Join us in October...
October Newsletter
Seeking Your Perspective: Take Our Survey!
We want your thoughts. We're researching online classes, physical re-opening, community-building and more, and we want to hear from you. If you've attended classes or events or donated to the Eliot School over the past few years, you'll see our survey in your email box. Complete the survey here for a chance to win a $100 gift certificate to any future class. And you'll be helping us shape our next chapters. Thank you!
Fall Classes Canceled
At the moment, our schoolhouse is currently closed and fall classes are canceled while we try to figure out whether it can be retrofitted for a safe re-opening. We have begun to experiment with some private kids’ woodworking lessons online. By later this fall, we should have a better sense of whether virtual classes and/or physical re-opening are realistic directions for us. We will stay in touch once we have some clarity. Meanwhile, many thanks to Community Consulting Teams, Forte Architecture + Design and EDE Engineering for their research assistance.
We miss our teachers and students and can’t wait to be re-united.
10/8 • Part 1: Eliot School Salons: Whose Standards? Racial Equity in Craft & Design
We must pause and ask ourselves: Whose standards are we working within and towards? What do we need to embrace, give up, and change, in order to gain true anti-racist transformation within craft and design?
Join the conversation with speakers, Alison Croney Moses, Program Director at the Eliot School, Matthew Shenoda, Associate Provost for Social Equity & Inclusion (SEI), Namita Gupta Wiggers Director/co-founder of Critical Craft Forum. Moderator Michelle Millar Fisher, the Ronald C. and Anita L. Wornick Curator of Contemporary Decorative Arts at the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston will facilitate an authentic conversation with speakers as they respond to the questions at hand. Finally, respondent Paul Sacaridiz, Executive Director of Haystack Mountain School of Crafts, will set the scene for an open audience Q&A. RSVP Here.
10/14 • Part 2: Eliot School Salons: Whose Standards? Racial Equity in Craft & Design
In the past six months, as the COVID-19 crisis has combined with a newly galvanized urgency to address racial equity, gaps and tensions have been exposed in these “pipeline” structures, showing places where pathways in the field simply fail to exist. As we rebuild post-pandemic, what new systems need to be put in place to support the contemporary craft field as a truly equitable space?
Join the conversation with speakers, Anthony Romero, Professor in the Practice at SMFA Tufts University, Jabari Peddie, Director of Leadership Development at Build Excel Sustain (BES), and Polly Carpenter, Director of Public Programs at Boston Society for Architecture. Alison Croney Moses, Director of School & Community Partnership Programs at the Eliot School of Fine & Applied Arts, will moderate a lively conversation that will include quick-fire respondents: Steph Foster, Assistant Professor in the Dept. of Photography at The University of the Arts in Philadelphia, PA and Isaac Madeira-Cepeda, teen artist at Eliot School of Fine & Applied Arts’ Teen Bridge Program. RSVP here.
The "Whose Standards? Racial Equity in Craft and Design" series is an Eliot School Salon. It is hosted by the Eliot School of Fine & Applied Arts, generously supported by Haystack Mountain School of Crafts, and presented in collaboration with Boston Design Week
Remembering our first Eliot School Salon
It was a joy seeing everyone who joined us on Wednesday, September 16, for our first Eliot School Salon Series - Executive Conversation with Abigail Norman. Here were a few faces that blessed us with their presence and time as Abigail shared Eliot School updates on internal initiatives, schoolhouse space and what is to come. Thank you to those who joined us. Don't miss our second Eliot School Salon Series above for more information.
Schoolhouse Adventures with Andrew and Jas
The Eliot School community united in a natural and beautiful way to improve the schoolhouse and shop. Our neighbors and friends brought their suggestions, energy and time in a major push towards our goal. Everything, including fundraising, grants, loans and wonderful donations, amazingly came together at just the right time to allow us to use the very unfortunate closure of the schoohouse, due to the pandemic, to find space to work on improvements. Looking back at all that came together for this moment was nothing short of a miracle. Jas and I are fully cognizant that this time and space for improvement is very rare at the school and so we have taken the opportunity very seriously. Both are honored to be a part of these changes and hope that the combined efforts will help the Eliot School to continue “to inspire lifelong learning in craftpersonship and creativity for all” long into the future. –– Facilities Coordinator Andrew Riiska.
A generous gift from a neighbor has allowed us to hire our Facilities crew full-time to work on our schoolhouse this fall. Here, Shop Assistant Jasmanie Gonzalez re-lays our crooked basement floor, part of major improvements to our basement classroom. Keep an eye out for more videos of schoolhouse improvements, coming soon. If you would like to contribute financially to this effort, please contact Executive Director Abigail Norman.
Live Jazz in the Schoolyard through October
How delightful to enjoy live music outdoors. Friedland & Friends continue their LIVE jazz in our schoolyard, Sunday afternoons through October at 4pm. Free with a suggested donation to the Eliot School. Advance tickets required, to comply with City attendance limits. Details and reservations here.
10/16 • Student Project Pick-up
Need to pick up your projects and materials? We're scheduling half-hour time-slots for Friday, October 16, 9am-5pm. Advance registration required. Email Abigail to arrange a time.
Support equitable Art for our BPS students
We still need your help as we prepare to send individual art supply kits to our 1,300 elementary and middle school students. Thank you to the 66 supporters so far who have contributed $4,358 towards our goal of $10K. Boston Public Schools are in session and our Eliot School partnership teachers have begun our virtual art classes for BPS students. Individual art kits are an expense in excess of our budget but one that is critical at this time. Please support students and teachers by donating today. Help us send a kit to every student. Donate here.
Keep your eyes open for our Facebook, Twitter and Instagram for an arts educator social media takeover coming soon!