press room

For Immediate Release

12/08/2005

Contact:
Beth Olsen
Goodman Media for Americans for the Arts
212.576.2700 ext. 243 or bolsen@goodmanmedia.com


Americans for Arts Announces New Members of Arts Education Council

Washington DC — December 8, 2005 — Americans for the Arts, the nation’s leading arts service organization, announced today three additions and one re-elected member to its Arts Education Council. The Arts Education Council was created to advise the board and staff of Americans for the Arts about the diverse interests, roles, and artistic disciplines within the field of arts education. The Council also serves as a representative advisory committee of the Arts Education Network, organized by Americans for the Arts to link the breadth of individuals and organizations that share a common goal of promoting the advancement of the arts in education.

“The Arts Education Council is essential to Americans for the Arts and our dedication to arts education for our children and communities,” stated Robert L. Lynch, president and CEO of Americans for the Arts. “We are proud to welcome these new members to the Council whose expertise will help increase the visibility and stability of the arts and arts education nationwide.”

List and brief bios of new or renewing Arts Education Council members follow:

• Thomas Cahill
  Executive Director, Studio in a School Association
  New York, NY
  Since 1979, Cahill has served as the executive director of New York’s Studio in a School Association, which places professional artists in New York City public schools and community centers. He currently serves as co-chair of the New York City Department of Education Visual Arts Curriculum Committee.
• David Flatley
  Executive Director, Center for Community Arts Partnerships
  Chicago, IL
  David Flatley, executive director of the Center for Community Arts Partnerships (CCAP) at Columbia College Chicago, has more than a decade of experience in developing and implementing educational and intercultural initiatives designed to improve teacher practice and student achievement and effect whole-school change. His work supports both national and international groups.
• Laurie Schopp
  Director of Programs and Policy, VH1 Save the Music Foundation
  New York, NY
  At VH1 Save the Music Foundation, Schopp is responsible for overseeing the implementation of the award-winning national initiative committed to restoring music education in America’s public schools and to raising public awareness about the benefits of music education. Schopp initiated and managed the launch of campaigns to completely restore music education in such cities as Chicago, Milwaukee, and St. Louis. 
• Ayeshah Wiltshire
  Director of Community Arts and Education, Westchester Arts Council
  White Plains, NY
  Ayeshah Wiltshire graduated from Hampton University with a degree in entrepreneurship. After a year-long fellowship to develop and coordinate a micro-enterprise program for the International Foundation of Education and Self-Help in Johannesburg, South Africa, she began an internet-based art cooperative. She has traveled extensively throughout Africa, training artisans in financial management and marketing. The result has been an online “catalog” of indigenous crafts from African artisans.

The Arts Education Network is designed to connect members around issues affecting arts in education policy, to advocate for inclusion and integration of high-quality arts education programming in America’s schools and communities, and to expand participation in the field of arts education. The Arts Education Network’s key constituents are arts professionals, artists, administrators, educators, and community arts leaders who plan, implement, and fund arts education programming at the local, state, and national levels.

Americans for the Arts is the leading nonprofit organization for advancing the arts in America. With offices in Washington, DC, and New York City, it has a record of more than 40 years of service. Americans for the Arts is dedicated to representing and serving local communities and creating opportunities for every American to participate in and appreciate all forms of the arts. Additional information is available at www.AmericansForTheArts.org.