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Oklahoma Arts Council News

September 2013

Resources for Oklahoma Schools

The Oklahoma Arts Council has resources for schools and teachers in most subjects. Resources include free DVDs, a field trip program, online lessons and activities, and grant money for performances, workshops and art programs. Click here to learn more.

Conference Earlybird Registration Ends September 20

Register for the 2013 Oklahoma Arts Conference by Friday, September 20, and pay only $75 for the two-day event featuring nationally recognized presenters, local panelists and speakers, networking opportunities and more. After September 20, registration is $125. Final deadline to register for the conference is October 15.
Artists, nonprofits, community developers, civic leaders, educators, students and others working in the state's arts and cultural industry will come together October 23-24 in Ardmore. Don't wait! Register now and save!

Click here to register for the 2013 Oklahoma Arts Conference.

Click here to view the conference schedule.

Funding Opportunity from Mid-America Arts Alliance

Applications are now being accepted for Mid-America Arts Alliance's (M-AAA) Regional Touring Program grants. The program provides support for up to 50 percent of the artistic fees of a M-AAA Regional Touring Artist to perform in your community or up to 25 percent of a non-roster regional performing artist and related eduational activity.

November 1, 2013 is the deadline to apply for programs occuring between January 1, 2014 and March 31, 2014. Deadlines are quarterly.

Click here to learn more and to apply for a Regional Touring Program grant.

Grammy Foundation Grants

The Grammy Foundation has reached out to the Oklahoma Arts Council regarding grants available to organizations and individuals to advance efforts to preserve America's music and recorded sound heritage. Grants can also fund research projects related to the impact of music on the human condition. Past research projects funded by Grammy Foundation grants include studies on the impact of arts education as well as studies about music therapy.

In 2013, the University of Oklahoma School of Music was awarded a Grammy Foundation grant for its effort to preserve its unique organ recording collection. Click here to learn about the OU School of Music project.

Deadline to submit a letter of inquiry is October 1, 2013.

More information about Grammy Foundation grants is available here.

New Fine Arts Standards for Oklahoma Schools

With the start of the 2013-14 school year, the Oklahoma State Department of Education has released the new C3 standards for visual arts and music. The standards provide a "jumping off" point for Oklahoma teachers to incorporate quality arts instruction within social studies, math, language arts, and science curriculum. This may be especially beneficial for faculty in schools that lack fine arts staff.

While the approach is slightly different between the visual art and music standards, both emphasize:

  1. The student's ability to communicate confidently about art
  2. Cross-disciplinary study that seeks to understand art within its cultural context
  3. Creative problem-solving

Take a closer look at the new Fine Arts Standards for Oklahoma in this article by Okahoma Arts Council Director of Arts Education Programs Renee Boone.

View an activity that addresses the new Fine Arts Standards and can help you teach art literacy in any classroom.

Ovation Offers $10,000 'STEAM' Awards to Schools

Schools that are successfully incorporating the arts into integrated learning can earn one of up to eight $10,000 awards from Ovation. Working in partnership with the President's Committee on the Arts and Humanities and Americans for the Arts, Ovation's goal is to raise awareness about the importance of integrating the arts into educational curriculum.

What is STEAM?

STEAM integrates the arts as an essential component in science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) education. Adding the arts is an essential way to develop students' creative and critical thinking skills and foster America's innovative and creative workforce.

Oklahoma schools with model arts integration programs are encouraged to apply to bring an innOVATION STEAM Award to our state!

Click here to learn more and to apply.

New York Will Experience Oklahoma 'Red Earth Canyon'

A special retrospective of former University of Tulsa art professor and Oklahoma artist Alexandre Hogue's artwork is the focus of a new exhibition in New York. Scheduled September 27, 2013, to January 12, 2014, the exhibit at the Rockwell Museum in Corning, N.Y., will include Hogue's Red Earth Canyon, a painting from the Oklahoma State Art Collection.

Red Earth Canyon illustrates Hogue's interest in regional realism as well as his concerns regarding conservation. Having risen to prominence during the 1930s and 1940s, Hogue's works often focus on Southwestern landscapes during the Dust Bowl.

Red Earth Canyon began its journey from Oklahoma City to New York on August 19 and will return to Oklahoma after the close of the exhibit. Works from the State Art Collection are on display in the Betty Price Gallery, located on the first floor of the state Capitol.

Welcome Amy Weaver, Deputy Director'

The Oklahoma Arts Council is pleased to welcome Amy Weaver as our new Deputy Director! Amy joins us from the Native American Cultural and Educational Authority (NACEA), where she served as Development Director. In that role, Amy was a member of the team that raised $40 million in private, tribal and local government funding for the American Indian Cultural Center and Museum.

Her previous experience includes stints as the Executive Director of the Arts Council of Greater Baton Rouge, Grants Director for the Cultural Arts Council of Houston/Harris County, and Program Administrator for Performing Arts and Special Projects for the Texas Commission on the Arts.

Amy's background includes grant writing and grants management, fundraising, contact management system development, cultural planning, and nonprofit management.

Amy can be reached at (405) 521-2022 or amy.weaver@arts.ok.gov.