhance security, the meeting will be locked at 4:05. After 4:05, no one will be allowed to enter the meeting.
The Oklahoma State Department of Education is pleased to join with the Oklahoma Alliance for Arts Education and the Masonic Fraternity of Oklahoma for the 31st Annual State Superintendent Awards for Arts Excellence. This special recognition is given to high school juniors and seniors who meet certain criteria. In addition, we recognize fine arts educators, school administrators, and school boards who exhibit leadership, support quality arts education, and demand academic excellence in Oklahoma schools.
All student recipients have been notified of their award status and teacher/administrator notifications will be sent this week. The virtual ceremony will be a combination of live filming in Guthrie in April and pictures of students and their work with a voiceover highlighting the student's accomplishments. Teachers - if your student is receiving the award, please remind them to check their email over the coming weeks. Instructions will be sent on how to upload/send photos, videos, and other information to the videographer.
The virtual ceremony will be broadcast in May 2021. An exact release date will be announced in early May.
For additional assistance, please contact Dr. Elizabeth Maughan, Director of Fine Arts, elizabeth.maughan@sde.ok.gov
Art Tech is now hiring Teaching Artists for the 2021-22 school year! Learn more about the position here.
Teaching Artists (TAs) are experienced local artists in dance, drama/theatre, music, and visual art who will:
- Work with schools to create and facilitate monthly hands-on arts
experiences for PK-5 students.
- Collaborate with classroom teachers weekly to connect arts experiences to
fine arts curriculum (curriculum designed by Oklahoma fine arts educators).
- Be trained in high-quality instructional practices, classroom
management, and culturally responsive teaching to facilitate high-quality
arts experiences with students in their classrooms.
- Be supported weekly by OSDE Art Tech Specialists. Work performed will
take place primarily during the school day.
Art Tech will be prioritizing rural schools with no current arts programming for the 2021-22 school year. The range of interest for Art Tech is vast, and we are looking for qualified Teaching Artists beyond the OKC/Metro area. For more information on hours, pay, etc., see the job posting here. Full time arts educators are not be able to work as a Teaching Artist, but if you know of someone currently working part time, pursuing a degree, or working in an area outside PK-12 education, please encourage them to apply!
Town Hall
OkMEA is hosting a Town Hall meeting on Thursday, April 8th at 7:00 p.m. We will be discussing upcoming organizational activities including All-State. Make plans now to attend and share with your friends. A Zoom link will be posted on the OkMEA homepage the week of the meeting.
OkMEA Conference Proposals
It's time to plan for the upcoming conference season, and OkMEA needs your help! If you have a session you would like to present or know someone with awesome presentation skills, please pass along the Session Proposal Application. The OkMEA VPs will use these proposals to fill session slots for the Fall and Winter conferences. Proposals are due April 30th!
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On Friday, April 9, from 10-11am, I Dream of Greenwood—a dance inspired by personal accounts of survivors of the 1921 Tulsa Race Massacre—will premiere on Zoom, followed by a talkback with the choreographers/dancers and recent U.S. Poet Laureate and Pulitzer Prize winner Tracy K. Smith. High school students, librarians, and teachers around the state are invited to participate remotely during the live talkback event—click here to register. A curriculum packet that includes readings and discussion questions is available on the OU centennial website under the Special Projects - Dance Performance menu. For more information, email TRMcentennial@ou.edu.
The Oklahoma Contemporary Dance Festival is a grant-funded program, hosted by Perpetual Motion Dance, which allows dancers ages 12 & up throughout the mid-west region to study with professional choreographers throughout the month of July.
Festival auditions will be held April 10 from 9:00-12:00 p.m. at UCO’s Health & Physical Education building. Dancers will be placed with a choreographer to learn a piece of choreography to perform in the July show. There is an online audition and collaboration option for dancers needing to work remotely. For more information about the 2021 Oklahoma Contemporary Dance Festival, contact perpetualocdf@gmail.com.
