In this interactive session, participants will engage in dialogue about the challenges and joys of being arts educators, as well as the implications of this vocation for undergraduate students. The panelists will address the nuances of pursuing a vocation in each of their areas (visual arts, music, and theatre), while also addressing the common threads that are encountered across all arts disciplines. The session will create space for participants’ personal reflections on their own vocations and on how they model possibilities for students in these fields. How do artistic vocations, which are motivated by a passion for creative endeavors, intersect with the work of discernment? How can educators cultivate habits of mind that will make them effective mentors for students of the arts?
Kim Garza, Associate Professor of Graphic Design, St. Edward’s University (TX)
Michelle Hayford, Associate Professor and Program Director of Theatre, Dance, and Performance Technology, University of Dayton (OH)
Nicholas Alton Lewis, Associate Vice President for Academic Initiatives and Associate Dean of the College, Bard College (NY)