Synopsis
The Center for the Performing Arts at Penn State (CPA) requests concept papers from University Park faculty members who wish to develop a new general education interdomain course that integrates the performing arts and advances the Penn State Presidential Commission on Racism, Bias and Community Safety’s efforts “to address the profound social issues related to racism and bias that are pervasive in our nation, and specifically at Penn State…” Hope-Resist-Heal: Creating Change through the Performing Arts is a multi-pronged arts-based initiative funded through a grant from Penn State’s Equal Opportunity Planning Committee. The project’s goal is to build communities of belonging through shared arts experiences and interdisciplinary curricula that combine arts, culture and performing artists of color programmed at the Center for the Performing Arts (cpa.psu.edu).
The course development process will occur in two phases. The initial phase entails submitting a brief 1 to 3 page concept paper by December 10, 2021 to propose a general education, interdomain course that incorporates meaningful engagement with Black, Indigenous and People of Color (BIPOC) artists and performances each time the course is offered. Selected faculty will work with CPA staff, the program’s academic team and visiting artists throughout the spring semester 2022 to develop effective approaches incorporating the performing arts into their pedagogy. To confirm participation in the second phase of the process, faculty will submit an updated concept paper consolidating the spring experience into the proposed course by April 30, 2022.
During the second tier, participating faculty will develop their course in the summer or fall of 2022, and submit to the Faculty Senate for approval as a general education special topics interdomain course for a spring 2023 launch. By the conclusion of the inaugural offering as a special topics course, faculty will begin the steps to obtain permanent course status as per the Faculty Senate’s established process with submission to occur prior to May 1, 2023. The Hope-Resist-Heal’s academic team and CPA staff will be available throughout the course development process and whenever the course is offered to provide support and connection to the artists.
Concept papers should address how the proposed course will leverage the performing arts and other subject areas in order to build belonging. The CPA defines and measures belonging through four themes that proposals may build upon:
(1) Personal and Communal Identity
(2) Creating and Receiving Empathy
(3) Recognizing the Importance of Telling One’s Story
(4) Preparing Students for Job Readiness and Global Citizenship
Faculty are not limited to the above-stated themes and are welcome to develop their own framework of belonging.
Once confirmed in the second phase, faculty will choose either a course buyout or supplemental pay, pursuant to departmental approval. Please note that if more than one faculty member is developing a course, supplemental pay will be the only funding option and would be split amongst the participating faculty.
Introduction
Penn State’s commitment to educating our students in a complete and inclusive manner far exceeds the imparting of technical or professional knowledge. It includes the social development of students to be cognizant of and embrace cultures and perspectives different from their own, and to appreciate the richness this diversity brings. This includes the development of intercultural awareness and competency that prepares individuals for building better working environments. The Hope-Resist-Heal project seeks to develop this appreciation through engaging students with performing artists of color who are embedded in the developed inter-domain courses.
This engagement is founded on the basic principle that art and artists can be leveraged to facilitate having “brave” conversations regarding issues pertaining to equity and justice, and to help develop empathy, compassion and community as part of their practice. By providing pathways that connect students to each other in community, the performing arts can mitigate the insularity that comes with student life and impedes them from advancing racial justice on campus and in the world around them. Meaningful curricular engagement with BIPOC performing artists at the Center for the Performing Arts will engage students at a key point in their lives, encouraging them to think beyond the limited lived experiences they may have had coming into their undergraduate work, resulting in a more expansive view of the world and a greater sense of their place in it. Our intent is to help support student self-realization by encouraging them to pause, reflect, notice and become more self-aware of, their own situations, of others who may be different, and the world.
The Hope-Resist-Heal project provides faculty with opportunities to develop relevant, interdisciplinary general education courses that improve a sense of belonging and leverage the performing arts. The project conceptualizes belonging through a focus on
(1) Personal and Communal Identity
(2) Creating and Receiving Empathy
(3) Recognizing the Importance of Telling One’s Story
(4) Preparing the Students for Job Readiness and Global Citizenship
Proposals may incorporate one or more of these themes or share another related framework applicable to their content. Faculty are expected to participate in evaluating the implementation of the new course. This includes, but is not limited to:
Pre and Post Course Student Surveys
The Observing or Recording of Artist Engagements
Student Interviews at the Conclusion of the Course
Faculty Interview at the Conclusion of the Semester
Faculty who are accepted into the project will:
Tier One:
- Participate in a blended curriculum development program to include direct interactions with visiting performing artists during spring semester 2022. This program will be customized to the individual needs of the faculty member for their specific curricular project. Some examples of the support received: instructional design support to align course goals and lesson objectives with content, assignments, and assessments, guidance and instruction on best practices in integrating arts and course content, suggestions on how to incorporate live artists engagements, and strategies to develop curricular assignments and activities that make the most of artistic engagements with the Center for the Performing Arts.
- Submit an updated concept paper to the CPA by April 30, 2022 that will be reviewed by Hope-Resist-Heal’s academic team. Confirmation will be required prior to participating in Tier Two.
