Hollister School District resumes remote arts education

Courtesy of the Hollister School District:

The Hollister School District is proud to announce that weekly arts education will resume for 3rd, 4th, and 5th grade students in 2020-2021. The program, initiated last year, was popular among students, staff, and parents.

The San Benito County Arts Council partnered with the district to initiate last year’s and this year’s program. Superintendent Diego Ochoa said: “I can’t thank Jennifer Laine and Amanda Chiado enough for their efforts in securing the services of our awesome teaching artists.”

The program allows a teaching artist to teach the class for 40 minutes and implement a unique arts lesson.Depending on the school site, lessons may take place during the morning or in the afternoon. The district has placed an emphasis on arts education because of the positive impact on social emotional health and critical thinking.

The Hollister School District held a two-day Arts Planning Retreat on March 5-6, 2020. Superintendent Diego Ochoa worked with the San Benito County Arts Council to initiate the Arts Planning Retreat. The retreat was attended by teachers, principals, administrators, the San Benito County of Education Superintendent, local artists, and San Benito County Arts Council Leaders. The retreat was designed to celebrate the successes of the present, identify goals for the future and develop strategies to realize those goals. Jennifer Laine, Executive Director of the San Benito County Arts Council said, “The arts education planning retreat was an opportunity to bring together educators, parents, teaching artists, district board members and others to imagine an education for HSD students that includes equitable access to the arts.  This process has been a long time coming and I am grateful to the leadership at the Hollister School District, County Office of Education and Arts Now Leadership Team. I was energized by what we discussed and accomplished at the retreat, and I am optimistic that we will be able to put together an arts plan that is innovative, inclusive and culturally-relevant, and one which embodies the district’s overarching mission of creating a student-centered education for all students.”

The Hollister School District plans to hold an Arts Planning Follow Up in February 2021 to reconvene stakeholders in the hopes of creating an improved 2021-2024 Arts Plan for the Hollister School District. For more information, please contact Superintendent Diego Ochoa at [email protected].