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An Artistic Tribute to Marty Einhorn

May 17, 2023 By Cindy Sherwood

                      

A very special—and poignant—Arts for Learning performance this month honored the life and legacy of former board president Marty Einhorn.

A4L’s Rita Cohen performed A World of Song and Dance as a free performance in memory of Marty, who died in 2021 at the age of 63. After Marty’s death, Arts for Learning received many gifts in his memory. A board subcommittee decided those donations should be used each year to underwrite a school performance and small stipend for the school’s music educator. Arts for Learning selected Norfolk’s Granby Elementary as the first school because it was where Marty was inspired to learn to play the trumpet after watching a Young Audiences’ performance.

“Granby is a school that is deep, rich with tradition and love of learning,” said Denise J. Green, principal. “Mr. Einhorn was inspired as a youth in this building—he attended here in the 60s, so you’re talking more than 50 years ago. This is a great legacy to leave for the students to be inspired, just the way that he was inspired when he was a young boy. I hope that today was the ignition for some students that they will have the same love for art and music.”Marty’s wife Susan, son Will, and parents Barry and Lois Einhorn attended the memorial performance, which included a tribute to Marty and the impact he made during his life.

“It was so nice to see his generosity and his musical ability and love for music honored here today,” said Susan Einhorn. “I try to be half the person he was. He was the most generous person in the world. And every day I just feel so lucky to have spent most of my life with him.”

A number of A4L board and staff members also enjoyed the program, remembering the man who was a friend to all and passionately devoted to Arts for Learning’s mission of quality arts education.

Board president Beth Hazelette called Marty “the backbone of our organization for as long as I can remember.”

“Marty did so much to make sure we have programming for children. It’s very special that we were able to come back to his school and honor him here. And even though the children were little, I think they understood why we were here.”

Martin (Marty) A. Einhorn passed away February 18, 2021 after contracting COVID-19 while battling cancer. Marty was a founding member of Norfolk CPA firm Wall, Einhorn & Chernitzer and an active community and arts advocate who served on the boards of 14 separate nonprofits during his lifetime. After becoming involved with Young Audiences in the mid-1980s, Marty first served as president of the Board of Directors in the early 1990s and was later re-elected in 2011. Marty received our Volunteer of the Year award twice, sharing with us his time, financial resources, creativity, and leadership skills. We are thankful we could use the funds donated in his honor in a way that furthers his legacy.  

To give to Arts for Learning in Marty’s memory, please use this link to donate online, https://young-audiences.networkforgood.com/projects/174292-annual-fund-68, or send a check to Young Audiences of Virginia, 420 N. Center Drive #239, Norfolk, VA 23502.

Filed Under: ArtsEd, Donor Spotlight, News, Program Spotlight Tagged With: donations, Granby Elementary School, Marty Einhorn, Norfolk Public Schools, tribute concert

IDEAL Evening at the Chrysler Art Museum

May 12, 2023 By Cindy Sherwood

Pictures are worth a…. you know the rest. Enjoy these wonderful photos of the student art exhibit, performances, and reception at the Chrysler Museum of Art as the IDEAL (Intentional Designs of Expression in Artistic Languages) residency wrapped up for upper elementary students at Norfolk’s Lindenwood, Portsmouth’s Westhaven, and Virginia Beach’s College Park schools.

It truly was an IDEAL evening as students shared their art for family, friends, educators, and community leaders. Throughout the residency, students created art that explored and expressed their unique identities. The public can view the beautiful artwork through June 11.

We thank all of our partners who made the first year of this residency possible: the funders–with special thanks to our major funder the Hampton Roads Community Foundation–teaching artists; residency stewards; Norfolk, Portsmouth, and Virginia Beach public school divisions; Chrysler Museum of Art; Richmond Ballet; staff and board of Arts for Learning; families; and most of all, the students. We hope they’ll remember this special night forever.

 

Filed Under: Art Exhibit, ArtsEd, News, Program Spotlight Tagged With: art exhibit, Arts Ed, arts education, Chrysler Museum of Art, Norfolk Public Schools, Portsmouth Public Schools, residency, Virginia Beach City Public Schools, visual arts

Everything Everywhere All at Once (Arts for Learning Style)

March 15, 2023 By Cindy Sherwood

No, we’re not talking about this year’s Best Picture winner (although we DID love it!) We’re talking about springtime at Arts for Learning where we have so much going on—new residencies, workshops, public performances, and more for students from Pre-K to 12th grade!

Residencies

Strings Impact kicks off at Lakeview Elementary in Portsmouth.
John Jenkins leads Strings Impact students at Lakeview Elementary.

Strings Impact: Fourth through sixth graders at three elementary schools in Portsmouth have the opportunity to learn the basics of playing the violin—without having to pay or rent an instrument. Strings Impact is one of our longstanding residencies, and we’re so happy students at Churchland, Lakeview, and Simonsdale are participating in this after-school opportunity. Students from each school will perform concerts for family and friends in May.

