Posts filed under ‘student services’
Going Green
by Alex Gandionco, 11th Grade
“Going green” – it’s a fairly large statement and even larger commitment to make. For a school to go green, it involves a lot of thinking, encouraging, perseverance, dedication, and curiosity.
Idyllwild Arts Academy is moving toward being a greener school and being part of the green schools movement that has caught fire throughout the United States. One of the first steps towards this movement was our participation in the Green Schools National Conference earlier this week in Denver, Colorado. I was fortunate enough to be chosen to go to this conference, together with three other students, Michelle McMillan (11th Grade), Katherine Kearns (11th Grade) and Devin Debowski (10th Grade). The four of us were initially interested in making the school more environmentally friendly and also making ourselves more aware of environmental issues, but nothing prepared us for what the Green Schools Conference had to offer, and the effect it would have on us.
After settling into our hotel rooms on Monday afternoon in Denver, we immediately started roaming the Exhibition Hall filled with organizations, companies, and products all contributing to making our world more sustainable. The four of us, were constantly on our toes, eager to find out more about certain ideas and products, and how we can apply it to our school. The conference consisted of ‘breakout sessions’ – small hour-long sessions and presentations focusing on a certain aspect of making your school greener. We all chose specific sessions that we were curious about, or that contributed to already-spurred ideas that we had. There were a number of well-renowned and fantastic speakers at the general session, including Majora Carter, the founder of Sustainable South Bronx, Philippe Cousteau, CEO of EarthEcho International, and Laura Turner Seydel, chairperson of the Captain Planet Foundation. These speakers hit home with us, and inspired us so intensely to really care about what is happening to our world, and that we are able to make a difference. We were fortunate enough to have met some of these influential people.
An important aspect of the conference was the relationships and connections we made. Our group was highly active in networking. We were always keen to make conversation with people we would run into who happened to be leaders of environmental organizations, teachers from other schools, or simply interesting people with innovating ideas. The exchange of business cards became second nature to us, as we jumped at opportunities to be able to stay in touch with people from all over the USA that may come in handy in the future. Relationships between our school and these people can be very valuable and useful, and we did not hesitate to build them with whomever we thought we could.
You could say we had a ‘special appeal’ to others, as artists. There is sort of an allure behind the idea of an arts boarding school in the mountains, and adults tend to find passionate and driven young artists very intriguing. We found that there was much curiosity behind how we would integrate eco-friendliness into our art forms and all of us were more than ready to present our ideas. With Michelle a dance major, Katherine majoring in film, Devin in Interdisciplinary Arts with a focus on interior design, and myself, a classical vocalist, there are many ways of incorporating the ideas gained at the conference into our art, and there is always a way to make our art more eco-friendly. As artists, thinking outside of the box is instilled into us, and this is very much essential in the process of creating projects to make our environment more sustainable.
Ideas for our school were constantly on our minds, and on the van ride back to school from Los Angeles International Airport one would think that four tired teenagers who just spent the last three days on their heels would be fast asleep. In reality, it was the contrary. The post-excitement of the conference was visible, as we spent the two and a half hour-long ride back home, discussing ideas that we had. Everyone was already looking forward to putting what we learned into action.
A special thanks inevitably goes towards our chaperone Shannon Jacobs, student life and leadership coordinator at Idyllwild Arts, who not only fully organized and put together the trip (needless to say, it could not have happened without her), but also dealt with four very excited teenagers successfully.
For me, personally, this conference enriched me in more ways than one. I have not only learned and been educated, I have been inspired and motivated to push for this movement like no other. The conference, in short, made me care. There is nothing like the feeling of wanting to go out and save this planet.
And how could you not want to? Idyllwild, California is beautiful and so rich in its nature and wildlife. As students that live here everyday, we can sometimes take its magnificence for granted, but we all must face the facts – if we do not act now towards becoming more eco-friendly, this may all be lost. I know that none of us could even begin to imagine what Idyllwild would be like without the abundance of the beauty it currently holds. For us, the idea of ‘environment’ and ‘nature’ is not distant or detached – we are living in it. And that is why we feel so strongly that this green movement is extremely important.
“Idyllwild Arts is going green”- yes, it is a large statement, but it is nothing short of possible. It is something that us four students, our leader Shannon Jacobs, together with the rest of Idyllwild Arts, are absolutely going to put in everything we have, to make happen.
