“Don’t ever call yourself an expert—the minute you do, you’re done. You’ve always got to be learning, growing and be open to new knowledge in the field.” My friend, Shawn, said this to me a year ago about my work with ArtBridges/ToileDesArts.
It really sank in—and he’s right. At ArtBridges, we are constantly learning about what’s going on across Canada—new ideas, challenges, needs in community arts and arts for social change. We’re also constantly learning about how we can develop our project into a better one—and one that’s sustainable. These are huge learning curves.
So, the picture above is of a few of us from ArtBridges back in the classroom at George Brown College, listening to presentations by 3rd year marketing students who used ArtBridges as a case study last term. The picture below is of a few of the students who presented their ideas to us.
At ArtBridges, we have hired several students in university or art college over the last few years. What I love about working with students is that they are used to saying what they think; used to being critiqued, edited and marked; used to churning work out under pressure. They have big ideas and are open to trying new things. They bring all of this into the ArtBridges office. And so, I’ve adjusted to our work being radically edited, critiqued and challenged—I think ArtBridges is better off because of this.
This winter, ArtBridges was selected to be a case study for The Strategic Foresight and Innovation Masters Programme at Ontario College of Art and Design University. With these grad students, we’re re-examining our organizational model and working on a strategic plan. So we’re back into the classroom again!
On a charitable community arts centre board I’m active on, a fellow director opposed a recent opportunity to bring on summer interns from a fundraising college-level program. As she said, it would take too long to train them and too much time to supervise them. This is another perspective, and I guess it depends on your organization’s resources and capacity.
How do you find students? For high school-level: call guidance teachers and art teachers. For private schools: call staff in charge of community outreach activities. For arts colleges and universities: post on online job/volunteer boards and hang flyers in cafeterias or student bulletin boards. Think of any connections you may have in education. But, hey, I’m no expert. Do you have any suggestions? And students: reach out—we could learn from you!: info[at]artbridges.ca
-Seanna Connell, ArtBridges/ToileDesArts Project Director