Strings Impact at Churchland Elementary, led by teaching artist Tina Culver
Strings Impact at Churchland Elementary, led by teaching artist Tina Culver.

IDEAL, Intentional Designs of Expression in Artistic Languages: Older elementary students from three school divisions—Norfolk, Portsmouth, and Virginia Beach—are also busy after school in a new residency.

Teaching artist Jennifer Graham with students at Norfolk’s Lindenwood Elementary.
Lindenwood Elementary students getting started in their IDEAL residency.

Students are participating in year one of IDEAL where they’re exploring identity and community through poetry, movement, and visual art. Students are being led by A4L teaching artists Cindy Aitken, Gary Garlic, and Jennifer Graham at Lindenwood Elementary in Norfolk, Asiko-oluwa Aderin and Nathan  Richardson at Westhaven Elementary in Portsmouth, and Jackie Adonis and Valerie Davis at College Park Elementary.

In May, students will showcase performances and artwork at the Chrysler Museum, with their art pieces to be professionally hung in a gallery for a month for the public to view!

The Chrysler Museum’s Emily Cayton talks with students visiting from Virginia Beach’s College Park Elementary.

To bring students in the museum and show them it’s their place to have a voice is just an amazing opportunity,” says Anna Green, COO for Arts for Learning. “I can’t even bring words to how important that is, to make the museum accessible and for students to feel like they’re a part of a larger community.”

Students at Westhaven Elementary in Portsmouth work on an art project with Emily Cayton of the Chrysler Museum.

Arts + Learning Snacks: Tessellations

Third graders at Rosemont Elementary in Virginia Beach.
Third grade students at Virginia Beach’s Bayside Elementary say thanks for their new take-home arts kits.

Third-graders at seven elementary schools in Virginia Beach have a new (and so-not-boring) way to study for their math SOL testing in May. Thanks to free bilingual art kits, they’ll get a refresher on measuring perimeter and area by following instructions to design their own tessellations.  (A “tessellation” is an arrangement of shapes closely fitted together using a repeated pattern without gaps or overlapping.) Thanks to support from the Virginia Beach Arts and Humanities Commission and the Helen G. Gifford Foundation, we distributed 500 take-home kits to students in Title I schools in Virginia Beach.

And how nice to see these smiling faces!

Third grade students at Birdneck Elementary in Virginia Beach receive art kits from A4L Operations Coordinator Stephanie Jackson.

Public Performances and Workshops

Dino O’Dell gets kids hopping at Williamsburg Library.
Valerie Davis portrays Martha Ann Fields at the Downing-Gross Cultural Arts Center as part of our free performance series underwritten by the Virginia African American Cultural Arts Center.

There’s no excuse to be bored at home anymore—not when we’re offering so many different performances and workshops, certified family friendly, fun, and fabulous. offered throughout greater Hampton Roads.

With programs offered throughout greater Hampton Roads, there’s something for all ages. Click for the latest on our Events Calendar and make sure to check back often because we keep adding more programs. We’ve had some wonderful ones lately—from the “master of tricking kids into learning,” Dino O’Dell, on tour from Kansas City to Valerie Davis’s inspiring portrayals of courageous women in history.

We thank all of those who care about arts education and financially support these programs and more—we couldn’t do it without you! Check out the list of our supporters here.

PLUS THERE’S MORE! Our teaching artists love sharing the joy of the arts with children. Here’s James Cooper leading a Geometric MOSAIC workshop in Norfolk, Stephanie Lask teaching the graphic novel in Virginia Beach, and Amy Harbin guiding Rhythm and Me students in Portsmouth!

                                                 

Filed Under: ArtsEd, Donor Spotlight, News, Program Spotlight, Spring programs Tagged With: Norfolk Public Schools, Portsmouth Public Schools, spring programs, Strings Impact, teaching artists Arts for Learning Virginia, Virginia Beach City Public Schools

Arts Education as a Career: Meet Emerging Teaching Artist Asiko-oluwa Aderin

December 22, 2022 By Cindy Sherwood

When art students are considering career paths, becoming a teaching artist may not come to mind. But for one Norfolk State student, that’s now a viable career option, thanks to Arts for Learning’s new Emerging Teaching Artist program.

Asiko-oluwa Aderin is a junior who’s majoring in fine arts with a concentration in graphic design. She’s a visual artist who works in digital and acrylic mediums, using geometric, abstract motifs that explore themes of Black excellence and empowerment.