Tier Two
- Develop a new inter-domain general education course that integrates BIPOC performing artists curated by the Center for the Performing Arts as well as interactions with artists on an ongoing basis. The initial offering will be proposed as a special topics general education interdomain course in the spring of 2023 culminating in submission to the Faculty Senate for approval as a permanent course offering no later than, 202.
- Participate and receive support from CPA staff as well as the program’s academic team in assessing student experiences within the inter-domain course. The IRB-approved evaluation will include:
Pre and Post course student surveys
The observing or recording of artist engagements
Student interviews at the conclusion of the course
Faculty interview at the conclusion of the semester
- Participate in authoring a final report and giving a local presentation on their course construction project.
- Participate in the development of a best practices resource to be accessible to Penn State and other universities looking to develop interdomain courses that feature BIPOC performing artists. This may include recording both student and faculty interviews.
- Optional: Assistance in preparing a presentation for an academic conference regarding their experience.
A primary goal of Hope-Resist-Heal is to create permanent, general education, interdomain courses and develop a body of practice knowledge based on research. It is assumed that awarded faculty will commit to achieving the goal of obtaining permanent status as a general education interdomain course.
Center for the Performing Arts Performances
A summary of the BIPOC artists performing at the Center for the Performing Arts during Spring semester 2022 include:
Bill T. Jones/Arnie Zane Dance Company’s What Problem?
February 7 through 11
Bill T. Jones/Arnie Zane Company’s latest work What Problem? provokes the tension between belonging to a community and feelings of isolation that many people experience during these divisive political times. Jones and the company develop individual content with local community members in each of the touring locations making each performance an engaging and deeply meaningful event.
March 21-23
Mwenso and the Shakes are a unique troupe of global artists who present music that merges the highest form of entertainment and artistry while commanding a formidable timeline of jazz and blues expression through African and Afro-American music. Immigrating from Sierra Leone, London, South Africa, Greenwich Village, Madagascar, France, Jamaica, and Hawaii the Shakes all now call Harlem their home. Taking from the stylings of Fats Waller, Muddy Waters, James Brown and many other American musical legends – Michael Mwenso leads an electrifying show the New York Times calls “intense, prowling, and ebullient.”
March 28 through April 1
The Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra with Wynton Marsalis (JLCO) comprises 15 of the finest jazz soloists and ensemble players today. Led by Wynton Marsalis, Jazz at Lincoln Center Managing and Artistic Director, this remarkably versatile orchestra performs a vast repertoire ranging from original compositions and Jazz at Lincoln Center-commissioned works to rare historic compositions and masterworks by Duke Ellington, Count Basie, Fletcher Henderson, Thelonious Monk, Mary Lou Williams, Dizzy Gillespie, Benny Goodman, Charles Mingus, and many others.
April 4 through 7
Small Island Big Song is a multi-platform project featuring musicians across 16 island nations of the Pacific and Indian Oceans, creating a contemporary and relevant musical statement of a region on the frontline of cultural and environmental challenges. Our motivation is the steady march of environmental and cultural loss across this region, a region now divided by national politics, imposed borders, colonizing languages and regional prejudices.
We have also reached a threshold that our collective lifestyles have directly affected the global environment, at this level our planet could be viewed as a fragile Island for which we all are responsible. But rather than highlighting the loss and pointing fingers, you will experience inspirational artists, singing from the depth of their heritage into a sustainable future, celebrating tradition, community and uplifting and enlightening music recorded in their homelands.
Criteria for a successful concept paper
If you would like to request a meeting to address issues or concerns that you have regarding your application, please submit a request along with a summary of the items to be addressed to clj5350@psu.edu.
Application will open on November 9, 2021
- Full proposals must be submitted by midnight on December 10, 2021
- Notifications of award by December 17 2021.
The proposal includes:
- Faculty member’s name, PSU email address, PSU phone number, CV and home unit. Also include the name of the unit in which the course will be offered if it is different than the faculty member’s primary appointment.
- Identification of which project theme(s) the course will focus on. The new inter-domain course should incorporate one or more of the following themes informed from a BIPOC perspective or other identified framework:
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- Personal and Communal Identity.
- Creating and Receiving Empathy
- Recognizing the Importance of Telling One’s Story
- Preparing Students for Job Readiness and Global Citizenship.
- 1 to 3 page description of the new course, including
- Title of the proposed course.
- The inter-domain areas included in the course (for example “GA & GN”)
- Initial thoughts on how artists will be incorporated into an existing course or courses during spring 2022.
- Identification of the semester you intend to take the buy-out or supplemental pay.
- A letter of support from the chair or director of the academic unit in which the course will be offered. If the faculty member’s primary appointment is in a unit different than the one the course will be offered, a second letter from their unit chair or director is required.
Following Acceptance into the Program you will need:
- A letter of administrative approval for participation.
Review and Selection Process
The Hope-Resist-Heal academic team and CPA staff will review all concept papers submitted against a rubric that is based on the application requirements stated above. If you have any further questions, please email Cheri Jehu (clj5350@psu.edu).