Are you interested in being listed as a Teaching Artist on our Roster?
The RFQ submissions must be submitted online by November 20th.
Click Here to Fill Out the Online Request for Qualifications.
One of the goals of the Vermont Arts Council is to promote high quality arts education and lifelong learning in and through the arts. The Council encourages and supports projects, programs, and opportunities that further this goal. In addition, the Council works with local arts organizations to support programs that encourage partnerships with various community and social service organizations.
The purpose of the Teaching Artist Roster is to provide a resource to schools, arts organizations, and other community organizations and to provide potential employment opportunities to Vermont artists. Roster artists have been evaluated and designated as both high quality artists and experienced teachers in their respective artistic disciplines. These artists have been called upon to work in a variety of traditional and non-traditional settings. Teaching artists may be selected for projects through the Council's Teaching Artist Residency grant program, and may also be a resource for projects independent of Council programs.
Artists applying to the Teaching Artist Roster should be professionals currently active in their field. They should also be able to document recent active experience in the field of arts learning. Teaching artists need at least two years of documented experience in an arts learning environment working in-depth with populations in schools and after school/summer programs, multiage groups, adult learners, or other at-risk or under-served learning populations.
If a teaching artist specifies the ability to work with a diverse range of populations beyond the scope of school-based programming (i.e., people with various disabilities, seniors, non-traditional students, preschool aged children, incarcerated inmates, at-risk youth, or other specific populations) they should be able to document a history of working in those settings or experience that translates to being able to work with those particular populations.
Roster artists should be reasonably available to schools and other organizations to be in residence for an average of one to two weeks (either consecutively or occasionally). While having a full-time job or being unable to work during certain times of year certainly would not preclude you from being on the roster, please consider your general availability before applying to be a resource to potential presenters.
Artists whose background and interests lie in single short-term workshops or who are not available for arts learning experiences of at least 5-10 days should not apply.
ROSTER ELIGIBILITY
Individual artists and group applicants to the Teaching Artist Roster must:
be professional working artists who are currently active in their field;
have at least two years experience working in educational settings;
be legal residents of Vermont at time of application; and
be at least 18 years of age.
Artist groups or ensembles may apply to be included on the roster, however specific members of the group must be identified as the ones who will be available for teaching.
Full time students are ineligible for inclusion on the Teaching Artist Roster.
RESIDENCY REQUIREMENTS
An artist must be a legal resident of Vermont to be eligible for listing in the Teaching Artist Roster. A Vermont voter registration, driver’s license, or income tax return is considered acceptable documentation of Vermont residency. An artist must remain a resident throughout the term of listing on the roster. For artist groups, at least one artist must be a Vermont resident and, if the group has a legal status, it must be incorporated in Vermont.
LISTING TERM
Artists selected to be included on the Teaching Artist Roster are listed for a one-year term. As long as they remain Vermont residents and submit brief, year-end reports annually with the Vermont Arts Council, they may continue to be included in subsequent years’ rosters without having to reapply annually.
If an artist allows his or her directory listing to become out-of-date or does not submit the year-end report, he or she may be removed from the subsequent year’s roster. If the artist lapses with regard to these obligations for two consecutive years, he or she may have to reapply to the program to be replaced on the roster.
The Council reserves the right to evaluate artists at any time during their tenure on the roster if, for example, negative evaluations are received from sponsors about their performance or service.
The new process for applying for inclusion on the roster is a two-step process. The first step is to submit your qualifications (see application form) by November 20, 2009. If the panel decides that your demonstrated qualifications will allow you to compete reasonably well based on the stated criteria for the program, you will be invited to submit a complete application by January 16, 2010 and attend an interview with the panel sometime between March 15 and 31, 2010.
STEP ONE: Submit your Qualifications by November 20, 2009
All materials relating to your application must be submitted electronically using the form, including resume(s), photo, Vermont Arts Directory listing URL, and two professional references. Materials submitted in any way other than through the electronic form will not be accepted.
Applications must be received electronically by November 20, 2009 before midnight Eastern Standard Time. Please note that staff assistance will not be available after 4:30 p.m. on the deadline date. Any submissions date stamped after November 20th may not be considered.
Applicants will be notified of their status via email by December 16, 2009.
Artists seeking placement on the Teaching Artist Roster must satisfactorily meet the following criteria in order to be invited to submit a full application.
CRITERIA FOR SUBMISSION OF QUALIFICATIONS:
- demonstrated history of appropriate public presentation of respective art form (i.e. performances, exhibits, screenings, readings, etc.);
- demonstrated teaching experience (2-year minimum) relevant to the field of arts education (populations may include students K-12, people with various disabilities, seniors, non-traditional students, preschool aged children, incarcerated inmates, at-risk youth, or other specific populations);
- demonstrated understanding of and ability to work within the public school system and/or within other applicable settings/populations;
- demonstrated commitment to professional development--as an artist and a teacher;
- a listing in the Vermont Arts Directory that reflects educational programming as a teaching artist.
The applicant's resume(s), teaching artist statement, and Vermont Arts Directory listing included in the initial application will be the primary documents used to conduct the evaluation.
STEP TWO, BY INVITATION ONLY: Submit a full application by January 15, 2010
Digital artistic support materials [note: Applicants MUST submit artistic support materials that document their work as artists. No VHS or audio cassettes will be permitted. See more information about appropriate types of artistic support materials here];
Two (2) letters of recommendation. These do not have to be from the professional references listed on your initial application form, but the authors should be familiar with your work as a teaching artist specifically;
Sample 5-day residency outline and one lesson plan;
Promotional materials, such as brochures, postcards, etc.
Panelists will review the submitted materials, interview each invited applicant and determine acceptance to the roster based upon the criteria listed below.
CRITERIA FOR APPLICATIONS BY INVITATION:
45% - Artistic Excellence based upon:
Quality and scope of artist’s work
Depth of knowledge of artist’s specific discipline
Demonstrated commitment to on-going professional growth
35% - Teaching Ability based upon:
Quality of residency design and content (including lesson plan)
Ability to teach the discipline and make connections between and among subjects
Ability to reach various populations based on an understanding of development and learning styles
Knowledge of assessment of student learning
20% - Communication and collaborative planning skills based upon:
Understanding of presenters’ needs (school, after-school, and community organizations, etc.)
Ability to plan with others and articulate goals and objectives
Ability to communicate and work collaboratively with presenters.