Chicago Arts Partnerships in Education (CAPE) presents CONVERGENCE 2015

CHICAGO - Nov. 20, 2015 - PRLog -- (CHICAGO) - CONVERGENCE 2015, an exhibition of visual, digital, and performing art created by students participating in Chicago Arts Partnership in Education’s (CAPE) (http://www.capeweb.org) Veteran Partnerships Program at 19 Chicago Public Schools, will kick off their 10-day exhibition at Instituto Cervantes beginning December 10.  A special Exhibition Opening and Reception will be held on December 10 from 6 - 10 p.m.

CAPE inspires students’ passion for education by bringing academic subjects to life through the arts. The organization partners teaching artists with Chicago Public School teachers to develop original, creative lesson plans that weave visual and performing arts into traditional classroom subjects. This type of teaching has been proven to better engage students, improve their grades, and boost their self-esteem and confidence.  During the 2015-2016 school year, CAPE will partner with over 200 teachers in 100 Chicago Public Schools reaching 4500 students in low-income neighborhoods across the city. CONVERGENCE is held annually to showcase the work of student participants.

CAPE’s Veteran Partnerships Program (http://www.capeweb.org/in-school/veteran-partnerships) are the organization’s longest running partnerships where many of CAPE’s most intensive, innovative arts-integrated projects (http://www.capeweb.org/what-we-do/curriculum-units) are co-planned and co-taught by the teacher-artist partners, some of whom have worked together for more than 10 years.  Together, over multiple years, classroom teachers and their teaching artist partners assess the needs of their students and school communities, experiment with different ways the arts can support those academic and social needs, and then reflect on, assess, and revise their projects. The long-term nature of this work leads to deep student engagement, continual inspiration and professional development for teachers and artists (http://www.capeweb.org/our-program-methodology#pd).  Students’ performing and visual art works showcase what CAPE’s approach to arts and education can accomplish. CONVERGENCE provides students an exciting and validating opportunity to see and perform their art in a gallery setting and to show off their hard work to family and friends.

Several key events will occur during the exhibition’s run:

December 10 – Exhibition Opening/Gallery Opening Reception, 6 to 10 pm. Features live student performances, gallery tours, and refreshments. Attendance is complimentary

December 12^th  - 11am to 2pm Panel discussions/ workshops

December 14^th -16 - Daytime field trips (Hours 9 a.m. - 5 p.m. Daily)

Artwork on display includes: Sculptural studies of invasive species by students at Telpochalli Elementary School (in Little Village); A large scale multi-panel collage of an ecosystem depicting sky, land, and water, inhabited by flora and fauna Henry Elementary (in Albany Park); An architectural model for the creative re-use of the abandoned Rosenwald Building in the city’s Bronzeville neighborhood developed by students at Daniel Hale Williams High School (in Grand Boulevard).

“The arts are an essential component of all students education.  CAPE works with schools to leverage the power of the arts across all curriculum to make learning engaging and fun,” said Amy Rasmussen, executive director of CAPE. “Students in CAPE’s programs communicate their ideas and demonstrate their learning in ways that builds their connection to and ownership of their own learning.  This approach goes far beyond classroom grades and standardized tests.”

Photographers and television and radio news crews are invited to attend any of these events

DATE/TIME:  Thursday December 10 to Friday December 18, 2015

LOCATION:  Instituto Cervantes, 31 W. Ohio, Chicago, IL  60654

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Every year, Chicago Arts Partnerships in Education (CAPE) inspires nearly 5,000 students from more than 50 Chicago Public Schools to be more passionate about their educations.  CAPE stirs their passion for learning by weaving the arts into academics through original, creative lesson plans developed together by teaching artists and public schoolteachers. With CAPE, learning takes place

inside classrooms and beyond school walls, wherever subject matter best comes to life. Commissioned, long-term research shows their unique approach to art-based education continually improves students’ grades, critical thinking, self-esteem and confidence. For more information please visit www.CAPEweb.org and follow us on social media using the hashtag #artsed.