Community Considerations
Featured Unlocking Creativity: Community Engaged Dance and Storytelling for Senior Adults
Paper Presentation in a Themed Session Jenn Pray
Senior adults are a growing population in America and face increased feelings of social isolation, a problem compounded by the COVID-19 pandemic. The positive physiological impacts of dance fitness classes for seniors are well documented, but less research exists on the impacts of creative dance on well-being and social connection. This study addresses this gap in knowledge by focusing on the expressive potential and social impact of senior adult engagement in creative dance. Over the course of a 3-week dance and storytelling workshop, senior adult participants experienced an outlet for creative expression and imagination. The methods include oral history interviews, a group interview, facilitator field notes, oral storytelling, movement generation from language, creative writing exercises and somatic guided movement experiences. The study is situated within Participatory Action Research (PAR), with regular dialogue and participant feedback guiding the workshop. In the context of community engaged dance, this research reveals the expressive potential that comes from bridging language and movement. I show how utilizing both a “language-first” approach and a “movement-first” approach contributed to positive social connection outcomes and a sense of self-discovery among the senior adult participants. These approaches suggest the importance of imagination for creative expression in future community-based dance engagement.
Adventures in Disability Culture - an Immersive Experience of Disability Art: Using Technology Informed Pedagogy to Teach Disability Arts and Culture
Paper Presentation in a Themed Session Andjela Kaur, Samantha Beebe, Nicholas Rossi, Sara Davis
The Adventures in Disability Culture project aims to enhance the learning and teaching experience of disability art and culture. While disability art is a lively and ever-present phenomenon, teaching and learning about it are often organized in ways that separate the learner from the cultural experience of disability, rendering the learner a mere observer rather than a visitor or participant in the disability culture movement. Consequently, the learner comes to view disability art and culture as a collection of disparate elements rather than a living and thriving cultural phenomenon. To address this unnecessary distancing between learners and disability culture, the Adventures in Disability Culture project offers a multimedia gateway into the experience of disability art for those who wish to learn, teach, or engage with disability experience through disability art, disability history, and disability theory. Our study describes how we are working to overcome this distancing through the use of storytelling and multimedia. Our project centers on the creation of an interactive 12-chapter choose-your-adventure experience that immerses the reader/protagonist into disability culture via virtual art galleries, storytelling, escape rooms, and movie clips. The project emphasizes digital access, uses technology to increase information accessibility, and promotes Open Educational Resources. An art project in itself, Adventures in Disability Culture, introduces global audiences to many forms of disability art and the experience of disability culture.
Empowering Future Leaders - Cultivating Young Community Changemakers through Arts Education: Spark! Creativity Addressing Arts Education Gaps in Washington State View Digital Media
Paper Presentation in a Themed Session Tanya Sharp
As schools in Washington state, particularly in the Edmonds School District, face severe budget cuts, arts education has become increasingly inaccessible, limiting students’ opportunities for self-expression, leadership, and community engagement, especially in underserved communities. Spark! Creativity is addressing this gap through hands-on, arts-based programming that empowers youth and promotes creative thinking. Currently in its pilot phase, Spark! has served over 300 students in grades 4-12 with visual arts and creative writing lessons aligned with the Washington State core curriculum, as well as workshops and summer camps. Spark! is gathering data through surveys and feedback from students, teachers, and teaching artists to refine its approach and explore how arts education can drive social change. This paper focuses on Spark!’s evolving framework, which includes mentorship, hands-on learning, and community collaboration, to foster leadership development in youth. We share insights from the pilot, discuss strategies for expanding arts education, and explore how Spark! empowers youth to become leaders and changemakers. By 2028, Spark! aims to be a leader in inclusive arts education, offering scalable programs that engage youth in leadership and creative projects. How might mentorship and hands-on learning contribute to lasting community impact as Spark! Creativity scales its arts education programming?
