2013-366 Arts - McDougle Middle School PTA 2013 Spring Art Grant Agreement $400

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G ORANGE COUNTY ARTS 2013-14 Arts in Education Application — Page Two COMMISSION I. Arts Program Application Narrative A. School Profile McDougle Middle School is in the Chapel Hill-Carrboro City Schools district with 702 students in grades 6 to 8. Its population is ethnically and academically diverse (see below; an estimated 20% benefit from the National School Lunch Program. 2012-13 Male Female African-American 47 44 Asian 18 31 Hispanic 61 62 Multiracial 13 23 Native American 2 2 White 224 175 Total 365 337 Given the demographic and socio-economic composition of our school, a large percentage of our students would benefit greatly from a diverse cultural arts program as they may otherwise have few to no opportunities to do so outside the school context. B. School's Arts Program McDougle Middle School remains strongly committed to supporting the arts, despite budgetary constraints. To enhance and complement the core curriculum, the PTA—with the generous support of the Orange County Arts Commission - has sponsored performers, selected in consultation with teaching staff, to deliver a rich and diverse menu of cultural arts programming. C. Proposed Uses of Grant Funds We are seeking matching funds for the program "Igniting Writing" presented by John Claude Bemis, 2013 Piedmont Laureate. Four 45-minute sessions will be presented to 6th and 7th grade students, with approximately 100 students attending each session. All sessions will take place on school premises in Fall 2013. OCAC grant funds will cover 50% of artist fees. Integrating Cultural Arts into the Curriculum: "Igniting Writing"was selected by the 6th and 7th grade teaching teams as it fulfills many of the Common Core standards for Language Arts, emphasizing experiential learning of a range of literary genres: tall tales, legends, folktales, narrative writing and performance art. It has strong curriculum connections to Social Studies (North Carolina Essential Standards)with an emphasis on History and Economics. IGNITING WRITING is a dynamic and interactive program that will leave students inspired to read and write!John shares how reading,Southern folklore, history,and music ignited his writing.John offers young writers advice about how to create engaging stories based on personal passions and interests. Students come on-stage to act out a musical version of the legend of John Henry,an ex-slave who worked on the railroad, laying tracks and building tunnels through the mountains.With the invention of the steam drill,John Henry had a competition to see who was faster:man or machine?While John Henry carved out 14 feet of rock and the steam drill only dug 9 feet,at the end John Henry fell dead. He's our American Achilles or King Arthur,full of tragic glory.And his instrument,the Nine Pound Hammer,is our Excalibur,a symbol of his enduring heroism.