Blog
Jamaal “Mr Root” Collier Talks smARTbeats on Young At Heart
smARTbeats is back this Saturday, January 13 on WTMD during the weekly children’s program Young At Heart! On this month’s segment, host Lisa Mathews sits down for a chat with Hip Hop performer, YA teaching artist, and Maryland Wolf Trap Artist, Jamaal “Mr. Root” Collier. A dynamic…
Young Audiences Hires New Chief Operating Officer, Creates New Director of Summer Learning Position
Young Audiences, the statewide nonprofit that boosts student achievement by bringing arts integration into classrooms and children’s learning experiences, has hired Leyla Layman as its new Chief Operating Officer. Former Young Audiences COO Kurtis Donnelly will remain with the organization,…
America Celebrates: Maryland
In 1923, a 48-foot Balsam fir was erected by the District of Columbia Public Schools to the south of the White House. The tree was decorated, lit, and named the “National Christmas Tree.” Though the trees have varied, the National Christmas Tree still…
Algebra in the Drum Shop: Plotting the Rate of Change with Kevin Martin
“Will I ever use this in real life?” A teacher could rattle off the professional fields that a mathematician could enter after pursuing a degree when students challenge, “Why do we have to learn this?” Or, they could show them…
123 Andrés Talks Music for Bilingual Learners on smARTbeats!
smARTbeats returns Saturday, December 2 during the weekly children’s music program Young At Heart on WTMD. On this month’s smARTbeats segment, Young At Heart host Lisa Mathews sits down with YA roster artists and Latin Grammy winners Andrés Salguero and Christina Sanabria, better known as…
Art Crawl: The Intersection of Arts, Education, and Cocktails
Written by Barbara Krebs, Young Audiences volunteer and Sunburst Society member On Friday, November 17, Young Audiences hosted its second annual Art Crawl at City Neighbors High School, an arts-integrated public charter school in Baltimore City. Approximately 75 attendees filled…
The Global Beat Connection: Explore Music’s Rhythmic Roots
YA roster artist Ryan Diehl and the Global Beat Connection’s music assembly connects students’ love of modern music to its rhythmic roots, revealing its history. Their highly interactive assembly invites students to explore a diverse array of cultures from…
Hear Slam Poet Femi the Drifish on smARTbeats!
smartbeats is back this Saturday, November 4, during the weekly children’s music program Young At Heart on WTMD. On this month’s smARTbeats segment, Young At Heart host Lisa Mathews sits down for a chat with professional spoken word artist, slam poet, highly-animated and engaging frontman,…
North County High School: Creating Learning Opportunities Through the Arts
The Arts Empowered Minds Initiative (AEMI) is aimed at ensuring equitable access to the arts for Northern Anne Arundel County Public Schools through in-school arts integration, out-of-school arts programming, and professional development for teachers. Now in its second year, the…
The Artist-Teacher Partnership: A Teacher Reflection
Written by Jaime Clough, 2nd Grade Teacher at Margaret Brent Elementary Middle School and Summer Arts & Learning Academy Classroom Teacher “This hit, that ice cold, Michelle Pfeiffer, that white gold.” As soon as I heard the music echo into…
Beatboxer Max Bent on Young At Heart
smARTbeats returns to WTMD Saturday, October 14, during the weekly children’s music program Young At Heart. On this month’s smARTbeats segment, Young At Heart host Lisa Mathews sits down for a chat with beatboxer and YA teaching artist Max Bent. Performing for adults and the Pre-K set…
Tasty Monster Productions: Tackling Bullying Through Empathy
Promoting empathy and kindness in all schools is a priority across school systems, with particular attention paid to encouraging a positive school climate in the month of October, National Bullying Prevention Month. New YA roster artist Tasty Monster Productions designed an…
Meet the Parents
It was a summer filled with activity, singing, dancing, reading, creating, and sunshine. We witnessed the excitement of mastering new skills and discovering new talents. We felt the calm of classrooms illuminated with only the rays of light peeking in…
smARTbeats returns Saturday with Alden Phelps!
smARTbeats returns to WTMD Saturday, September 9, during the weekly children’s music program Young At Heart. On this month’s smARTbeats segment, Young At Heart host Lisa Mathews sits down for a chat with artist, songwriter, musician, and YA teaching artist Alden Phelps. A graduate of…
Creative Collaborations for School Improvement: A New Leadership Unit Course for Baltimore City
In a course unlike any other, principals discover how partnerships with area arts and cultural resources can help schools prepare students for careers in fields related to the industry.
