My theatregoing calendar has slowed, but I’m enjoying the splendors of summer—weekend escapes from the city, baking cherry pies, and dining al fresco. But for many of you, summertime means theatre camp and curriculum planning!

A few weeks ago, I had the pleasure of speaking on the phone with Ann Joseph-Douglas, the director of education at Children’s Theatre Company (CTC) in Minneapolis. Since 2021, Joseph-Douglas has been spearheading a unique partnership between CTC and Bethune Arts Elementary School, featuring year-long programming for preschool to fifth-grade students. The curriculum spans emotional literacy, critical literacy, and writing skills, and teachers matriculate with the students for two years.

Another key component is collaboration between the teaching artists and the classroom teachers who work together to develop and deliver the programming. This all-in approach also expands outside the classroom. CTC actively engages caregivers and families in students’ learning through regular updates, newsletters, and Bethune Family Nights—an evening of dinner and a show at CTC for just $5, with transportation provided to ease parking concerns and ensure theatre is accessible to all. “We’ve worked with Bethune to create a school culture in which the arts are of equal value as reading, writing, math, and science,” says Joseph-Douglas. “The kids really enjoy the days that our teaching artists are coming in, and we’re seeing attendance improve across the board.”

Joseph-Douglas encourages other arts organizations to build partnerships with schools, noting that it doesn’t have to be costly. CTC’s collaboration with Bethune began with an early education program and expanded over time. “It just takes a school to determine that this is really important for their students.”

Whether working in schools or engaging the broader community, Joseph-Douglas has a powerful call for all arts educators: “We need to keep designing new curriculum and pushing our lawmakers to make sure that programs like this continue to be funded,” says Joseph-Douglas. “Every student at every grade level deserves an opportunity to participate in the arts in some way. There are many pathways to learning, and there are many pathways to success, and if we cut off one of those pathways, we are really cutting students off, theoretically, at the knees. Just keep fighting that good fight—let’s do it together to make sure our students have access to this kind of programming.”