Thunder Soul at Idyllwild Arts Academy
by Marc Kets, Associate Dean of Students
Thunder Soul is a story about charismatic band leader, Conrad “Prof” Johnson, who would turn Houston’s Kashmere High School jazz band into a legendary funk powerhouse that won national and state championships, and ended up touring Europe and Japan where they were treated like visiting pop stars in the mid-to-late 70’s. “Prof” did this by instilling a ‘can do’ attitude into his students, one that spilled over into all spheres of school life at Kashmere High School with the basketball team becoming state champions, the school’s academic program sending more students off to college with scholarships than any other high school in Texas at the time amongst its many other notable achievements. To my mind, this just shows the power of arts education and why it serves such a vital role in educating our young citizens, and creating well-rounded individuals.
This past summer, I was lucky enough along with my wife Jeni, and our colleagues, Shambo Carpenter, George Pratt and Nick Cooper to attend to the screening of Thunder Soul at the Los Angeles Film Festival, where it won the Audience Choice Award, and I was immediately struck by how important this film is. Take the music away, and trust me the music is incredible – seek out the Anthology on Now-Again Records and hear the power of the Texas Thunder Soul -, and you have a story of the true power of education. Thunder Soul is the testimony to one man’s belief in the students he took under his wing and how he, in many cases, gave them direction and purpose in life. Many of the Kashmere Stage Band alums have gone on to become doctors, lawyers and captains of industry and to a man have recognized and admitted that without the lessons that “Prof” instilled in them that they may not have achieved what they have in life.
It was after a discussion that I had with Eothen Alapatt – a regular visitor to the Idyllwild Arts Academy who is featured predominantly in the film, and who was single-handedly responsible for bringing the band to the fore again by re-releasing the music of the Kashmere Stage Band a few years ago – after the screening that I knew that I had to bring Thunder Soul to our school. Luckily the director, Mark Landsman – who is a Los Angeles-based independent filmmaker who has also worked as a producer and director for Morgan Spurlock’s award-winning documentary television series, 30 Days; for the Sundance Channel’s, Big Ideas for a Small Planet; and on many non-fiction programs for A&E, Discovery Channel, ABC Family and PBS – was also hip to the idea when we approached him and this past Sunday were very privileged to have him came up to the school and screen Thunder Soul for the first time at a high school anywhere, a remark that got a huge cheer from the students in the audience, which was quite a boon for us given that the film will open nationwide on March 25th.
About 75 students and 8 members of faculty braved a bit of snowfall this past Sunday to come to the screening and they hopefully left as enamored with the film as I am. After the screening Mark sat down for a Q&A with the group and he covered everything from the films that inspired him to why he didn’t want to make a film that was about ‘lower-thirds’. Afterwards Mark remarked that many of the questions that our students asked him really impressed him and he has since contacted me saying that he would love to come and work with our students again in the near future as he was inspired by what we do up here on the Hill, something which I hope will be possible in the near future.
It is bringing up people like Mark for our students to meet that makes this aspect to my job so worthwhile. What is great is that our students never miss a beat and always make themselves known and in many cases pitch ideas, hand over email addresses and promise to send DVD’s of their work, all of which pleasantly surprises people like Mark who happily exchange information.
The story of Conrad “Prof” Johnson is by no means a unique one, there are many tremendous and fearless educators around the world who work tirelessly to instill values and belief into their students, and we have many “Prof” Johnson’s here at the Idyllwild Arts Academy, but it is a story that once anyone who has worked with young people in any capacity with simply serve to reaffirm that what they do is vital and serves an invaluable purpose to our communities both near and far. I would strongly and wholeheartedly suggest that all of you go and see the film when it opens as it will make you laugh, it will make you cry and at the end it will certainly make you proud of the work that educators do across the nation and here at the Idyllwild Arts Academy.
“Life Skills” and Positive Personal Growth at Idyllwild Arts
by John R. Newman, Dean of Students
The three-pronged mission of Idyllwild Arts Academy is a tripod, a support structure known for its sturdiness and balance. Our faculty, staff, and administration work together to combine the highest caliber of pre-professional training in the arts with outstanding college preparatory academics and an emphasis on positive personal growth. This structure we’ve created is our way of providing support to aspiring young people who demand more than typical teenagers.
We recognize the importance of balance, not only in achieving our mission as a school, but in trying to instill healthy habits that will become the foundation of stable, happy lives. Integral to our efforts is the Life Skills curriculum taught at each grade level. In these classes, students are challenged to look at their own personality characteristics, needs, emotions, thoughts and behaviors, and to gain an appreciation and greater understanding and empathy, for those around them. The Life Skills classes are taught by our counseling staff and our physical education coordinator.
