The Center for Art Education is the administrative umbrella for a number of programs that provide pre-professional preparation for artist-teachers and community artists as well as professional development graduate programs and institutes for artists, educators, and community arts professionals.
Our Philosophy
As a professional school of art, MICA has provided a rich context for the development of programs related to art education. The Center offers a supportive educational community committed to learning that is deep, integrative, and transformational. Our vision encompasses a broad set of purposes for meaningful engagement with art. Our pedagogy is learner-centered, firmly grounded in studio practice, and issues-based with a particular interest in cross-disciplinary inquiry and issues of social justice. Many of our efforts have a focus on teaching and learning in urban contexts.
Our History
1987
Master of Arts in Teaching launched offering graduate-level preparation for teaching art K-12.
1989
Master of Fine Arts re-designed in a low-residency format. This low-residency MFA was the first program in the country specifically calendared to a teacher's life; currently it serves artists from a variety of career paths, including K-12 teachers, college educators, independent artists, and others.
1990
A combined BFA/MAT program was launched so that MICA undergraduates would have the benefit of a full studio major integrated with art education coursework in a five-year format. This program replaced the former four-year undergraduate program in art education.
2002
The MA in Art Education low-residency program began combining two intensive summer residencies with on-line instruction during the school year. This program fosters inquiry in instructional settings with the goal of sharing findings with the larger art education community through publications and conference presentations.
2005
The MA in Community Arts features a 13 month program designed around year-long on-site internships in the community. One of its goals is to help professionalize this developing profession.
2008
Certificate Program in the College Teaching of Art formalized. The Center has long offered coursework for MFA students preparing to teach at the post-secondary level. This new certificate program is designed to recognize successful completion of coursework and a series of teaching internships.