Nuestras Historias: Art Residency Coordinator

Through the two years at the NMMA, myself along with a team of Art Educators coordinated the Nuestras Historias Art Residency grant based program. In this program our team lead and facilitated professional development for a cohort of 30 Chicago Public School Teachers (K-12) in extensive knowledge over arts integration within the classroom and appreciation for Mexican and Mexican-American based art. Our PD’s aided our teachers in creating lesson plans that focus on social justice issues, community based topics and their students individual identity. Teachers are provided classes through an Artist Residency given by myself. My major responsibilities were to work one-on-one with the teachers and develop curriculum to apply in the classroom. Focusing on social justice that is centered on youth and art, we created an extensive lesson spread across 8-10 sessions that would give voice to their students. I engaged my students through youth lead techniques, promoted inclusivity, and created a safe space for art making and remembering to be informed by student experiences. The majority of schools that we worked with were within the Pilsen, Little Village, Back of the Yards, and Brighton Park area. Some schools did not receive large funding for the arts, making it of utmost importance that the programming becomes a space for students to gain experience in art making as a therapeutic tool, making connections to their community through arts and using art as a way to express themselves and their relationship to their neighborhood.

Our team of Art Educators also lead community engaged workshops through weekend programs at the NMMA. Programs were inspired by current exhibitions and discuss topics over identity, race, gender and the Mexican-American experience. Programming was free for guests and vital that they are bilingual to better serve the community.