It is an honor for me to work with this talented committee. Each member has a wealth of experience and is willing to contribute to the organization and membership in meaningful ways. Best Practices members include Bill Lowman, president of Idyllwild Arts, Rory Pullens, CEO and head of school at the Duke Ellington School of the Arts, George Simpson, principal of Los Angeles County High School for the Arts, and Robin Speer, program director at Riverside Performing Arts High School.

The Best Practices Committee met in January in Anaheim, California as part of the ASN board of director's meeting. It was our great fortune to hold this board meeting in conjunction with the National Association of Music Merchants http://ih.constantcontact.com/fs010/1102078751986/img/416.jpgmeeting (The NAMM Show), because the city was filled with the artistic energy of nearly 90,000 conference attendees. Now that we have had a taste of the NAMM experience, we are eager to return for the ASN annual conference, January 11-16, 2011, and hope you will all be able to join us.

Our meeting in January focused on the direction of this committee and how we can best serve the needs of the ASN constituency. We developed four overarching components of committee responsibility, including networking, continuous improvement, recognitions, and professional development. Within those areas, we explored ways to support schools and their leaders, faculty and students.

An exciting outcome of our work is the development of the Exemplary School Designation. The criteria for selection and the process for application are now complete and available to our membership. Benefits for schools receiving this designation include a printed certificate, a prepared news release, an ASN Exemplary School Member Logo, a featured article in the ASN e-news, and recognition on the Web site, in the membership directory, in the conference program and recognition at the annual conference awards ceremony. The Exemplary Schools designation will be a way to further your school's efforts, whether working to secure funding sources, establishing new partnerships, or increasing awareness, as it brings recognition to your school's status as a school of excellence. While the Exemplary Schools designation is an honor in and of itself, it also provides an important advocacy tool for the receiving school. Moreover, it can help champion arts education, especially at this time when arts education in public schools is in desperate need of champions. The first round of application deadline is April 1, 2010, and the second round deadline is October 1, 2010. We look forward to our first school recipients of this prestigious award in the coming year! 
 
The process of selection as an Exemplary School builds on our partnership with the Accrediting Commission for Community and Precollegiate Arts Schools (ACCPAS) and recognizes schools that demonstrate excellence in their pursuit of continuing improvement. Selection as an Exemplary School will not only be an honor for the school, but it will also provide avenues of networking with other Exemplary Schools. For example, schools selected will submit materials that can then be shared as resources, including the school's course catalog, organizational chart, school schedule, and student handbook. 

During the 2011 conference in Anaheim, the Best Practices strand will include sessions related to the Exemplary School designation. In addition, we will have a session on resource teams, showcasing people within our organization who have expertise that might benefit other schools.

As you can see, our committee is active and excited about our contributions to shaping ASN. The Best Practices Committee meets monthly, and we welcome your ideas as to how we might best serve your needs as schools, leaders, teachers and students.

Respectfully,
 
Chair, Best Practices in Teaching and Learning
Arts Schools Network

Questions?
Please direct to This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it or 843.686.5060