State funds artists-in-residence program in Yonkers schools
More than 60 artists will take up teaching residencies next year in 12 public schools in Yonkers as part of an arts enrichment program in the city school district funded by a $500,000 state grant through the New York State Assembly.
The artist residency program was announced Wednesday by officials at ArtsWestchester and the nonprofit”™s program partners at Yonkers Public Schools and in the state Assembly. The residency program will run throughout 2015.
ArtsWestchester, based in White Plains, maintains a roster of artists with training and extensive experience in the classroom and will select those for the Yonkers program through a competitive review process guided by National Core Arts Standards, according to a press release.
Yonkers artists are encouraged to apply for inclusion on the roster. ArtsWestchester officials said several workshops will be held in Yonkers for artists to learn about program qualifications.
Chosen artists in dance, music, theater and visual arts will work with students and teachers in 10 elementary schools selected by the city school district and at Riverside High School and Saunders Trades & Technical High School. The enrichment program also will include professional development opportunities for teachers and site visits to cultural venues. The state grant also will be used to purchase much-needed art supplies for all schools in the district, program partners said.
“Programs such as these are vital to public schools, particularly at a time when resources are limited and the needs are great,” said Assemblyman J. Gary Pretlow, a Democrat whose 89th Assembly district includes part of Yonkers. In a press release, he called the arts partnership “a replicable model for others.”
Pretlow and Assemblywoman Shelley Mayer, a Yonkers Democrat representing the 90th Assembly district, were instrumental in securing the grant.
Yonkers Superintendent of Schools Michael Yazurlo in the announcement said the program with ArtsWestchester “personifies the ”˜why not for Yonkers students”™ mantra that drives my work. Funding constraints must be overcome to optimize enriched educational opportunities for students. Exposure to dance, music, theater and visual arts offers a balanced academic program to reinforce academic, artistic and developmental goals for students.”