A Message from the president: August 2022
August 3, 2022
Dear Colleagues:
I am writing today to let you know about the exciting plans we have made for the 2022 Fall Connecticut Art Education Association Conference, and other opportunities to engage with colleagues post COVID. My name is Eileen McVicar~Schnyder and I have recently taken over as the President of the CAEA.
This year we are shaking off the Zoom, Gloom and Doom by planning the first in person event since the 2019 fall conference. It is time to reconnect with our friends from across the state and share our experiences. With all of the uncertainty we have become accustom to, it was mid-May before we confidently felt we could return to an in-person conference. One late night, I was driving home from work thinking about how worn out we all are. I was thinking about how we all need to engage in art, create and be reinvigorated. Call it divine intervention, or kismet, but just as I am worrying how we can come together, tell our stories, heal and create, Lucy Nalpathanchil began interviewing Jen Hewett on identity, community and inclusivity in craft. Jen Hewitt wrote a book, This Long Thread: Women of Color on Craft, Community and Connection. As I listened, they interviewed Susi Ryan, an author and social justice activist from Connecticut who co-founded the quilt guild, Sisters In Stitches Joined By The Cloth. Ms Ryan talked about her search for a community of quilters, about telling her story through quilting, about shared experiences, dance, music and poetry. I was so swept up in her conversation, I almost forgot that I really don’t sew, and ran up to Worcester to join the guild. When I got home, I looked up Ms Ryan via the quilting guild, and after speaking with her, asked her to be our keynote.
Ms Ryan will be delivering our keynote, "Remembered Through Art, Inspired By Their Legacies". After this, she will be joined by her guild members, who will be putting together kits for each attendee and teaching us to quilt our own square, our own story. The quilting workshop will afford time to socialize with peers while creating one square of a larger story. Each square will then be joined into a large CAEA quilt that will represent our community.
CONNECT: Tuesday October 18th from 9am to 3pm, the New Britain Museum of American Art has graciously opened their doors on a day they are usually closed, so we have the entire museum at our disposal. Other workshop offerings will include ED&I, STEAM, Curriculum Development Share and docent led museum tours. Vendors are being invited to return. A continental breakfast and boxed lunch from Delicacy in West Hartford will be included.
One IMPORTANT NOTE: there is a limit of 150 attendees due to the NBMAA capacity limits. That means First Come First Serve. Registration will begin on August 31st, so MARK YOUR CALENDARS!
IN ADDITION, THERE IS A SECOND MASTER TEACHER WORKSHOP EVENT AT BROOKFIELD CRAFTS CENTER ON SATURDAY OCTOBER 22
WHAT??? THERE IS A SECOND MASTER TEACHER WORKSHOP EVENT AT BROOKFIELD
CRAFTS CENTER ON SATURDAY OCTOBER 22.
You heard correctly. We had planned a teacher SEL conference last year at area workshops and
were very excited, then DELTA came along, and the facilities bowed out. But we believe teacher
self-care is critical and did not want to give up on that idea.
RE-ENERGIZE: Saturday October 22 from 10am to 4pm. This year Brookfield Crafts Center is
offering their facility, master teachers, all supplies and equipment, all for you. All you have to do is choose something you always wanted to learn or get better at - and show up. They are offering eight distinct workshops ranging from forging metal, glass, wood, ceramics, jewelry, felting, digital photography and more. There is something for everyone, and this day is just for YOU! We believe that great teachers are lifelong learners. the more you learn, the more you have to offer.
One IMPORTANT NOTE: there is a limit of 47 attendees due to the Brookfield Craft Center
class size limits. Also, lunch is on your own at the Brookfield event. There are many great places to eat or you can bring your own lunch and eat near the babbling brook. Again, this event will be First Come First Serve. Deep discounts are available to those who enroll in both events.
Registration will begin on August 31st, so MARK YOUR CALENDARS!
THRIVE: In addition to these two in-person events, look what else we are offering to you this year:
We are really looking forward to reconnecting with you at these events. Please check out the CAEA website (https://www.ctarteducation.net) and the Facebook page for details and for event updates. Email us at ctartedinfo@gmail.com With any questions.
Sincerely,
Eileen McVicar~Schnyder
President CAEA
Thank you to the Conference Committee Members:
Holly Constantine
Jennifer Leniart
Theresa Manus-Piccolo
Maureen Berescik
Cindy Parsons
Donna Bosworth
Joe Vernali
A Special Thank You to the Leadership Retreat attendees who assisted in the conference planning:
Christopher DelCoro
Susan Gudat
Dr Barbara Solomon
Dear Colleagues:
I am writing today to let you know about the exciting plans we have made for the 2022 Fall Connecticut Art Education Association Conference, and other opportunities to engage with colleagues post COVID. My name is Eileen McVicar~Schnyder and I have recently taken over as the President of the CAEA.