The Life Skills curriculum at the freshman and sophomore levels focuses largely on the importance of healthy self care. In addition to basic skills of proper hygiene, sleep, nutrition, and time management, students are also taught to recognize, clarify and articulate higher-level goals and the means of attaining them. Students learn to develop interpersonal skills upon the basis of respect, trust and empathy. They learn about active listening and the potential negative effects of peer pressure. One of the most important topics covered for all grade levels is the distinction between healthy and unhealthy means of coping with stress and sadness.
Healthy coping skills for teenagers include reaching out to reliable support networks like friends, family, dorm parents and other faculty. We make a point of telling and showing our students in many ways that we are available to them. As Bill Lowman likes to say, we are each other’s greatest audience, as is evidenced when we pack auditoriums and galleries for friends’ concerts, plays, exhibitions and readings. The heart of our program revolves around the people with whom our students live and eat and work and study in classrooms, studios, and especially in our residence halls on campus. Dorm life is rich with activity, camaraderie, diversity, and fun; it offers tremendous opportunity for personal growth and social development, as well as a home for much needed rest at the end of each long day of hard work.
Other skills we teach our students to help them face the challenges of their busy lives include proper exercise, breathing and other relaxation techniques, effective organizational routines, goal-setting, responsible attendance, and naturally, “doing” their art. In step with these goals, we spend a good amount of time with each of the grade levels discussing the ill effects of unhealthy coping means, such as substance use, withdrawal and avoidance (especially skipping class and other commitments), overeating, procrastination, denial, and in worst case scenarios, cutting and other self injurious behaviors. In each of these cases, we discuss physical, emotional, and social repercussions, as well as the ways in which each of these behaviors affects others, and the ways in which consequences for each are often exacerbated over time.
One of the other goals for each of the four grade levels deals with effective communication. Obviously, this is a goal that is addressed in various ways in each of the other two prongs of the school’s mission statement, i.e. the arts and academic areas. As far as communication from a Student Services standpoint, we engage students in the importance of assertiveness and self advocacy, respectful expression of ideas and good listening, careful and thoughtful choice of words, “I” statements in dealing with potential conflict, mediation skills, and good humor.
In their junior and senor years, students revisit many of these same themes in their Life Skills classes, but the focus shifts markedly to preparing for life away from Idyllwild Arts. Students are expected to complete a thorough self assessment, including goals, values, challenges, and changes they have experienced during high school. They are asked to view themselves as “whole beings,” and to explore what that means in a larger context than their individual arts departments or family unit. We see a greater emphasis on leadership and self reflection, and on the importance of mindfulness, observation, and critique.
The curriculum takes into account some of the practical challenges each grade level will soon face, such as the college and conservatory admission process, and for seniors, choosing a career path, and budgets and finance. Students are exposed to topics such as ways to avoid predatory credit card companies, renting an apartment, filing taxes, signing contracts, and preparing grant proposals. Our older students experience an even greater emphasis on fundamentals of effective communication.
Daniel Gray, our physical education coordinator, teaches the upper-level Life Skills classes. Daniel is a graduate of Idyllwild Arts, which makes him uniquely qualified to teach current students about transitioning from IAA. Daniel is also one of the coordinators of the Arts Enterprise Laboratory, a program that helps prepare our students and create opportunities for young alumni for a career in the arts. Daniel received a BA in Multi-Media Studies from the Johnston Center at the University of Redlands where he combined visual art, music and business.
The freshman and sophomore Life Skills classes are taught by our excellent counseling staff, Cara Wilkerson and Shannon Jacobs. Cara holds a Master’s degree in Counseling Psychology and is a licensed Marriage and Family Therapist. Shannon is a Certified Alcohol and Drug Counselor and a National Certified Addictions Counselor. Shannon also holds a Master’s degree in Counseling Psychology with an emphasis on “Adventure-Based Psychotherapy.”
The challenges of our modern times demand creative thinking, cooperation, and imaginative problem solving. These are skills that are taught in the context of all three prongs of our school’s mission statement, and they are reinforced in our Life Skills curriculum. While many of our graduates become professional artists, all of our students leave Idyllwild Arts Academy with an ability to approach difficult situations with flexibility and open mindedness; they possess the skills to express themselves with confidence, and can articulate their ideas effectively. Most importantly, they understand the importance of mutual respect and trust, and of being a part of something that is bigger than any one of us individually. Ultimately, we hope they understand who they are and what they stand for.
Juniors – Time to Plan Your College/Conservatory/University Search
From Don Put, College Counselor:
In the upcoming months, Erin, Nelms, and I, the college counseling staff at Idyllwild Arts, will be focusing our attention on the junior class to get them started on the college search and application process. We will have some formal meetings with them as a group, and we will also be available to meet with each student individually as we move through the second semester. With this process in mind, we wanted to touch base with you to inform you about upcoming SAT testing for the junior class and some other pertinent information.
