Boston Arts Academy
Encyclopedia
Boston Arts Academy in Boston, Massachusetts, USA is Boston's first and only high school for the visual and performing arts
and is a partnership between Boston Public Schools
and the ProArts Consortium
. ProArts, a group of six arts colleges and universities in the Boston area, pushed the city to open the school, which was founded in 1998. The Consortium continues to support the school with performance space, music lessons and free college-level classes to BAA students.
BAA won the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts
, the National Schools of Distinction in Arts Education Award for the 2009-2010 school year from the Kennedy Center Alliance for Arts Education Network.
Although admission is academic-blind, eighth graders must audition to be accepted to the performing arts program. Competition is tough. In 2007, only 27% of the dance applicants would be accepted, just 6% would be accepted to the drumming program; and just 25 of the 81 theater applicants. Competition in the era of budget cuts is tougher still. With projected teacher layoffs and increased class sizes, BAA had 800 applicants for just 150 students in 2011.
BAA offers an elite education to urban youth whose background sometimes includes violence and tragedy, such as the murder of a friend or family member. Because of BAA's success with urban students, the school is involved in public education reform. Its use of the arts as a strategy for improving teaching and learning has attracted national and international attention. Through the school’s Center for Arts in Education, BAA’s best practices are documented and shared with educators, administrators and policymakers worldwide.
In 2010, the school ran a pilot program for 125 ninth graders in summer school
, who spent Fridays at BAA in remedial courses with recent BAA graduates as teachers. The ninth graders were children who had very poor attendance records and other school and social problems, such as direct experience with violence. Most were in danger of not being promoted. The program was set up to rekindle an interest in school through non-traditional learning using theater, music, martial arts
, poetry and other art forms.
BAA is a member of the ProArts Consortium. Other members include Berklee College of Music
, the Boston Architectural Center, The Boston Conservatory, Emerson College
, Massachusetts College of Art
, and the School of the Museum of Fine Arts. ProArts coordinates programs among its members to expand educational opportunities and resources for participating institutions and works to enrich the arts and arts education in Boston and throughout the Commonwealth of Massachusetts.
Performing arts
The performing arts are those forms art which differ from the plastic arts insofar as the former uses the artist's own body, face, and presence as a medium, and the latter uses materials such as clay, metal or paint which can be molded or transformed to create some physical art object...
and is a partnership between Boston Public Schools
Boston Public Schools
Boston Public Schools is a school district serving the city of Boston, Massachusetts, United States.-Leadership:The district is led by a Superintendent, hired by the Boston School Committee, a seven-member school board appointed by the Mayor after approval by a nominating committee of specified...
and the ProArts Consortium
Professional Arts Consortium
The Professional Arts Consortium is an association of six Boston, Massachusetts institutions of higher education which emphasize the visual, applied, and performing arts. The consortium allows for shared resources, such as libraries, between member schools. Students of member schools may also...
. ProArts, a group of six arts colleges and universities in the Boston area, pushed the city to open the school, which was founded in 1998. The Consortium continues to support the school with performance space, music lessons and free college-level classes to BAA students.
BAA won the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts
John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts
The John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts is a performing arts center located on the Potomac River, adjacent to the Watergate complex in Washington, D.C...
, the National Schools of Distinction in Arts Education Award for the 2009-2010 school year from the Kennedy Center Alliance for Arts Education Network.
Programs
BAA is Boston's only public school dedicated to the arts. The school day has no sports, yet is eight hours, two hours longer than normal schools, to allow for classes in the arts disciplines. The school offers a rigorous arts and academic education to challenge students and inspire them to pursue higher education. BAA was also Boston's first full-inclusion high school; students with disabilities are fully integrated into the school program. Alumni achievements demonstrate the school's value as a step to success.Although admission is academic-blind, eighth graders must audition to be accepted to the performing arts program. Competition is tough. In 2007, only 27% of the dance applicants would be accepted, just 6% would be accepted to the drumming program; and just 25 of the 81 theater applicants. Competition in the era of budget cuts is tougher still. With projected teacher layoffs and increased class sizes, BAA had 800 applicants for just 150 students in 2011.
BAA offers an elite education to urban youth whose background sometimes includes violence and tragedy, such as the murder of a friend or family member. Because of BAA's success with urban students, the school is involved in public education reform. Its use of the arts as a strategy for improving teaching and learning has attracted national and international attention. Through the school’s Center for Arts in Education, BAA’s best practices are documented and shared with educators, administrators and policymakers worldwide.
In 2010, the school ran a pilot program for 125 ninth graders in summer school
Remedial education
Postsecondary remedial education is a large and growing segment of higher education in the United States...
, who spent Fridays at BAA in remedial courses with recent BAA graduates as teachers. The ninth graders were children who had very poor attendance records and other school and social problems, such as direct experience with violence. Most were in danger of not being promoted. The program was set up to rekindle an interest in school through non-traditional learning using theater, music, martial arts
Martial arts
Martial arts are extensive systems of codified practices and traditions of combat, practiced for a variety of reasons, including self-defense, competition, physical health and fitness, as well as mental and spiritual development....
, poetry and other art forms.
BAA is a member of the ProArts Consortium. Other members include Berklee College of Music
Berklee College of Music
Berklee College of Music, located in Boston, Massachusetts, is the largest independent college of contemporary music in the world. Known primarily as a school for jazz, rock and popular music, it also offers college-level courses in a wide range of contemporary and historic styles, including hip...
, the Boston Architectural Center, The Boston Conservatory, Emerson College
Emerson College
Emerson College is a private coeducational university located in Boston, Massachusetts. Founded in 1880 by Charles Wesley Emerson as a "school of oratory," Emerson is "the only comprehensive college or university in America dedicated exclusively to communication and the arts in a liberal arts...
, Massachusetts College of Art
Massachusetts College of Art
Massachusetts College of Art and Design is a publicly-funded college of visual and applied art, founded in 1873. It is one of the oldest art schools, the only publicly-funded free-standing art school in the United States, and was the first art college in the United States to grant an artistic degree...
, and the School of the Museum of Fine Arts. ProArts coordinates programs among its members to expand educational opportunities and resources for participating institutions and works to enrich the arts and arts education in Boston and throughout the Commonwealth of Massachusetts.
Notable alumni
- Russell FergusonRussell FergusonRussell Ferguson is an American Krump dancer from Boston, Massachusetts. He won So You Think You Can Dance season 6, making him the first Krumper to win the title....
, winner of season 6, So You Think You Can DanceSo You Think You Can Dance (U.S. TV series)So You Think You Can Dance is an American dance competition and reality show that airs on Fox in the United States.The series first premiered on July 20, 2005, and was created by American Idol producers Simon Fuller and Nigel Lythgoe and is produced by 19 Entertainment and Dick Clark Productions... - Snap Boogie, semifinalist season 6, Americas Got TalentAmerica's Got Talent (season 6)The sixth season of America's Got Talent, a reality television series, premiered on May 31, 2011 on NBC. On September 14, 2011, Landau Eugene Murphy, Jr...
- Kirven Boyd, principal, Alvin Ailey American Dance Theatre