
Time: 4:00 PM
Location: Sikes Lake Center at Midwestern State University
Cost: $15 for Educators, $35 for General Public
The Wichita Falls Alliance for Arts and Culture, in collaboration with Lincoln Center Education and Midwestern State University’s Lamar D. Fain College of Fine Arts, an interactive workshop that explores the importance of arts education for children and young people. Internationally recognized author and facilitator Eric Booth returns to Wichita Falls to present “Five Essentials of Arts Education” designed for everyone interested in enriching the lives of children through the arts. Fine Arts teachers in Region 9 will be able to receive CEU’s for attending the workshop
Eric is a member of the faculty at Lincoln Center Institute in New York City, NY. He will lead a team of for Lincoln Center Education making their debut in Wichita Falls this summer, providing intensive arts education workshops for classroom teachers, arts educators, public school administrators, and artists.
Margie Johnson Reese, Executive Director of the Wichita Falls Alliance for Arts and Culture says, “This is an incredible opportunity for artists, classroom teachers, and providers of youth services in our community at large. Having Eric Booth return to Wichita Falls is an important step toward increasing access to quality arts learning for children in our area.”
Eric has been writing and speaking about the teaching artist profession for the past 30 years. His writings and videos share his methodologies and philosophies around arts education in various settings and have guided and articulated “best practices” in the field of arts learning. In recognition of his inspiring guidance to countless educators and teaching artists who have entered the profession, Eric received the nation’s highest honor in arts education – the Americans for the Arts “Arts Education Leadership Award.”
Eric is the founder and former Director of the Teacher Center of the Leonard Bernstein Center, and is a frequent speaker on the arts to groups of all kinds. As an author, he has written five books, one of which – “The Everyday Work of Art’ – won three awards and was a Book of the Month Club selection. He has written three dozen magazine articles and was the Founding Editor of the Teaching Artist Journal. His book, The Music Teaching Artist’s Bible, was published by Oxford University Press in 2009, and Playing for Their Lives (co-authored with Tricia Tunstall) was published by W.W. Norton in September 2016.
Eric has taught at Juilliard, Stanford University, NYU, Tanglewood and Lincoln Center Institute, and The Kennedy Center. He was the Faculty Chair of the Empire State Partnership program for three years (the largest arts-in-education project in America), and held one of six chairs on The College Board’s Arts Advisory Committee for seven years. He serves as a consultant for many organizations, cities, states and businesses around the country, including six of the ten largest orchestras in America, and five national service organizations.
Eric was the Senior Advisor to the Music National Service initiative, and now advises Artist Year (a “Teach for America” type program for artists). He is a senior advisor to the movement developing El Sistema-inspired sites around the U.S. and world. El Sistema is an international movement which provides music education to underserved youth, developing the essential life skills and habits of mind they need to lead successful lives.
For more information, contact the Wichita Falls Alliance for Arts and Culture at info@wichitafallsarts.org or by calling (940) 500-4451.