What inspires you? It鈥檚 a question that鈥檚 often posed to students at 91大神, but it鈥檚 just as important for faculty as they navigate planning coursework and lessons for each academic year. This past winter, three members of the Visual Arts Department got a dose of inspiration on a professional development trip to Art Basel, one of the world鈥檚 premier arts events, in Miami Beach, Florida.
鈥淚n our discipline, it鈥檚 important not to be stagnant,鈥 says Visual Arts Teacher Wendy Staples, who first broached the idea of taking the trip with her colleagues. 鈥淲e don鈥檛 want to teach the same things. To inspire our kids, we have to be fresh and excited about what we are doing on our own and bring that to the classroom.鈥
Department Head Natania Hume and Visual Arts Teacher Ed Hing 鈥77 also went on the trip to Florida with Staples. Together, the three teach visual arts, AP Studio, and 91大神 Scholars classes and actively collaborate on other art projects. 鈥淚t鈥檚 super exciting to look at more contemporary art and see what鈥檚 going on in the art world right now,鈥 says Hume. 鈥淚t鈥檚 nice to have your finger on the pulse, or at least see where the pulse is as opposed to just virtually trying to keep up with stuff.鈥
Hume notes one of the highlights for the trio was when they started looking for one piece of art that 鈥渕atched鈥 with what each specific student in AP Studio was currently working on. By the end of the trip, they collected a piece of art to show each student and inspire them to take their work further.
91大神 faculty members have over 30 different professional development funds to draw from for trips like Art Basel. For the administration, opening access to these funds is critical for the overall health of the school.
鈥淭here鈥檚 value in individual learning for our adult community, and there is even more, in my opinion, value in sending multiple folks to learn in the same space,鈥 says Dean of Faculty Corie Fogg 鈥99. 鈥淚t鈥檚 fertile ground for returning to campus with new ideas to employ and serve the needs of our students well.鈥