Dia de Oakwood ofrenda by Peter Marin

Learning Happens Here: Educational Offerings this Fall with the North Carolina Museum of Art

Author: Michelle Harrell, Director of Education

At the NCMA learning happens in the galleries, Museum Park, online, and in classrooms across our state. I’m passionate about what I do because I’ve seen the impact. Museum objects serve as catalysts to spark curiosity, learning, and discussion. Art museums offer students ways to connect to cultures across time and place and broaden their worldviews. We are excited to join other museums, parks, zoos, and historic sites in North Carolina’s Department of Natural and Cultural Resources (DNCR) as we celebrate that “learning happens here.”

DNCR’s Learning Happens Here initiative aims to increase awareness of the diverse resources within the agency to support teachers and engage students. In addition, Governor Cooper has declared 2024 the Year of Public Schools in North Carolina. These two initiatives align with the Museum’s work in the governor’s HomeTown Strong rural communities. Public art projects, artist residencies, art kits, and student exhibitions are just a few examples of projects in the past three years that began as small pilots in partner communities and evolved into larger, ongoing outreach efforts.

The NCMA’s education team collaborates with a broad network of state and local partners to foster learning for K–12 public schools. We strive to make the collection accessible to all. Everyone deserves access to learning through art and culture, and we value educators as partners in achieving our mission as a vital cultural resource. I’ve been privileged to collaborate with our state’s finest educators since I joined the NCMA’s teacher advisory in 1997 as a middle school art teacher. I look forward to connecting with old and new faces within this community of practice at our annual Educator Expo, this year on October 10.

Learning happens when schools, community partners, and statewide institutions come together in centering the needs of K–12 students. Readers may remember Raleigh artist Peter Marin’s massive art installation during the exhibition Frida Kahlo, Diego Rivera, and Mexican Modernism. It included student work from three artist residencies in Sampson and Wake County schools. Last fall, we returned to North Garner Middle School for another residency for the Dia de Oakwood celebration. The school’s ofrenda included over 160 calaveras (decorative skulls), 300 cempasúchil paper flowers, 50 sheets of papel picado (tissue paper with cut-out designs), and 100 blessings and memories. All materials were made by sixth and eighth-grade students, who then attended the five-day event with their families. For this year’s festival, we’ll work with Marin for six residencies and share related resources with our educator community and fall festivals with our DNCR Latinx committee.

This fall high school art teachers can enroll their classes in a program culminating in a student exhibition at the NCMA. For decades the Museum has sponsored opportunities for high school students to show their art and write about how they were inspired by a work in the collection. This year’s program, Artists in Process, includes guided access to NCMA resources, online forums for discussion, and a museum visit. We look forward to seeing and sharing evidence of learning through a 2025 summer exhibition.

We extend an invitation to increase awareness of what our state art museum offers educators and schools. Explore our educational website, NCMA Learn (learn.ncartmuseum.org), and stay connected through our educator newsletter for updates on these and additional opportunities:

Educator Expo

Thursday, October 10, 4–7 pm

Free with registration

The Educator Expo celebrates educators and helps them feel connected to the Museum and the larger purpose of their work. Teachers enjoy refreshments, network, participate in activities designed especially for them, gather resources from partners in the community and DCNR, and have after-hours access to the Museum’s galleries and exhibitions.

Dia de Oakwood

October 26–November 2

Historic Oakwood Cemetery, Raleigh

Wake County students learn about Mexican cultural traditions through artist residencies, culminating in the five-day event Dia de Oakwood. Dia de Oakwood was born as a collaboration between organizers of the Day of the Dead 5K Angela Salamanca and Natalia Campbell, Oakwood Cemetery director Robin Simonton, and artist Peter Marin. Kristin Smith, manager of school programs, collaborated with Marin to develop curriculum and provide materials for artist residencies. This celebration will take place at the Historic Oakwood Cemetery over five days, with several activities open to the public.

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