Hello, Teaching Artists! We hope your summers are going well and you’re finding a little time to relax before the school year starts. How is July over already? It’s been a quieter month at TAG while we onboard our newest Co-Executive Director, new Board and National Advisory Committee Members, and apply for grants to support this work. While we only have a few updates this month, stay tuned for new developments with our resource databases and Asset Map in the coming months. As always, our job board and Slack channels are updated daily with new opportunities for teaching artists.
National Advisory Committee Member (Ohio)
One of our newest NAC Members, Pamela O’Loughlin, wrote a moving piece about Juneteenth and her own relationship to the day for our Incite/Insight blog. Her article is not only poignant for this moment, but offers insight into what teaching artists should consider when entering their classrooms.
“There are fifteen days between Juneteenth and the 4th of July. The juxtaposition of these two holidays makes me pause and really think about this space. What is Juneteenth? […] Figuratively speaking, I live in this space between the two holidays. I am biracial and my “outside” or my physical appearance leans toward my European roots and the 4th of July, but many of my core beliefs are 100% JUNETEENTH!”
NAC Emeritus Member Eric Booth brought to our attention an opportunity to raise the visibility of teaching artists through the Share Your Voice/Virtual Global Open Mic. This is a space to share and listen to the ideas and concerns of the world’s international community in preparation for UNESCO’s World Conference on Cultural Policies – MONDIACULT 2022.
Cultural workers, youth and the public at large are invited to contribute to this global policy dialogue on arts, creativity, culture and heritage by sharing your responses to the following questions:
- What is the one issue of most urgent concern for you regarding the sustainability and resilience of the arts, culture, heritage and creativity?
- What is one action policymakers should take to effect positive change in this area of concern?
- What are possible solutions that already address this concern?
You can share your responses in writing, via audio/video (via WhatsApp) or via Twitter or Twitter Spaces. Responses will be considered in the development of a public report that will be distributed to delegates at MONDIACULT 2022.
There’s still time to register for ITAC6 in Oslo! TAG members will be present at this year’s conference, so if you plan to go let us know! We’d love to see teaching artists in our network represented.
Can’t make it to Oslo? There will be a digital component to the conference too and many organizations and teaching artists across the country are taking part.
We are so excited about all of our new members and the initiatives we have in store for this coming year. As always, we could not do this work without your support. Thank you and have a great rest of the summer.
With Gratitude,
Heleya de Barros, Katie Rainey & Kerry Warren
TAG Co-Executive Directors
We cannot do the important work of advocating for teaching artists through these various initiatives without funding. Please consider donating to TAG to help support teaching artists through our work. Even $20 can go a long way in supporting our organization.
Don’t forget to check out TAG’s many resources on our website. You can find and post jobs, research pay rates in your area, read articles by teaching artists for teaching artists, find resources for teaching, and so much more.