There are many people in this town that have a passion and channel that passion to the improvement of the community. Jess Gillooly is one of those people. An artist by training and art educator, Ms. Gillooly is the driver behind a program called “Meet the Artists” (MTA) which delivers enhanced art enrichment to public elementary students throughout Milton.
The Meet the Artists program is a K-3 parent run art history program that was begun in 2010 by Ms. Gillooly and Emily McElhinney. At the time the program started, students at the elementary level were only getting 10.5 hours of art a year. Gillooly sought a way to bring more art into the classrooms. She has. The result is an art enrichment program run with the support of parents in grades K-3 in all 4 elementary schools. There is a parent “point person’ in each school who assists in organizing materials and recruiting parent volunteers.
There are six artists introduced to the students through designed lesson plans: Vincent Van Gogh, Pablo Picasso, Henri Matisse, Georgia O’Keeffe, Paul Klee, and Wassily Kandinsky. A parent volunteer reads a book about one of these artists that discusses their life and work. Students then look at a work by that artist, learning to “read” the art work similar to how they “read” a book. The lessons finish with a brief art project that integrates the information from the book and art work.
Gillooly said that the 3rd grade has six new artists that have been chosen with the express purpose of creating a link between the MTA curriculum and the new Art of the Americas wing at the MFA. Third grade students will learn about the art of the Americas by studying the lives and works of American artists Frida Kahlo, Romare Bearden, Andy Warhol, Grandma Moses, Horace Pippin and Faith Ringgold. The intent is to expand this to the 4th and 5th grades.
“This program means a great deal to me,” said Gillooly. “All I really want to do is bring in more art opportunities during the school day, so that every student can participate. For parents, it is such a wonderful way to volunteer in the classroom. Parents feel that they are doing something important, and the teachers love our curriculum.”
Parents confirm that. Stephnie O’Keefe, a participating parent states, “It’s a great opportunity to be in your child’s classroom in a meaningful way. The best part for me has been the continuity in seeing my now 2nd and 1st grader build on what they learned in previous years . . . I can’t say enough about MTA and the way it introduces these artists to all of our students.”
Stephanie Hartwell summed up her thoughts on the program, “I would just say that MTA is a simple and elegant way of introducing elementary aged students to art appreciation and history through hands on activities with parent volunteers, and that the kids engage readily and love it!”
Parents interested in getting involved with Meet the Artists should contact Jess Gillooly at jessgill@gmail.com.
Photos courtesy of John Gillooly.