Asiko created the design for this Chesapeake Public Library outreach van
A collaborative mural by NSU students Victoria Jensen and Asiko Aderin, painted on the wall of a Norfolk market
Another view of the mural

Last summer, Asiko guided children at A4L’s STEAM camp at the Suffolk Center for Cultural Arts. She was then invited to join A4L’s new Emerging Teaching Artist program, helping children create nature-inspired picture frames in special workshops at Norfolk Botanical Garden while working with an experienced mentor, teaching artist Cindy Aitken. That’s the whole idea of the program—pairing up college students with professional artists and A4L staff who can guide them on essential elements of being a teaching artist, from developing professional programming to reading a business contract.

A4L Chief Operations Officer Anna Green, along with other members of the Education and Program team, designed the program for college students with less than one or two years of teaching experience. Although Asiko is a visual artist, students working in all art forms are welcome to apply for the program.

“Through the program they’ll receive professional development that will contribute to their working knowledge of classroom management, program development with curriculum preparation, and arts administration practices,” Anna says. “Our goal in working with these emerging artists is to cultivate them on to our teaching artist roster with one to two signature programs, or to help them advance throughout their profession.”

Asiko also taught high school students graphic design and comic book making in a ten-week residency for Norfolk nonprofit Next Step to Success. Through that experience, she discovered the joy of making a positive impact. On the last day of the residency, she asked students to tell her what they were taking away from the experience.

“One student in particular—who had presented a few challenges in terms of staying engaged and staying interested—he actually said that through the course of the program he had a love for art sparked,” Asiko says. “I think that was so cool, because as I went through the residency, one of my goals became to facilitate creativity within each individual child, however that may look like. To go from a kid who was like, ‘No, I’m not interested in art’ to ‘Okay, maybe this is something I can explore in the future’—it was really nice to be able to spark that in somebody.”

Drew Lusher, A4L’s Artist and Programming Manager, says Asiko came to Arts for Learning with some key attributes of effective teaching, such as a calm and reassuring presence and the ability to engage authentically with students. He’s seen strong growth in her in the months she’s spent in the Emerging Artist program.

“Once we worked with Asiko to unpack the content of her art form and align it with the interests and needs of her students, she grew into an amazing teacher,” Drew says. “I enjoyed the opportunity to observe her in the last week of the Graphic Novels program. The impact of her teaching on the students and the classroom environment was palpable.”

As for Asiko, she says arts education is an avenue she may want to pursue professionally, thanks to her experience in the Emerging Artist program. “I’ve been reaffirmed in my ability to teach and work with different age groups.” And at age 21, she may have one advantage over much older teachers. “While maintaining a professional demeanor and authority, I’m able to really connect with the students in a way that doesn’t feel intimidating and that they’ll still listen and have fun.”

Asiko has an exciting challenge ahead of her this spring when she moves on to the next phase of the program—she’s been selected to serve as the teaching artist in an after-school residency at Portsmouth’s Westhaven Elementary School, one of three schools participating in the first phase of the IDEAL (Intentional Designs of Expression in Artistic Languages) program. During the course of the ten-week residency, fifth graders will create mixed media works of art as they explore various aspects of self-identity through dance, written and spoken poetry, and visual art. Students from schools in Norfolk and Virginia Beach are also participating and will have opportunities to collaborate with one another.

“A lot of the residency is based off of trying to help these students figure out their own identities and where they fit into their communities,” Asiko says. “That conceptually is so in line with the work that I’m trying to do artistically that’s it’s going to be really neat to explore these concepts.”

We’re thankful for the sponsorship of #BankofAmerica that helped underwrite the launch of the Emerging Artist Teaching program. Their support is helping create new opportunities in the workforce for artists.

Students or colleges interested in participating in the program may contact Drew Lusher, Artist and Programming Manager, at Artsed@Arts4LearningVA.org.

Filed Under: Artist Spotlight, News, Program Spotlight Tagged With: art education, art jobs, Arts Ed, careers, emerging artists, teaching artists

A Spectacular Student Musical Showcase

December 13, 2022 By Cindy Sherwood

“I was floored. I was so proud of him.”
Liretta Krayse, grandmother of Elijah Pretlow

http://arts4learningva.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/12/Ave-Maria-solo-compressed.mp4

Just about anyone would be floored watching their shy grandson stand up in front of an audience and sing so beautifully. But there’s more to the story than that.

Liretta Krayse and her grandson Elijah Pretlow

Elijah, who lives with his grandmother in Norfolk, is on the autism spectrum and suffers from Crohn’s disease. He’s largely homebound, and Liretta says they’ve struggled to find activities to keep him entertained. She says Elijah, who’s in sixth grade, loved the music classes, which ran this fall at the Portsmouth YMCA. Families of Autistic Children in Tidewater (FACT) has partnered with Arts for Learning’s professional teaching artists for the three-year Arts Adventures residency, funded by the Hampton Roads Community Foundation.