SAT Testing
Since these tests are still a vital part of the application process for most colleges and universities, Idyllwild Arts requires all juniors to take the exam in May. This year, the test will be on Saturday, May 7, and the registration deadlines are April 8th (regular registration deadline) and April 22th (late registration period—extra fee involved). Please register online at www.collegeboard.com because your student will need an account set up for score forwarding and test taking next year. Idyllwild Arts school code (CEEB code) is 051236 and our SAT test center number is 05-317.
SAT Test Preparation
For the past four years, we have had Tobin Style, director of Perspective Educational Services, come up to campus and do an intensive, three-day SAT preparation class. The current seniors have told me how much this class helped them and also how well presented the material was. The dates are February 18 – 20. You can also find out more information by going to their website. While the weekend prep session is not mandatory, I strongly encourage all students to enroll. Please check with your son or daughter to make sure that he or she is free that weekend because the fee is not refundable. Students who sign up will be billed. The cost for the course, which will run from Friday evening through Sunday afternoon until about 2:30 p.m., is $225.00 per student. If you would like your child to take this course, please respond via e-mail to dput@idyllwildarts.org, or you can call me at (951) 659-2171, ext. 2322, and I will have their student account billed in the amount of $225.00.
THE DEADLINE TO REGISTER FOR THE REVIEW WEEKEND IS MONDAY, FEBRUARY 14th, 2011.
If your child cannot take this prep class, you can always find a suitable class close to home and have him or her enroll. While spring vacation would be ideal as preparation for the May test, a summer preparation class might be easier to schedule and that would give him or her some solid grounding from which to take the required test next October.
Senior Handbook
Traditionally, we have mailed out our Senior Handbook over the summer to the seniors so they have some reference material as they plan their college application process for the fall semester of their senior year. This year, we made the handbook available online to give the students and parents more time familiarize themselves with the college, university, and conservatory search and application process. While the dates currently listed in the handbook are for this academic year, it will still give you a timeline that will help to ensure no deadlines are missed next fall. To download the handbook, please go to http://idyllwildarts.org/academy/senior_handbook.pdf. Sometimes the download takes a while (it’s a big file), so if you do not see anything immediately, please wait a few minutes for it to download fully. Many of the common questions are covered thoroughly in the handbook, which has been put together over the past fifteen years.
Appointments with the College Counselors
As I mentioned, now is the appropriate time for juniors to begin thinking about the college search and application process that they will undertake in earnest next fall. It would be wise for all juniors to make appointments to see Erin, Nelms, or me beginning in early March to initiate discussions about college, which will enable them to implement an organized and constructive process of finding the colleges that are right for them. The college counselors are assigned to the different majors as follows:
Don: Theatre, Visual Art, and Creative Writing
dput@idyllwildarts.org
951.659.2171, ext.2322
Erin: Dance, Motion Pictures, and Interdisciplinary Arts
elatimer@idyllwildarts.org
951.659.2171, ext. 2324
Nelms: Music
nelmsm@idyllwildarts.org
951.659.2171, ext. 2329
College Visits
Spring break during the junior year might be a good time to get some college visits out of the way. If your student has some colleges in mind and you have the time to check out some of these schools in person, I strongly encourage you to do so because the senior year will be a very busy time and trips will be harder to arrange then. There is a section in the handbook that has some good information about college visits.
As always, please feel free to contact me should you have any questions about either the SAT prep course or the early stages of your child’s college search process. Thank you for your attention.
Sincerely,
Donald A. Put
Erin Latimer
Nelms McKelvain
College Counselors
Idyllwild Arts Academy
PO Box 38
Idyllwild, CA 92549
Prefect Retreat
Marc Kets, Associate Dean of Students
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This past Saturday, the prefects along with Chris Wegemer were invited to join me at the beautiful home of Valerie Velez, mother of Lucas Lilieholm ’06 and Annie Lilieholm ’09, for a chance to come together in an off campus setting albeit one that isn’t particularly far from IAA.
These sessions are important in that they give the prefects a chance to talk about successes and failures and to have an open and honest discussion about how the first three months of their tenure have gone.
The prefects usually meet once a week on Fridays, but in addition to these meetings I am planning on getting them together for longer sessions at strategic points of the year that are more retrospective in nature. The simple goal is for them to feel vindicated in the great work that they are doing and to do some professional development-type work that will hopefully give them some of the necessary skills that they may need as they move onwards into their college and working lives.
