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From the desk of Glenn Ballard, Director of Fine Arts: 

I am a believer. No one has to convince me. I know from personal experience and my own observations the extraordinary value of a rich fine arts education. I studied drama in Middle School and High School back in the 1970s, and even dabbled in it as a college student. But forty years ago I never dreamed that I might actually grow up to be a fine arts educator and to be the Director of the Fine Arts programs of a premiere private school. So today I am thrilled to share a few thoughts about how the Fine Arts programs of The Brook Hill School are changing lives.

We know, as Fran Smith wrote several years ago in Edutopia, 鈥淎rts education has been slipping for more than three decades, the result of tight budgets, an ever-growing list of state mandates that have crammed the classroom curriculum, and a public sense that the arts are lovely but not essential.鈥� But while schools all around us, both public and private, are reducing or cutting their fine arts programs, I am so proud to affirm that Brook Hill is expanding and adding fine arts classes. 

For example, this fall Brook Hill will be offering guitar classes to all interested upper school students as well as a jazz band, and we are very close to having a legitimate dance class for fine arts credit. Our visual arts classes are also expanding as we add more and more students to the AP art track. Last year, we were able to add stagecraft classes for students who are interested in building and painting stage sets and who have a knack for sound, lighting and other technical aspects of the theatre world. In addition, I am constantly on the lookout for other course offerings and teachers that will make the Brook Hill fine arts program the most well-rounded arts experience in the region.

I believe that education in the arts is one of the most significant things we can do for our children. From the days of Plato, educators have recognized the importance of the arts in the educational process. It is true now more than ever before that training in music, dance, theatre, and visual arts is an integral part of what defines our young people culturally and socially. I agree with Bob Bryant who said, 鈥淭he arts are a part of the cultural heritage of every American. The arts are what make us most human, most complete as people.鈥� 

No student ever masters the arts through occasional or random exposure. We certainly do not expect our children to learn math or science that way. That is why we are committed to making all the fine arts an essential part of The Brook Hill School curriculum and an important component in the educational program of every student. This commitment drives much of what I do as the Director of Fine Arts. 

Everyone knows that Brook Hill prepares our students for the academic rigors of college. But I believe that our fine arts classes also prepare them to be more cultured and humane people. It is well established that a first-class fine arts education provides learners with a number of 鈥渘on-academic鈥� benefits, including higher self-esteem, greater motivation, aesthetic awareness, enhanced creativity, improved emotional expression, better problem solving skills, as well as a keener sense of team work. As a parent and now a grandparent, I want my grandchildren to have the opportunity to learn about the things that really matter the most: things like truth and integrity, critical thinking skills, a sense of wonder, fairness, creativity and cooperation. The arts provide all of these.

For years the debate has raged鈥�Do the arts make people awesome? Or are awesome people simply attracted to the arts? Either way, come be awesome with us!