Artist Robert Indiana
VINALHAVEN Robert Indiana, who lived on Vinalhaven died on Saturday at age 89. He became a celebrated pop artist and is best known for his LOVE signs. READ MORE in the Village Soup article written by Stephen Betts and Bob Keyes, Portland Press Herald.
Photo by: Michael K. Komanecky
MALI Winter Retreat, February 2014, Farnsworth Art Museum
Portland Pottery
Judge’s Choice, High School Favorite
The annual teapot show is sponsored by Portland Pottery and is open to all ages. Artists are invited to create tea pots by hand or on the potter’s wheel. This year 18 from Camden Hills High School students and 13 Falmouth High School students submitted teapots. There were a total of 80 teapots in the show which opening on Friday, May 4 and was viewed throughout the weekend. There were several categories including Most Creative, Most Functional, and Favorite teapot. The work in this blog post was created by students from one of the two high schools who participated. For more information on participating in the future please contact Karen Dyer at Portland Pottery at karend@portlandpottery.com. Portland Pottery has been around for many years. The store and café are located at 118 Washington Ave., Portland. If you’re interested in participating next year with your students please community with Karen Dyer (address above) for more information.
Music Educator
This is the one of several blog posts in 2018 that include stories of the Maine Arts Leadership Initiative (MALI) Phase 7 Teacher Leaders and Teaching Artist Leaders. This series includes a set of questions so you can learn a little bit about each leader. CLICK HERE for more information on MALI. CLICK HERE for more information on the 93 Teacher Leaders and 8 Teaching Artist Leaders. CLICK HERE for Arts education resources. CLICK HERE for the MALI Resource Bank. Search in the “search archives” box on the bottom right side of this post for past teacher leader stories. Thank you Danielle for sharing your story!
Danielle Sullivan teaches music, band and chorus at Etna-Dixmont School. This is her second year at the school and her 8th year teaching. Danielle teaches general music PreK-6th Grade, 4th grade band, 5-6 grade band, 7-8 grade band, 5-6 grade chorus, 7-8 grade chorus and jazz band. There are about 230 students in the school.
What do you like best about being a music educator?
I love seeing students do something they thought was impossible. At the beginning of the year they believe that there is no way they’ll be able to play/sing this song and by the end of the year (quarter, semester…) they’re able to. It’s wonderful to watch.
What do you believe are three keys to ANY successful visual and performing arts education?
How have you found assessment to be helpful to you in your classroom?
I love hearing students play and sing alone. The student and I learn so much about their ability when they play alone. Quiet and shy students who either need more support or other opportunities can be lost in a large group if they never sing/play alone.
What have been the benefits in becoming involved in the Maine Arts Leadership initiative?
I love all the new people I have met and the ideas we share.
What are you most proud of in your career?
I am most proud of teaching young students to love music. If you can get them young then you have them for life. Being able to teach young children to love music is of the utmost importance to me.
What gets in the way of being a better teacher or doing a better job as a teacher?
All the other duties that aren’t teaching; paperwork, curriculum work, meetings, emails. Doing all these other things makes it harder for me to find time to do research new lesson ideas and work with colleagues.
What have you accomplished through hard work and determination that might otherwise appear at first glance to be due to “luck” or circumstances?
Having older students who consider themselves ‘musicians’. All of the students that come through the music room door are musicians. When they are young (as is the case at my school) they don’t have a choice; everyone has music class. But as they get older (middle school and high school) they are no longer required to take music, band and chorus are optional. Having a strong music program with a lot of older students may seem like luck, but if you get students to consider themselves musicians then they will seek out music when it’s no longer obligatory.
Look into your crystal ball: what advice would you give to teachers?
Don’t be a workaholic! It doesn’t benefit you or the students!
If you were given a $500,000.00 to do with whatever you please, what would it be?
For school, I would buy enough instruments so that any student who wanted to play and couldn’t afford it could use a school instrument.
Imagine you are 94 years old. You’re looking back. Do you have any regrets?
Not learning the banjo earlier in life.
Soooo exciting!
