Juilliard Students Provide Mentorship, Guidance to Osceola Arts Camp Students

Key West, FL

The program features stART Osceola, a free summer arts camp for students of Osceola County Florida School District, which was started in 2010 by then high school student Evan Todd and his drama teacher, Janine Cochran. Thanks to the help of ten students from The Julliard School in New York City, hundreds of public school students have been immersed in rigorous and creative arts training.

The webinar audience will hear voices from the range of participants in this effort: Osceola students and their parents, school administrators, and Juilliard students turned teachers. They will describe how the community came together to realize this project, and they will relate heartwarming stories from this life-changing program.

Panelists for the webinar include Nina Cochran, stART Osceola Co-Founder and Artistic Director, and Theatre Director of St. Cloud High School Drama Department; Debbie Fahmie, Fine and Performing Arts Specialist, School District of Osceola County; Marcus Crawford Guy, Drama Teaching Artist, and Juilliard graduate; and Pam Haas, Visual Art Instructor, stART Osceola, and Ringling College of Art and Design graduate. The moderator of the program is Dr. Mary Palmer, President of Mary Palmer & Associates, LLC, Consultants in Education and the Arts, who serves as Arts Schools Network Chair of Elementary and Middle School Committee, and is founder of the Florida Alliance for Arts Education.

The broadcast, "stART Osceola: a Spring Board for Creative Minds," is part of the Arts Schools Network Know More webinar series, which presents programs on vital topics, current projects, and trends in support of excellence in arts education. The live webinar, which is available to the public, will air Thursday, July 17 from 1:30-2:15 EDT, and will be available after the air date at artsschoolsnetwork.org/know more.html.

About Arts Schools Network: Dedicated to excellence and leadership in arts education, Arts Schools Network is a dynamic resource for arts schools leaders, innovative partners, and members of arts education institutions. Its mission is to provide arts schools leaders with quality resources, support, and networking opportunities. This international non-profit organization has provided communications, programs, services, and events to support its goals for more than 30 years. Visit http://www.artsschoolsnetwork.org to learn more.

About the Florida Alliance for Arts Education: The Florida Alliance for Arts Education is dedicated to improving, enhancing, and advocating for arts education for all Floridians, both in schools and in community settings. Its vision is for every child in every school to have a well-rounded education that includes a comprehensive, sequential, high-quality program of arts instruction, and for all Florida communities to have broad-based cultural programs available to support lifelong learning in and through the arts. This statewide organization has served arts education in Florida and served as a national model for 25 years. Visit http://www.faae.org to learn more.