Announcing Growing Up with the Arts, a National Arts in Education Conference in Miami, Florida
Alberto M. Carvalho, Superintendent, Miami-Dade County Public Schools is the Conference Keynote Speaker
Miami, FL – January 25, 2016 – Attended by arts organization staff and teaching artists from around the country, Growing Up with the Arts, a three day national arts-in-education conference, will take place April 14-16, 2016 in Miami, Florida at the Eden Roc Miami Beach resort. Growing Up with the Arts is co-hosted by Arts for Learning Miami and the national organization, Young Audiences Arts for Learning. The conference theme, Growing Up with the Arts addresses the importance of creating and sustaining programs that transform communities and engage youth in the arts. The conference will also address other timely topics, including: developing effective collaborations with community partners and arts organizations, the importance of STEAM practices, creating arts programs that transform communities, and the role of technology in education and creativity, and arts advocacy.
The Young Audiences Arts for Learning network is thrilled to welcome Alberto M. Carvalho, Superintendent, Miami-Dade County Public Schools and Deborah Margol, Deputy Director, Miami-Dade, County Department of Cultural Affairs as the conference keynote speakers. Alberto Carvalho has served as Superintendent of Miami-Dade County Public Schools (M-DCPS), the nation’s fourth largest school system, since September 2008. He is a nationally recognized expert on education transformation and finance who has successfully elevated his district’s academic profile and streamlined its business operations and financial systems. Now widely considered one of the nation’s highest-performing urban school systems, M-DCPS was named as the 2014 College Board Advanced Placement Equity and Excellence District of the Year, as well as the 2012 winner of the Broad Prize for Urban Education. A versatile leader, Carvalho is also the self-appointed principal of two award-winning schools—the Primary Learning Center and the iPrep Academy- and has served as President of the Association of Latino Administrators and Superintendents. He was selected as Florida’s 2014 Superintendent of the Year, as well as the 2014 National Superintendent of the Year and named by Scholastic Administrator as one of “The Fantastic Five” educators making a difference in America.
Deborah Bookspan Margol, a native New Yorker, joined the Department in 1986 and has served as Deputy Director since 1992. She collaborates with the director in conceptualizing and developing innovative programs and policies for community cultural development, and oversees cultural initiatives with other departments of Miami-Dade government, municipal, state and federal governmental agencies and the private sector. Margol is the Department’s chief financial officer, managing its more than $33 million annual operating budget, its direct oversight of $100 million of County capital investments in cultural facilities, and facilitating the County’s investment of more than $450 million dedicated through the Building Better Communities General Obligation Bond program to building the next generation of Miami-Dade’s cultural venues, from major new museums to theaters and neighborhood arts centers. She serves as liaison to Americans for the Arts, the National Endowment for the Arts, the Florida Cultural Alliance, the Greater Miami Convention and Visitors Bureau, and as a regular contributor to South Florida Arts Beat, broadcast on the local NPR affiliate WLRN – 91.3 FM.
The Growing Up with the Arts conference also offers an exciting line-up of more than twenty breakout sessions that address relevant arts education topics and highlight best practices that enhance work in classrooms and communities throughout the country. Participants can learn how strong communities and partnerships lead to great success in creating early childhood education, how to develop social justice and inclusion programs, how to implement advocacy and grassroots practices, and how to harness the power of STEAM and promote digital learning. In addition, there are site visits to some the best arts in education programs currently being offered to children in Miami: University of Miami Frost School of Music, Shalala MusicReach Program and Miami Children’s Initiative.
Last year’s conference was attended by professional staff, teaching artists, board members and artists from leading arts education organizations including: Americans for the Arts (AftA), National Coalition for Core Arts Standards (NCCAS), National Association of Music Merchants Foundation (NAMM), State Education Agency Directors of Arts Education (SEADAE), National Association for Music Education (NAfME).
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About Arts for Learning Miami
Arts for Learning (A4L) is a non-profit organization dedicated to advancing teaching and learning through the arts and community cultural resources. As a leading source of arts programs in Miami, A4L provides traditional and arts-integrated instruction, student studio programs, afterschool and summer programs, high school internships, and teacher and artist professional development. A4L’s programs augment cognitive, social, and emotional development in children and youth. The programs also develop creativity, critical thinking, communication, problem solving skills as well as promote positive peer relations and cultivate self-efficacy. A4L partners with Miami-Dade County Public Schools, Miami-Dade County Department of Cultural Affairs, and Young Audiences. A4L also serves as the South Florida Wolf Trap, a regional program of Wolf Trap Institute for Early LearningTM. A4L’s services are delivered to more than 5,000 children and youth in approximately 50 schools, preschools, after-school programs, and summer camps throughout Miami-Dade and Broward.
About Young Audiences Arts for Learning
Founded in 1952, YA works to support affiliated organizations that are each dedicated to playing a decisive role in young people’s development. Last year, the YA network of 30 affiliates reached 5,000,000 children in over 8,000 schools and community centers with 80,000 performance demonstrations, workshops, and teacher services.
Arts for Learning Miami
Carolina Candelaria
T: 305-576-1212, E: [email protected]
Young Audiences Arts for Learning
Marcus Romero
T: 212-860-1563 X108, E: [email protected]