I had the pleasure of attending the Maine Music Educators Association (MMEA) Conference held at the University of Maine, Orono. The MMEA board and conference planners did an amazing job on every detail of the conference. CONGRATULATIONS and THANK YOU! I know that it takes many hours of planning and coordinating the entire three and a half day event. Between the conference and the teachers and students traveling from all over the state, workshops, performances and on and on. It takes a strong village and the leaders in MMEA to make it happen successfully!
Every two years the conference marks a shift in leadership. Pam Kinsey will be stepping down as Immediate Past-President, Sue Barre steps down as President, and President-Elect Ben Potvin steps up to take on the role of President for the next two years. Thank you all for your dedication to the organization.
A very special part of the conference is the President’s Reception during which awards are presented to several educators. It was a pleasure to be there for the reception and a delight to see colleagues that I’ve known for years and meet teachers for the first time. The sentiments read during the reception were thoughtful and heart felt. I love that educators take the time recognize well deserved colleagues – some who have served for many years and some for a short time. All educators making an impact – not because they are seek accolades but because they care about the education they provide for young people!
Thank you to the following who nominated their colleagues and thank you to the awardees for your contributions and commitment to music education! Please consider nominating someone for next years awards presented annually at the MMEA conference. You can find the nominating forms under ‘forms’ on the home page of the MMEA site.
Rick Nickerson with Hanna Flewelling receiving the Outstanding New Educator Award from Windam Middle School
Kim Murphy, Glen Sargent, and Nancy Rowe. Glen received the Music Education Appreciation Award and was nominated by Kim and Nancy, music educators from Camden Hills High School
MMEA President Sue Barre with Sam Moore-Young who was inducted in the MMEA Hall of Fame
Oxford Hills staff Kyle Jordan, Sarah Bailey (former), and Dennis Boyd presenting Ted Moccia, Oxford Hills Regional High School principal the Outstanding School Administrator Award
Messalonskee High School Kevin Rhein presenting the Educator Appreciation Award to Pam Rhein
Nora Krainis presenting the Maine Music Educator of the Year Award to Linda Vaillancourt
Pat Michaud, Matt Madore, Dana Ross, Heidi Corliss, Becky Mallory representing Hampden Schools, RSU22 that received the Dale F. Huff Outstanding Music Program Award
Christine Del Rossi – Sagadahoc County Teacher of the Year
Yahooooo for Mt. Ararat High School Visual Art teacher Christine Del Rossi is the 2018 Sagadahoc County Teacher of the Year. Read about her in the Brunswick Times Record. Written by staff member Chris Quattruci.
A new form of life on the beaches
Artist Theo Jansen demonstrates the amazingly lifelike kinetic sculptures he builds from plastic tubes and lemonade bottles. His creatures are designed to move — and even survive — on their own.
Tom Luther
Dagney C. Ernest, writer and friend of arts education wrote about Tom Luther, musician and Maine Arts Commission Maine Arts Leadership Initiative Teacher Leader in the Village Soup. Read about Tom Luther and how is artistry has helped him work his way back from two strokes.
Tom’s Teacher Artist Leader story was published on this blog on April 10. Tom is a member of MACs teaching artist roster.
Yup, Tom’s in the middle with teaching artist leaders, Tim Christensen (L) and Brian Evans-Jones (R) at the Mega MALI conference in March at Oxford Hills Regional High School. All three presented sessions!
Ainslie Henderson
One artist approach to making puppets and how they come alive using stop motion photography. “Improvising like making music and see where it leads you. Suddenly what is just stuff becomes this character staring back at you. They’re like little actors who only get to play one role. Everything that they do is their swan song.” ~Ainslie Henderson
Mt. Ararat High School
Christine Delrossi, visual arts educator named Sagadahoc County Teacher of the Year, was nominated by one of her students. Read the article in the Forecaster and learn more about Christine.
Christine Delrossi, a visual arts instructor at Mt. Ararat High School in Topsham, is Sagadahoc County Teacher of the Year. She was nominated by sophomore Anna Cox, right.
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