We began by revisiting what a leader is, something which we did during Prefect Week, and whereas some of the qualities remained true such as caring, openness, bravery and leading by example, there were also some qualities that they seemed to realize were of paramount importance; time management, being consistent, not taking sides and being selfless without giving too much of yourself away so it impacts the work that you are doing. I asked them to share incidents that have happened where they think it went well, and incidents were they felt that it didn’t go as well. In many cases we determined that their perception of what didn’t go well did indeed work as they did the right thing by getting their dorm parents, trustworthy peers and other members of faculty involved. Ultimately for the prefects it is a case of putting out the little fires, but when something big comes over the ridge you call the Fire Department. A cheesy metaphor granted but given our surroundings one that rings true.
The next step was to look at their prefect pledges that they wrote in September and to analyze them and rewrite them so that they hold true for the next couple of months leading up to Spring Break when we will have our next session. I preach to the group that they should work on attainable goals and not unrealistic goals that may sound great to the group but ultimately will be impossible to achieve as goals that you don’t achieve in this manner aren’t even worth the paper that they are written on. Before they rewrote their pledges, I grouped them into small groups of 3 or 4 prefects and encouraged them to have a ten minute discussion on what it means to be a prefect. Some interesting and salient points were made during this time which gave them some food for thought.
After the discussion, the prefects were told to choose a place in the house where they could be alone and rewrite their pledges. After this we came together as a group and they read their pledges to each other. I always remind them that this a verbal contract with each other, one that states that you will hold true to your word and support each other. The pledges were written with a great deal of thought and when they achieve them, and I am certain that they will, the community that we live in will be all the better for it.
For the last 40 minutes of the retreat, Val lead us in a council session during which someone is asked to open an honest discussion by lighting a candle, and then that same person closes the discussion by blowing out the candle at the end. Now as what is said during these exchanges is highly confidential, I am sure that you can forgive me for not divulging state secrets at this point but all I can say however is that the group really came together during this time in a way that pleasantly surprised me.
With no disrespect meant to the two groups that I have worked with in the past, I can honestly say that this prefect group has wholly impressed me. They hold the values of the school true and have worked unbelievably hard this year to make IAA a wonderful place for both students and faculty alike to live and work in.
I would also like to thank Valerie for opening up her home and bringing her wonderful energy to the process. I even joined in with the group hug at the end, and for a city boy where this is usually a big no-no it says a lot as to how much it mean to me and the group as a whole.
I am also extremely pleased to announce that the following students have been chosen by the students and faculty for Student Government for 2011:
Junior Class President – Maddie Marlow (Dance)
Junior Class Secretary – Kevin Jang (Visual Art)
International President – Ariann Murad (Dance)
International Secretary – Veronica Kim (Visual Art)
Senior Class Co-President – Morgan Wilson (Dance)
Senior Class Co-President – Juwan Lockett (Theatre)
Introducing… The Resource Center
From: Margaret Gray, Resource Center Director
Most people know that it’s my job as Resource Center Director to provide academic support services, but what exactly does that mean for students at IAA? Really, academic support looks like something different for each student. However, the overarching goal is for students to become independent learners. At Idyllwild Arts, students must have excellent time management skills in order to stay on top of all of their varied commitments. This means knowing how to prioritize. Often, students come to boarding school and they are overwhelmed by everything that they suddenly must do on their own. Part of what we work on in Resource is giving students the tools they need to be successful at boarding school, and beyond. We focus on how to self-advocate (talking to teachers, asking for extra help, when and how to ask for an extension); how to balance arts, academics, and socializing; how to find wasted time in the daily schedule; and on extra practice with difficult concepts.
Resource is not tutoring in the traditional sense. Students do not meet with me individually; rather we have very small classes where kids work independently and in pairs or small teams to complete assignments. If one of my students is struggling in a particular class, we go over material again and we strategize how to best complete an assignment or how to study for a test. I also work with students to break down their schedules to find how to best use their time effectively, and maybe find some free time to relax or spend with friends.
I work with students in all of the majors and grades here at IAA. My goal is to encourage students to become independent learners so that they are prepared for the next step in their lives. Whether that is university or conservatory, the skills needed to navigate life beyond high school are the same: an understanding of how you learn best, the ability to break down assignments and prioritize them, knowing how to make time for work and play, and having the confidence to know that you can do all of these things.
If parents or students have any questions about the Resource Center, you can email me.
December 10, 2010 at 10:12 am Idyllwild Arts Leave a comment
Black History Month
In 2007, Sydney Robertson, the then Director of Residential Life, came up with the idea of marking Black History Month with a series of events in February of every year to coincide with the nationwide celebration.
