Holly Nowak, Erie Arts & Culture
In the Fall of 2013, a long-term residency with artist & animator Jude Shingle began at the Barber National Institute (BNI) in Erie PA. This was a life changing experience for the artist, teachers and students who participated in the residency. Jude Shingle, rostered teaching artist with Erie Arts & Culture in Erie PA, spent 70 days in residence with the students of the Elizabeth Lee Black School at BNI. The goal of the residency project was to bring Mr. Shingle to the school to work with the teachers and their students and enhance the learning experience throughout the school year. Jude and Judy Stewart, Critical Skills Specialist at BNI, worked together to develop lessons that helped their students explore and create unique multi-media productions, animations and movies with their iPads.
A strong emphasis on choice helped the students, who traditionally could not participate in art making activities, become enthusiastic creators. Their work had such an impact on the school that Holly Nowak, Program Director for Erie Arts & Culture, suggested they submit a proposal to the Kennedy Center to present at the 2014 VSA Intersections: Arts and Special Education Conference. In March, the BNI Residency team was notified that they were selected to present at the VSA Conference in Washington DC, July 23rd to 25th. The 2014 Intersections: Arts and Special Education Conference is a VSA program of the John F. Kennedy Center for the Preforming Arts. This unique conference presents practices, policies and research that are at the forefront of serving students with disabilities through arts and special education.
The transformation occurred during this residency when the iPads became, not only the tools, but the voice for the students. The transformation continues as the artist, teacher and students use the iPads to share their stories and build support for arts infusion. You can watch their story on YouTube where you’ll see a short video Jude recently completed that tells the story of one student, Mackenzie, and the power of the arts. Mackenzie is very verbal, however, her interactions with her teachers and peers were inappropriate. She only spoke to imaginary friends and cartoon characters. She loved the iPad but only used it for leisure which put her deeper into her imaginary world. Once she began to work with teaching artist Jude Shingle, her conversations with her teachers and peers became more appropriate. She even began to create stories and interview a variety of people on different topics. This learning experience brought her into the reality of her own environment