OKC Broadway would like to remind you and your students that the deadline to submit applications and videos for the 2020-2021 Kelli O’Hara Awards is April 14, 2021!
Schools may participate in one of two ways:
1. Schools doing live productions may submit a video of their production and have their students performing in a qualifying role submit a self-tape of a solo song from their role to be considered for Best Actress/Best Actor categories.
2. Schools not doing live productions may submit up to two students for the Best Actor and up to two students for the Best Actress category.
Award Categories:
- Best Musical
- Best Ensemble
- Best Performance by an Actor in a Musical
- Best Performance by an Actress in a Musical
- Spotlight Awards for an ensemble member from each school
The Best Actor and Actress Awards winners will go on to compete at the virtual National High School Musical Theatre Awards (AKA The Jimmy Awards). The Kelli O'Hara Awards program is open to public and private high schools in Central and Western Oklahoma. The winners will be announced at a virtual awards ceremony scheduled for late Spring 2021.
If you have students who wish to participate, please complete the application located at https://www.okcbroadway.com/apply-kelli-o-hara-awards.
For information on eligibility or questions, email kelliawards@okcbroadway.com.
Oklahoma Thespians will be having their first in person event in over a year in May! They will be hosting a smaller version of their festival fully safe and socially distanced! "Cirqué du Mascarade’" will be held on May 1st in Moore, Oklahoma. Registration is due by April 16.
Online registration for the Oklahoma Student Art Exhibition (OSAE) is currently open for you to register your students’ art! This FREE program, offered by the Oklahoma State Fair, provides the opportunity for Oklahoma Art Students from pre-K through 12th grade to have their art judged by prominent Oklahoma artists with the top 1,000 pieces displayed for thousands of people to view during the Oklahoma State Fair in September. In addition, $7,300 in cash and Hobby Lobby cards will be awarded to Oklahoma school art programs.
To make it easier for schools across the state to participate, there are five districts for take-in and judging. Sites include Ada, Duncan, Enid, Oklahoma City, and Tulsa. Go to https://okstatefair.com/competitions/oklahoma-student-art-exhibition to find the guidelines and application. The deadline for registration is fast approaching - April 19 at 5 p.m. Don’t miss out on this amazing opportunity for your students!
The University of Oklahoma School of Music will pick back up during the summer of 2021 by offering Kodály certification levels 1 and 3, which would have been offered in the Summer of 2020 in Norman. These workshops will take place June 14–25, 2021. All teachers interested in participating in this certification program should visit the website and register.
The Resonance Series is a new guest-lecture series brought to you by the OU School of Music and Jazz in June that connects OU students and Oklahoma PK-12 students with music professionals from around the world. Speakers will share their experiences, provide the future generation with insight into the industry and career paths, and answer questions students may have.
Join online for this unique opportunity to listen to, talk with, and ask questions of the music industry's most successful experts. Oklahoma arts educators and their students are welcome to attend the series!
Email Eric Walschap at e@ou.edu with any questions.
Convention will be held in Tulsa July 19-22. Take steps now to reserve your hotel room and register when the portal opens. Questions? Contact an OBA officer.
A new gallery schedule is being developed! We will pick back up with monthly showings in August, 2021. If you contacted Elizabeth in the past about the gallery, she will be emailing to set up a month for you in the 2021-22 school year. If you are interested in displaying art at the OSDE, email Elizabeth, and she'll add you to the list of interested schools. Thanks!
A virtual art gallery is available on the SDE Fine Arts website for students and families who would like to see pictures of their work in the OSDE (Oliver Hodge) Building.
April 8 - Final Virtual Fine Arts Monthly Meeting
- OkMEA Town Hall Meeting
April 9 - "I Dream of Greenwood" Dance Event
April 10 - Oklahoma Contemporary Dance Festival
April 14 - Deadline for Kelli O'Hara Award Entries
April 30 - Deadline for OkMEA Conference Proposals
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