Contact: David West (west@nsula.edu )
News Bureau
Northwestern State University
Natchitoches, LA 71497
(318) 357-6466

1/30/2002

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

NATCHITOCHES- It's not enough to tell students about "West Side Story" or "The Marriage of Figaro." You have to show them as well. Northwestern State University Associate Professor of Creative and Performing Arts Tony Smith will do just that, instructing high school and middle school humanities teachers on innovative ways to bring their classes alive this summer.

Smith will direct a Teacher Institute for Advanced Study at NSU June 3-27. The Institute, "From Madama Butterfly to Miss Saigon: Using Opera and the Musical to
Teach Secondary School Humanities," will be held on NSU's Natchitoches campus. his program is funded under grants from the Louisiana Endowment for the Humanities (the local affiliate of the National Endowment for the Humanities) and the State of Louisiana.

Public school teachers in the humanities (including the arts, history, and English), as well as school librarians and administrators, from central and north Louisiana are eligible to apply for the Institute. Those participating can apply for college credit, and a $500 stipend will also be awarded to each teacher.

One inspiration for the Institute, according to Smith, was the fact that a course in basic fine arts is now a requirement for high school students seeking to gain eligibility for the TOPS college tuition assistance program.

"Faculty are sometimes asked to teach courses like fine arts when they may not feel totally comfortable with all the subject material that implies, such as music, theatre, visual art, dance and film," said Smith. "Or teachers may want to put an arts perspective in their history or literature courses. This institute will help them to use opera and the musical as important arts media for almost any teaching scenario. Librarians and administrators can take the course to help them understand the materials and techniques of such teaching."

Participants will get the chance to learn to use multimedia and Internet resources effectively in classroom presentations. Smith, the coordinator of Northwestern's
"Exploring the Arts" core course, uses a range of multimedia in his teaching. He is one of the university's most effective and popular faculty members, a recipient of NSU's Outstanding Teacher Award given annually by the NSU Alumni Association.

"Students have become accustomed to incredible visual effects, in movies like 'Harry Potter.' As teachers, we need to respond to that and use audiovisual examples in our classes, to make learning an exciting experience, a feast for the eyes and ears as well as the mind. Today, it's not enough just to use a book and a chalk board."

Other NSU faculty will assist Smith during the Institute. Dr. William Hunt, director of grants and sponsored programs at NSU, will discuss grant writing. Assistant Professor of History Dr. Kathleen Smith will provide historical perspective for works like 'Madama Butterfly' and 'Miss Saigon.' Masahito Kuroda, an adjunct professor of brass instruments at NSU and a doctoral candidate at LSU, will present a workshop on multi-media classroom presentations. Kuroda is an expert on the use of computer technology in music education.

Class size is limited and qualified applicants will accepted on a first-come, first served basis. For more information, contact Tony Smith at (318) 357-5807 (office), (318) 357-0375 (home) or at smitht@nsula.edu.

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