The first event involved Ben Herson who is the founder and director of Nomadic Wax – a global hip-hop record label and production company dedicated to recording, documenting and presenting hip-hop and underground music from around the world, and Baay Bia a composer, performer and rapper from Dakar, Senegal who came to screen the Nomadic Wax film, Democracy in Dakar, which explores the role of youth hip hop activism during the turbulent 2007 Senegalese elections. The film has won numerous awards at film festivals in both the continental United States and abroad at places as far afield as South Africa, Spain, The Netherlands and Zanzibar off the coast of Africa.
After the screening Baay took to the mic with Ben accompanying him on percussion to a rapturous response from the students and faculty. 
A large number of the students went to MacNeal afterwards to have the drum circle to end all drum circles and greeted Baay like a conquering hero when he made his entrance about halfway through to a throng of screams from his newfound fans.
Later on that month, we invited Eothen Alapatt, label manager of Los Angeles-based Stones Throw Records to come up. Egon is one of the world’s most renowned music aficionados alongside the likes of Madlib, Andy Votel, DJ Shadow etc. and it was wonderful having him share some anecdotes of his time working with the likes of DOOM, the aforementioned Madlib as well as about his love of obscure Turkish psychedelic rock from the 1970’s in his own charming style that had the students hooked on his every word and more importantly bending his ear afterwards way beyond curfew. I couldn’t work out who was more excited, Eothen or the students. Eothen did make one of our former students, Kino Benally’s night by giving him a rare slice of James Brown. It is moments like this that make all the effort well and truly worthwhile.
The following year with Sydney now working for the Humanities Department, I took over the Black History Month celebrations and took it as an opportunity to invite a friend of mine, Carlos Nino, up to talk about music and its correlation with spirituality. Carlos has been producing records since his teens and was at the time a week away from his biggest show, ‘A Suite For Ma Dukes’, an orchestral reinterpretation of the music of the late and dearly missed James Yancey Jr. aka J Dilla at the Luckman Theatre Complex in Los Angeles. As you can imagine it was a major coup to get him to come up to the snowy mountain when he was in the middle of being deeply ensconced in rehearsals along with his musical collaborator Miguel Atwood-Ferguson and a 40-piece orchestra who had never played together playing music that had never been performed before. I would have been a wreck but Carlos as usual was his usual Zen-like self emphasizing to the students the importance of creative exploration as well as encouraging them to record their own music but to never forget their influences. 
Again, a slew of students had a hundred questions for Carlos to answer way beyond curfew and a few Moving Pictures majors took their opportunity to interview him for a documentary that they were making at the time. I am also certain that sales of Harzat Inayat Khan’s ‘The Music of Life’ went through the roof that night after Carlos read various passages to the students over the course of his talk.
To follow Carlos, I asked Tyler Gibney from HVW8 to come up and do a live painting while a few students played music and a large number of others enjoyed the BBQ that we had on offer. Tyler’s work is predominantly political with references to popular culture of the 1970’s and 1980’s interwoven with his unique graphic style that has seen him exhibit his work all over the world as well as at his own gallery on Melrose in Hollywood. After completing his work Tyler gave a brief presentation about his work and showed his collaborations with the likes of adidas, Gravis and Zune. Tyler left with a wave of new fans as well as with a new intern, Axel Lanzenberg, who started working for him over the course of the next summer.
The following year we were blessed to have acclaimed Afrobeat musician and former Kalakuta Republic resident, Najite Agindotan from Nigeria to pay us a visit and to teach the students about the many different drums that have formed the tools to his trade most of which the students and myself had never seen let alone knew how to hold. After giving a performance that enthralled the students and especially the percussionists in the crowd, Najite allowed the students to get their own drums and to use his for an impromptu drum circle that had many of the crowd playing until their fingers quite literally bled. The event was a huge success and one that I hope to repeat in the not too distant future before Najite returns permanently to his homeland.
With the wind firmly in the sails now, I invited Jonny Dub and Illum Sphere from Manchester, England who were on tour in the United States to talk about their night Hoya:Hoya which is at the very forefront of the beat/dubstep movement that is taking the world by storm at the moment as well as encourage the students to collaborate with as many people as possible across the various art forms. Illum Sphere, who is a hugely respected music producer gave a quick lesson in how to make beats and that night as we walked through the dorms a large number of students were hard at work trying their own hands at a bit of sonic manipulation which was very heartening to see and hear.
About a week later Tyler came back up to the school this time bringing his friend Computer Jay before they both went to Europe for a showcase and a tour. 
It is hard to describe what Jay does as his set-up consists of a mixer, a turntable, a Fender Rhodes Electric Piano, a Mood synthesizer and a computer that “talks” back to him as he performs as well as visuals that he can manipulate as he plays. My brain gets sore just thinking about the complexity of what he does but Jay manages to combine all of this in perfect symmetry much to the crowd’s enjoyment. We even had some students break-dancing that night which is always amusing and frightening in equal measures.
