Arts Ed NJ Video Documents that Arts Education is Essential Through the Pandemic

“Beyond the Boundaries: Arts Education through a Pandemic.”

“The impetus for this project was to document what arts educators and students went through and how they persevered through the pandemic. It was also a way to celebrate their resilience, their creativity, and the innovative spirit they showed to muscle through.” – Arts Ed NJ Director Bob Morrison.

WARREN, N.J. (PRWEB) September 10, 2021

Arts Ed NJ, the performing arts affiliate for the National Federation of State High School Associations (NFHS), has just released the video “Beyond the Boundaries: Arts Education through a Pandemic.” In this six-minute documentary, arts teachers and students make an objective yet visceral case for the foundational importance of artistic expression and arts education to young people’s well-being, development, and self-esteem during and after the Covid-19 crisis. The video will premiere on Facebook and YouTube on September 10th at 6 pm ET with a live virtual red-carpet countdown.

Arts Ed NJ Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/152173161497480/posts/4193099840738105/

Arts Ed NJ YouTube channel: https://youtu.be/xzJO6wPEh_M

The short film, part of the organization’s ARTS ED NOW campaign, explores the obstacles adolescents faced as coronavirus precautions locked down most forms of in-person interaction and forced them to learn and work in the same space in which they eat, sleep, and confront all the rest of the challenges of coming of age in an uncertain and divided world.

Aiming to deliver a message of hope, the film interweaves breathtaking original student art, music, and movement performances with commentary from key educators around New Jersey about the exceptional ways in which students brought highly personal creations to life despite being isolated — and about the role of arts education in giving those students access to vital tools as well as the inspiration to use them. In turn, students were able to express complex emotions through art, connect with others, heal, and ultimately be better equipped for learning, showing that even as pandemic budget woes led school administrations to weigh cutbacks, arts education is anything but ancillary.

Educators interviewed include Tilottama Bose, Vice Principal of the Academy of Visual and Performing arts at Trenton Central High School; Felicia LaToya Brown, arts educator at Trenton Central High School; Danielle Fleming, visual arts teacher at New Brunswick Middle School; Chuck Miller, arts educator at Pinelands Regional High School; and Sheikia “Purple” Norris, Director of Hip-Hop Education Programs at the New Jersey Performing Arts Center. Artwork and performance showcased are from students at the above institutions; Toms River, Bayonne, Franklin, and Paramus High Schools; the Morris Area Honor Chorus; and programs of the SJ Scholastic Arts Awards and the New Jersey Governor’s Awards Arts Education.

“The impetus for this project was to document what arts educators and students went through and how they persevered through the pandemic,” said Arts Ed NJ Director Bob Morrison. “It was also a way to celebrate their resilience, their creativity, and the innovative spirit they showed in order to muscle through.”

With fall 2021 marking a return to the classroom, the video makes a parting point: That innovative spirit is exactly what schools must nurture via the arts. The arts are also vital because they combine intellectual challenges with social-emotional learning, growing students into more empathetic, ethical, and capable adults. As the final frame of the video states, “Our post-pandemic future will be imagined through arts education.”

“Over the past 18 months, we collected hundreds of pieces of artwork and virtual performances that were so powerful and innovative. The creativity and passion shared with us was simply overwhelming. This story needed to be told,” said Priscilla Hopkins-Smith Arts Ed NJ Communications Manager and Executive Producer of the documentary. “This is the ultimate advocacy moment. There is no better time to share the need for arts education and the power of creativity.”

National Arts in Education Week is September 12-18, and throughout the week, Arts Ed NJ will continue to promote the video, share the stories from students and educators and end the week with a Student Voices Roundtable live on Facebook and Youtube on Friday, September 17th at 6 pm ET.

In addition, schools throughout New Jersey will be sharing the video during their morning announcements to inspire and support their students and recognize their incredible achievements.

For more information about Arts Ed NJ, visit https://artsednj.org

For more information about Arts Education and Social and Emotional Learning, visit https://artsedsel.org

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About Arts Ed NJ

Arts Ed NJ is the unified voice for arts education in New Jersey. The mission of Arts Ed NJ is to create the proper conditions for arts learning to take place in New Jersey. Formerly the New Jersey Arts Education Partnership, Arts Ed NJ was founded in 2007 by the New Jersey State Council on the Arts, Geraldine R. Dodge Foundation, New Jersey Department of Education and Music for All Foundation. Additional support has been provided by the Jay and Linda Grunin Foundation, ArtPride New Jersey Foundation and an award from the National Endowment for the Arts. Additional information is available at http://www.artsednj.org.

About Arts Ed Now

Arts Ed Now is a statewide campaign to increase active participation in arts education at all schools in New Jersey. With campaign tools and success stories to guide you, any arts education advocate can become a Change Agent in their school, district or the whole state. Active creative learning is good for all students and good for New Jersey. Let’s do more! For More Information go to http://www.artsednow.org

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