This year we are shaking off the Zoom, Gloom and Doom by planning the first in person event since the 2019 fall conference. It is time to reconnect with our friends from across the state and share our experiences. With all of the uncertainty we have become accustom to, it was mid-May before we confidently felt we could return to an in-person conference. One late night, I was driving home from work thinking about how worn out we all are. I was thinking about how we all need to engage in art, create and be reinvigorated. Call it divine intervention, or kismet, but just as I am worrying how we can come together, tell our stories, heal and create, Lucy Nalpathanchil began interviewing Jen Hewett on identity, community and inclusivity in craft. Jen Hewitt wrote a book, This Long Thread: Women of Color on Craft, Community and Connection. As I listened, they interviewed Susi Ryan, an author and social justice activist from Connecticut who co-founded the quilt guild, Sisters In Stitches Joined By The Cloth. Ms Ryan talked about her search for a community of quilters, about telling her story through quilting, about shared experiences, dance, music and poetry. I was so swept up in her conversation, I almost forgot that I really don’t sew, and ran up to Worcester to join the guild. When I got home, I looked up Ms Ryan via the quilting guild, and after speaking with her, asked her to be our keynote.
Ms Ryan will be delivering our keynote, "Remembered Through Art, Inspired By Their Legacies". After this, she will be joined by her guild members, who will be putting together kits for each attendee and teaching us to quilt our own square, our own story. The quilting workshop will afford time to socialize with peers while creating one square of a larger story. Each square will then be joined into a large CAEA quilt that will represent our community.
CONNECT: Tuesday October 18th from 9am to 3pm, the New Britain Museum of American Art has graciously opened their doors on a day they are usually closed, so we have the entire museum at our disposal. Other workshop offerings will include ED&I, STEAM, Curriculum Development Share and docent led museum tours. Vendors are being invited to return. A continental breakfast and boxed lunch from Delicacy in West Hartford will be included.
One IMPORTANT NOTE: there is a limit of 150 attendees due to the NBMAA capacity limits. That means First Come First Serve. Registration will begin on August 31st, so MARK YOUR CALENDARS!
IN ADDITION, THERE IS A SECOND MASTER TEACHER WORKSHOP EVENT AT BROOKFIELD CRAFTS CENTER ON SATURDAY OCTOBER 22
WHAT??? THERE IS A SECOND MASTER TEACHER WORKSHOP EVENT AT BROOKFIELD
CRAFTS CENTER ON SATURDAY OCTOBER 22.
You heard correctly. We had planned a teacher SEL conference last year at area workshops and
were very excited, then DELTA came along, and the facilities bowed out. But we believe teacher
self-care is critical and did not want to give up on that idea.
RE-ENERGIZE: Saturday October 22 from 10am to 4pm. This year Brookfield Crafts Center is
offering their facility, master teachers, all supplies and equipment, all for you. All you have to do is choose something you always wanted to learn or get better at - and show up. They are offering eight distinct workshops ranging from forging metal, glass, wood, ceramics, jewelry, felting, digital photography and more. There is something for everyone, and this day is just for YOU! We believe that great teachers are lifelong learners. the more you learn, the more you have to offer.
One IMPORTANT NOTE: there is a limit of 47 attendees due to the Brookfield Craft Center
class size limits. Also, lunch is on your own at the Brookfield event. There are many great places to eat or you can bring your own lunch and eat near the babbling brook. Again, this event will be First Come First Serve. Deep discounts are available to those who enroll in both events.
Registration will begin on August 31st, so MARK YOUR CALENDARS!
THRIVE: In addition to these two in-person events, look what else we are offering to you this year:
- Museum Meet-Up (TBA)
- NAEA Webinar Watch and Discuss (monthly)
- ED&I Discussion Group (monthly)
- Curriculum Building Events (TBA)
We are really looking forward to reconnecting with you at these events. Please check out the CAEA website (https://www.ctarteducation.net) and the Facebook page for details and for event updates. Email us at ctartedinfo@gmail.com With any questions.
Sincerely,
Eileen McVicar~Schnyder
President CAEA
Thank you to the Conference Committee Members:
Holly Constantine
Jennifer Leniart
Theresa Manus-Piccolo
Maureen Berescik
Cindy Parsons
Donna Bosworth
Joe Vernali
A Special Thank You to the Leadership Retreat attendees who assisted in the conference planning:
Christopher DelCoro
Susan Gudat
Dr Barbara Solomon