I have the great privilege of being involved with the Westchester County Arts Leadership Association (WCALA). WCALA is a group comprised of people with a variety of titles and job descriptions within their school districts, but all with one prime purpose: leading arts programs in our school communities. Some of our members are full time school administrators in charge of the arts, like myself. Many are teachers who serve in a formal way as department chairperson or “teacher leader.” Others have a more informal leadership role. On paper we have a membership of about 25-30 different school districts each year, and in practice, we have about a dozen members who meet regularly to discuss our work, grow together in our profession, and to continually improve as leaders within our school communities.
Each year on Election Day, which for many school districts in our area is designated as a professional development day, we hold two simultaneous professional development conferences, one for our visual arts teachers and one for our music teachers. Each year we have about 90 art teachers and about 160 music teachers who attend from our member districts. It’s a great day, and provides a wonderful opportunity to see colleagues that we may not get to see as regularly as we like.
As is the case with any gathering of professionals, we take time to check in with each other to see how things are going with our colleagues in other districts. Many of the teachers who attend the day come from districts with no official leader for their programs. There is a clear and discernible difference between those teachers and their programs who come from districts with a clear leadership structure in place to support the arts. These teachers report back about programs that are flourishing – students having great successes within their programs and beyond; facilities being improved; programs that are growing and adapting to the ever-changing needs of schools and their communities; voice for and presence of dynamic arts programs across school buildings and grade levels.
For everyone who attends this day, there is an opportunity to connect with those people who are doing the same thing as them every day. Many art and music teachers experience a reality wherein they are the only person who does what they do in their building. On a daily basis they interact with many teachers, but none of these teachers experiences their profession like an arts teacher. Having a group to meet with who understands the everyday joys and challenges of teaching in the arts is an invaluable tool.
As an organizer of the WCALA Professional development day, I get to read all of the feedback from the event and speak to many of those in attendance. It is satisfying to hear so many comments reinforcing just this concept. My involvement with WCALA, whether it be our monthly meetings with the more active members or our large professional development events with hundreds of teachers, consistently reminds me that I’m not alone in this work. It provides me the opportunity to hear how others are thriving in an area of education that can, at times feel very isolating. Having a network of colleagues who know what your doing, and can relate realistically with how things work for you, is empowering and enlightening.
What are your go-to networks, formal and informal? Share in the comments below!
Bradley Morrison 