Let’s Go to the Library!
All summer long, kids and families made their way to one of seven city school libraries, each one beautifully renovated as part of The Weinberg Foundation’s Library Project to take part in SummerREADS, a free literacy initiative that provides six…
Education Through the Arts and Beyond the Classroom: Bloomberg Arts Internships
Written by Stacie Sanders Evans President and CEO, Young Audiences / Arts for Learning I love watching students memorize fractions by performing a dance routine or recall math facts through a song. Or marveling at a mural created by…
Closing Out Summer: 1,100 Students Display Their Talents
Baltimore City School students closed out a summer of creativity and arts-integrated education with performances and visual art exhibitions at Young Audiences Summer Arts and Learning Academy. The academy’s culmination events were an opportunity for students to showcase their art forms…
Donor Spotlight: Baltimore Gas and Electric Company
In 2016, Baltimore Gas and Electric Company (BGE) celebrated its 200th anniversary as the nation’s first gas utility in the country. With such deep roots in Maryland, BGE invests in organizations that support education, the environment, arts and culture, and community…
Summer Arts and Learning Academy: The Name Says it All
Written by Barbara Krebs, Young Audiences volunteer and Sunburst Society member Seedfolks. Bizz Buzz. These are just a couple of the new things I learned about when I visited the Summer Arts and Learning Academy at Thomas Jefferson Elementary/Middle…
Hear Jazz Vocalist Renèe Georges on Young At Heart
On this month’s smARTbeats segment, Young At Heart host Lisa Mathews sits down with jazz vocalist, songwriter, and YA teaching artist Renée Georges. You’ll hear about the artist’s experience as a Raelette traveling the globe with Ray Charles and His Orchestra, as…
Bomani Brings Hip Hop Poetry to Young At Heart
smARTbeats returns to WTMD this Saturday, July 8, during the weekly children’s music program Young At Heart. On this month’s smARTbeats segment, Young At Heart host Lisa Mathews sits down for a chat with Bomani. A seasoned performer, teaching artist, Director of Poetry Events…
The National Endowment for the Arts: a Sound Investment
Co-authored by Barbara Krebs, a Young Audiences volunteer and Sunburst Society member. We grow up in the United States hearing that we get what we pay for. Such is the case with investments in the greater good. That’s one of the many…
Arts Budgets, Job Creation, and the NEA
Written by Barbara Krebs, a Young Audiences volunteer and Sunburst Society member With all the talk of entirely eliminating funding for organizations such as the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) from the federal budget, a recent Washington Post Magazine article…
Coming up on the June edition of smARTbeats on WTMD: pianist and composer Scott Patterson
smARTbeats returns to WTMD this Saturday, June 10, during the weekly children’s music program Young At Heart.
Congratulations TAI Graduates!
We all know that artists can change the world. The Summer Arts & Learning Academy is proof of that. The Teaching Artist Institute (TAI) helps give artists the tools they need to do it. “Participating in TAI allowed me to look past what was…
Changing Perceptions: I Used to Think…
Written by Barbara Krebs, a Young Audiences volunteer and Sunburst Society member. Colorful sticky notes adorned the walls of the classroom. Like before-and-after photos of an amazing remodel, the notes told the story of how a group of Head Start teachers…
Baltimore City’s First Bloomberg Arts Internship Recipients Announced
The Bloomberg Arts Internship program is coming to Baltimore this summer, placing 25 Baltimore City rising seniors in paid internships at 14 local arts and cultural institutions. Students will participate in a rigorous six-week program, providing crucial college and career…
What Students Learn from an Artist in Residence Program: Cooperation and Perseverence
Step into a FutureMakers workshop, and you are immediately met with bright colors, texture, and sound! The room is a symphony of whirring and spinning, and you can almost hear the busy minds buzzing. This is exactly the scene in the art room…
Our Board of Directors: Bravely Creating Opportunities for our Students
We are reminded every day of the irreplaceable support we receive from those who share in our mission to transform the lives and education of Maryland students through arts experiences. From teachers and teaching artists to principals, parents, and donors,…