Teaching artist Cindy Aitken

Arts for Learning’s Cindy Aitken led the classes. She’s worked as a teacher for decades using drama, music, and movement to engage students and was honored as A4L’s Teaching Artist of the Year in 2011. This was the first time she worked exclusively with students with autism, and she called their growth during the residency “fantastic.”

“Most students didn’t even want to sing at first. They didn’t recognize that voice is an instrument, or that clapping their hands, tapping their hands on their legs, all are instruments. We did use actual instruments as well, but I taught them that they’re able to create their own music at any time of the day and in any place, really. By the end, we had a soloist, we had all the students singing, we had all the students participating with tambourines. It was just really exciting to see the growth.”

From the early sessions to the time Elijah became that soloist was a gradual process. Like most of the students in the program, he was quite shy initially and didn’t talk much. But one day, Cindy mentioned what a smooth voice he had when he spoke and said she’d love to hear him sing.

“And he said, ‘Oh no, no. I don’t sing.’  And his grandmother said, ‘Well, you sing around the house,’ and he said, ‘I don’t sing around other people.’

Cindy had a clever response that made sense to Elijah.

“‘I said, that’s okay. I’m not really a person. I’m just a teacher, that doesn’t really count, right?’ And he goes, ‘Well, that’s kind of true.’ And I said, ‘I’m kind of like your grandmother.’ ‘Well, that’s kind of true.’ ‘And I said, repeat a line for me.’ So I sang something like, ‘hey, hey, how are you?’ Something not intimidating. And he turned around and sang, ‘Hey, hey, how are you?’ And I said, ‘Oh my golly, you really have a voice.’”

At that point, Cindy told Elijah she’d like to work with him on his voice whenever he felt comfortable. Sometimes he’d want to, and other times he wouldn’t. “I just didn’t ever push. It was completely up to him,” Cindy says.

Around the halfway point of the residency, when Cindy walked into the gym where classes were held, Elijah jumped up and sang, “Hi, Miss Cindy!”

“There was something very opera-like the way he sung it. And I said, ‘Oh my golly, Elijah, that was fantastic. You have such an opera voice—I can’t believe it.’ And he started laughing and smiling, and the way he did it, it sounded like Ave Maria, like that kind of smooth flow to it.”

From there, Cindy gave Elijah an arrangement of Ave Maria to practice at home. She became concerned when he missed class for several weeks and discovered his family was having transportation issues. She picked up Elijah and his grandmother to take them to class, and while riding in the car, he was “singing up a storm.”

“That was the catalyst that helped him feel comfortable singing in front of his peers. And then once he practiced singing in front of his peers, he felt comfortable singing in front of others.”

The evening of the showcase, his grandmother wasn’t sure he’d go through with it.

“When the program began, he was like, ‘No way. I’m not getting out there,’” Liretta says. “And then, bam, he’s singing! It was so loud and clear, and he sang some of the other songs, too. I was just so proud of him.”

Elijah Pretlow wasn’t the only student who made his family members proud that evening. In fact, there was another Elijah who participated in the residency too and made his family proud at the showcase event, as did all the other students who “performed and informed” what they had learned over the course of the twelve weeks.

“That showcase was completely written and performed by them… it was all student driven, which I really loved,” Cindy says. “It was wonderful!”

The Arts Adventure residency is completely free for participating students. Scheduled for the fall of 2023, the third year of the Arts Adventures residency will focus on visual art. It will again be open to middle and high school students with autism, as they explore different types of visual art, practice new life skills, and learn with their peers in a supportive environment. We look forward to another wonderful year in our partnership with FACT!

Filed Under: ArtsED for Exceptional Students, News, Program Spotlight Tagged With: Arts Adventures, Arts Ed, arts education, FACT, music education, musical showcase, students with autism

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Main Office
Arts for Learning
420 North Center Drive
Suite 239
Norfolk, Virginia 23502
Phone: 757-466-7555
Fax: 757-455-9859

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Main Office

Arts for Learning
420 North Center Drive
Suite 239
Norfolk, Virginia 23502
Phone: 757-466-7555
Fax: 757-455-9859

An Artistic Tribute to Marty Einhorn

                       A very special—and poignant—Arts for Learning performance this month honored the life and legacy of former board president Marty Einhorn. A4L’s Rita Cohen performed A World of Song and Dance as a free performance in memory of Marty, who died in 2021 at the age of 63. After Marty’s death, Arts for Learning […]

Join the A4L Mailing List!

Sign up to receive the latest news on arts integration from Arts for Learning! Thank you for supporting arts-in-education.

Select list(s) to subscribe to


By submitting this form, you are consenting to receive marketing emails from: Arts for Learning, http://www.arts4learningva.org. You can revoke your consent to receive emails at any time by using the SafeUnsubscribe® link, found at the bottom of every email. Emails are serviced by Constant Contact

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