The Amplify Collective

Amplify is a partnership of arts and cultural organizations at the University of Chicago including Arts + Public Life, Court Theatre, Logan Center for the Arts, Oriental Institute, and Smart Museum of Art. As a collective, Amplify is developing a new model of collaboration by building a networked education community. The collective offers extensive K–12 arts programs and multi-site field trips for students, as well as professional learning opportunities for educators.

Arts + Public Life

Arts + Public Life aims to build creative connections on Chicago’s South Side through artist residencies, arts education, and artist-led projects and events. Arts + Public Life provides free, in-depth programs including the Design Apprenticeship Program, Community Actors Program, and Teen Arts Council that cultivate local teens’ creative identity, social development, and leadership growth while motivating them to make a positive difference in their community through the arts. Programs take place after school, on Saturdays, and during the summer for grades 9–12.
Contact: Quenna Barrett | quenna@uchicago.edu

Court Theatre

Court Theatre is the professional theatre of the University of Chicago, dedicated to innovation, inquiry, intellectual engagement, and community service. In addition to residency programs in select Chicago Public Schools, Court Theatre offers matinee performances for grades 9–12 on select Wednesdays during the academic year for $12 per ticket. Additional subsidies may be available for qualified organizations. Contact: Heidi Thompson Saunders | hnthomps@uchicago.edu

Oriental Institute

The Oriental Institute is a museum and research institution dedicated to promoting interest in and understanding of ancient Near Eastern civilizations. The Museum provides self-guided visits, docent-led tours, and facilitated programming for grades K–12 Tuesdays through Fridays at a cost of up to $10 a student.
Contact: Calgary Haines-Trautman | calgary@uchicago.edu

Reva and David Logan Center for the Arts

The Reva and David Logan Center for the Arts fosters meaningful collaboration and cultural engagement at UChicago, on the South Side, and in the city of Chicago. The Logan Center features a diverse range of interdisciplinary programs, exhibitions, and performances that engage audiences of all ages including dynamic school matinees, Family Saturdays, summer youth programs, and workshops for youth and adults. Many of these programs are presented free of charge.
Contact: Emily Hooper Lansana | elansana@uchicago.edu

Smart Museum of Art

As the fine arts museum of the University of Chicago, the Smart encourages the examination of complex issues through the lens of art objects and artistic practice. It builds on strong partnerships to incorporate diverse ideas, identities, and experiences into its programming, while collections and exhibitions span many geographic regions and historical areas. The Smart Museum provides extensive all-expenses-paid programming for grades K–12 Tuesday through Sunday from 10 am to 5 pm.
Contact: Jason Pallas | jpallas@uchicago.edu

AMPLIFY’S MULTI-SITE FIELD TRIPS

The Amplify Collective offers a variety of multidisciplinary arts education opportunities for teachers and their students. During the multi-site field trips, students explore two different Amplify institutions, either during a single day on the University of Chicago campus or over the course of multiple visits. The field trips provide deeper learning experiences and broader arts exposure for students and teachers alike. These experiences offer all students the opportunity to draw connections to and explore themes across multiple art disciplines, eras, and cultures. Amplify works with individual schools to tailor the most effective schedule, engaging teachers as planning partners to help articulate connections to curricular content and increase impact on school culture.

If you are interested in this opportunity, please contact the organization at which you would like to begin your visit, and they will work with you to coordinate the experience. A limited number of transportation subsidies are available.

AMPLIFY'S 2019-2020 Schedule 

PROFESSIONAL LEARNING COMMUNITY PROGRAMS
Amplify’s Professional Learning Community Programs provide a platform for educators, students, teaching artists, and administrators to workshop strategies and tactics that encourage inquiry and agency to empower students. Programs are free but registration is required. To learn more or RSVP please visit arts.uchicago.edu/amplify or contact Michael Christiano | mchristiano@uchicago.edu

Amplify Welcome Back Reception
Wed, Sep 25, 2019 | 4:30-6pm | Logan Center (915 E 60th St)
Join us for an interactive, back-to-school gathering to celebrate the start of another year of Amplify. Share food and a glass of wine as we experience the diverse arts and cultural education programs planned with Amplify organizations in 2019-2020, and enjoy a performance by musical artist Melody Angel. This event is a wonderful opportunity for teachers, teaching artists, and arts administrators to network and learn together.

Storytelling in the Classroom with Gwendolyn Hilary
Thu, Nov 14, 2019 | 4:30-6pm | Logan Center (915 E 60th St)
This workshop will explore the use of storytelling in learning spaces with a focus on adapting stories to inform, challenge, and inspire across disciplines. Whether you are a writer, storyteller, listener, or artist, this workshop will help you to explore how stories can be made and remade. 

Creative Change, Growth and Transformation
Thu, Feb 20, 2020 | 4:30-6pm | Smart Museum (5550 S Greenwood Ave)
Join us for an evening of hands-on activity where we focus on the embedded history of materials, manipulation, and adaptation, and working across cultures and disciplines.  We will take inspiration from Allure of Matter, the Smart Museum’s survey exhibition of Chinese contemporary art exploring the artists’ intimate exploration of unconventional materials.  

Artifacts, Adaptations, and An Iliad at the Oriental Institute
Mon, Mar 16, 2020 | 4:30-6pm | Oriental Institute (1155 E 58th St)
Court Theater artists will lead a discussion on how teachers can make use of theatrical adaptations of classic texts in the classroom using the Court’s site-specific staging of An Iliad in the Oriental Institute Museum as a jumping off point. Teachers will put these ideas in practice by drawing inspiration from the Museum and its collections of over 5,000 artifacts spanning 10,000 years of history. 

Amplify Year-end Appreciation Party
Tue, Jun 2, 2020 | 4:30-6pm | Green Line Performing Arts Center (329 East Garfield Blvd)
Join us as teachers and artists connect to share our creative accomplishments and toast the end of the school year. This will be an interactive evening with live performance, networking, food, and fun!

Sign up for Amplify emails (select the K-12 Educators list). You can learn about other opportunities and programs for K-12 arts education here.