The Sidney and Lois Eskenazi Museum of Art at Indiana University has hired Kelly Jordan as its Pre-K–12 Experiences Manager, a position that supports the museum’s dedication to educational outreach in Bloomington and the surrounding area.
In 2017, the museum began a $30 million renovation that created new spaces for learning about, teaching, and engaging with art, including four new centers: Education, Conservation, Curatorial Studies, and Prints, Drawings, and Photographs. With a new lecture hall and art-making studio, the Center for Education will serve as a launchpad for the museum’s educational initiatives, which include arts-based wellness experiences, pre-K–12 outreach, public programs, interpretation, tours, and university engagement.
IU’s Center for Rural Engagement generously provided funding for the Pre-K–12 Experiences Manager position and the museum’s Rural Teachers Engaging Art (RTEA) program, which shares and studies school-based techniques for engaging with the museum’s collection. The Center for Rural Engagement connects communities in the surrounding area through research, teaching, service, and partnerships. Launched with the fall 2018 semester, the RTEA program includes museum-to-school visits, customized teaching materials, pre- and post-visit assessments, and the development of an online resource for participating teachers.
In addition to programming youth and family art-making studio activities, Jordan will coordinate the Youth Art Month exhibition of student art, facilitate teacher professional development, and lead local and rural outreach in coordination with IU’s Center for Rural Engagement. Jordan received her BFA from Wright State University in Dayton, Ohio, and her MFA in painting from IU. A dedicated and experienced artist and art educator, she has taught fine art studio courses, as well as art history, to undergraduate and lifelong-learning students at IU, Herron School of Art, and Ivy Tech Community College. Jordan’s experience also includes creating and leading children’s programs at Monroe County Public Library.
“Kelly’s scope of teaching, which includes art history, studio art, and art education, are a perfect match for our vision for this new branch of work in the education department. Her thoughtful and energetic approach to teaching and learning, paired with her sincere motivation toward rural empowerment, will be terrific assets for our outreach work in rural communities and at the museum. We’re delighted to have Kelly join our team as we work together to reach new audiences across the state,” said Lucienne M. Glaubinger Director of Education Heidi Davis-Soylu.
David A. Brenneman, Wilma E. Kelley Director of the Eskenazi Museum of Art, remarked, “We are looking forward to having Kelly Jordan join us as Pre-K–12 Experiences Manager. As the museum enters this new phase with a renovated building that includes a Center for Education and new areas for learning and teaching, we are committed to providing unprecedented opportunities for engaging with art.”
Jordan will begin her work at the museum this spring, just as it prepares for the grand reopening in fall 2019.