Following Ty and Jay I asked Eothen to come back and talk about sampling, Creative Commons licenses and how to get their music signed and distributed as I feel that it is important for the students to know that they can make a living off their creativity. A very healthy and inspiring question and answer session followed and Eothen took this as an opportunity to play some of the new music from his label, some of which hadn’t been heard in public yet much to the excitement of some of the new-music hungry students and to a certain tall South African who tried to, shall we say, borrow all of it indefinitely.
This past year, there were incredibly exciting plans made that unfortunately due to health reasons fell through (but who may make an appearance this year, wink wink) so at the very last minute I made a desperate call to Carlos Nino and asked him if he could get anyone to come up to the school and on a rainy night we were well and truly honored to have the legendary Tribe Records horn player Phil Ranelin come to campus! Phil’s biography is far too long to share here but who has played and collaborated with everyone from Wayne Shorter to Ella Fitzgerald to Art Pepper to Christian McBride to Marcus Belgrave to Carl Craig and many, many more. We were truly amongst music royalty. The jazz students who were itching to ask him questions couldn’t believe their luck when they were asked by Carlos to accompany Phil as he played. Even our Director of Residential Life, Kevin Sullivan, a New England Conservatory alum, couldn’t resist sitting in on the session with the great man. If you ever get to meet Jacob Scesney ask him about that night and I can guarantee that his smile will be as wide as Broadway. My joy, as a ravenous vinyl junkie, came from being allowed to hold Phil’s original Tribe pressings which go for more than I could ever afford.
The final event was an important one in that I wanted to showcase two platforms that have taken electronic music into new and exciting territory, the MPC and the Monome. I invited the absolute masters of the respective instruments Jneiro Jarel aka Dr. Who Dat? and Alfred Darlington aka Daedelus to give a brief demonstration on each. I did get very lucky in that Daedelus had just appeared in a film called ‘Second Hand Sureshots’ along with JRocc, Nobody and Ras G and never being one to miss an opportunity I made a few frantic phone calls and I was given permission to show the film for the first time in a high school anywhere, which was very exciting. 
I will never forget the moment when Daedelus walked in and the kids recognized him from what they had just seen. The level of excitement rose immensely and when Daedelus took to the Monome the place was on the verge of erupting but the night wasn’t quite done yet as Jneiro who collaborates with the likes of Dave Sitek from TV on The Radio, DOOM and many others, showed the students exactly how you can make an MPC sing. I know of at least one student who went out and bought both a Monome and an MPC after the show and I can’t wait to hear what they come up with the months ahead.
The goal of the events is not to educate the students on the Civil Rights Movement, one that I personally don’t feel that I could do justice to, but rather to get the students to meet enthusiastic professionals honing their craft and who I feel could inspire the students at the Idyllwild Arts Academy to pick up a camera, get some paint or sit down in front of a keyboard and make something that is utterly unique that granted may fall outside of their respective majors here at the school but which allows them to express themselves as creatively as possible. 
I also like it that our students are not shy in passing on their information and keeping in touch with the artists that have come up to the school. Everybody that comes up here leaves enthused and well and truly sold on what we do here at IAA and who knows maybe in the future we will see collaborations begin to from that will allow our students to start reaching their goals of making a living out of what they truly love. Something which I truly envy.
What does BHM have in store for this coming year? Well let’s just say that it is going to be a very exciting year to be a student here and leave it at that as I don’t want to jinx it but trust me on this one.
I’d just like to take this opportunity to thank John Newman, the Dean of Students, for helping me fund and get dates for the events, Kevin Michael Sullivan, the Director of Residential Life, who does yeoman’s work in supporting the events and Sydney Robertson whose idea it all was in the first place. Salute!
– Marc Kets, Associate Dean of Students
September 22, 2010 at 6:12 pm Idyllwild Arts Leave a comment
Prefects!
Prefects are an integral part of the leadership structure here at the Idyllwild Arts Academy. The prefects are essentially our best and brightest who we entrust with keeping their fellow students safe and informed, being the communicators between the students and the faculty all while at the same time pushing the school forward by organizing events and coming up with ideas that will make our wonderful school that much better. Not an easy task, I am sure that you will agree.
We are very lucky to have a multi-national group of prefects this year who come from as far afield as Singapore, Taiwan, Germany, South Korea, Mexico as well as the United States who all truly understand what it means to be apart of the culture here at the Academy. We are also very honored to have seven four-year seniors who have enough institutional memory to help the rest navigate the various obstacles that will be presented as the year progresses.
Prefect Orientation always starts off with a cacophony of screams and high-pitched squeals as our young lions are reunited after what they inform me was “forever”, and after a few joyful tears are shed and a couple “you’ve grown”’s are uttered it is time to begin orientation in earnest with introductions to the entire faculty.
This year after the introductions were made I took the group down to the picturesque Holmes Amphitheatre to discuss a few goals for the year and for them to sit on the stage from which they all intend to graduate on June 4th 2011. I gave them a few moments to sit silently to soak in the atmosphere and to contemplate what the school means to them, which we shared afterwards. It is always heartening to hear how much the school means to our students and especially how much respect and gratitude they have for their teachers, mentors, peers and ultimately for the institution as a whole.
Then with a new sense of purpose it was off to our traditional opening barbecue that gives them an opportunity to talk amongst themselves and catch up but which unfortunately this time was somewhat hampered by a barbecue that was not quite playing ball but there weren’t any complaints as the food took a little longer than planned. It must be said that Devon did yeoman’s work flipping the burgers and everyone left relatively full and satisfactorily well-reacquainted before we got down to the knitty-gritty of our opening meeting.
Our first meeting is always a nuts and bolts affair with the expectations and protocol for the year laid out. This year because of the overall quality of the group there will be more expected of them and with new support structures in place such as breakfast check-in and weekly pod reports they all seem more than prepared to face these challenges, which remember go over and above their usual commitments at a school like ours that has a challenging dual-curriculum. For the first night they were allowed to sleep together in Pierson Commons and even though some such as Hoon were very much jetlagged they all seemed to have a great time bonding until the early morning as clearly evidenced by their tired but radiant smiles the next morning when I went to wake them up before our hike.
For the first time Daniel Gray, our PE Coordinator, MacNeal dorm parent and an IAA alum from ’97, along with myself and Matt and Beth Thomas, parents of one of our prefects, Melanie, took the group up South Ridge to take in the scenic views that overlook the idyllic little town in which we reside. This was also their chance to read their prefect pledges, which are promises to both themselves and the community. I was very careful to remind them that these promises should be attainable and all of them complied beautifully with deeply thoughtful pledges that will only serve to benefit the school as they check off their goals one by one.
After the hike the students were allowed some free time to prepare their dorms for the imminent arrival of their new pledges as well as to get themselves and their own rooms ready for the beginning of the year. That night we settled in for a final meeting to go over the game plan for the weekend as they are entrusted with the mammoth task of making registration smooth sailing for the new students and parents. In addition, we went over a few scenarios that may play out in the months ahead by playing a little game that I like to call, ‘Absolutely Right and Criminally Wrong’, and it was hilarious especially as I am sure that you can imagine the theatre students hamming up the wrong way to do things with hysterical results. A brief overview of the Student/Parent handbook was also done and many lessons were learnt and a new understanding of the rules and regulations and why they are in place were forged.
The next day they knuckled down and began their work and so far I can quite honestly say that this is the best group of prefects that I have had the privilege of working with here at the school. They are to a (wo)man exceptionally articulate and mature students who are more than capable of laying the platforms required to make this year at Idyllwild Arts Academy a tremendous success.
Registration weekend.
—–From Bonnie Carpenter, Associate Dean of the Arts
For me, Registration Weekend is one of my two favorite times on campus. Graduation is a wonderful time to celebrate our accomplishments- students and faculty alike. But Registration weekend is a time of possibilities. This weekend at Idyllwild Arts we welcomed approximately 265 new and returning students to our campus from a variety of states and countries. They each will bring with them a passion for the arts and a drive to learn more about the world in which they create their art.
During this weekend, students face many new variables in their lives which can be wonderfully liberating on some levels and incredibly scary on others. No longer are they in the cozy and familiar environments in which they are used to but instead they face new roommates, new foods, new teachers, new performance anxieties… new everything. Even for returning students it might seem new or strange as when they left campus in the spring there were different faces and relationships that might not still exist like friends that graduated or faculty that left Idyllwild Arts.
For me, as a faculty member, I always equate this weekend to the feelings of a new romance. There are so many wonderful, energetic and enthusiastic faces to get to know. Each will influence our school in some way and it is a blank page on this weekend. Some of these students may be our next legendary artists, our nobel prize winners or great philanthropists for the arts. They may be our new lifelong friends or (dare I say) the thorn in our side. But on this weekend, anything is possible and it is a fresh start.
—–Bonnie Carpenter, Associate Dean of the Arts
September 12, 2010 at 5:55 pm Idyllwild Arts Leave a comment
