This petition is calling for change in the art education program at Hampshire College. The art education program currently exists as a hub for students interested in teaching through art, with art, and about art. Some students taking classes in the program are pursuing an art-teaching license, while others focus on arts integration, community arts, art therapy and arts in activism. All students involved in the program are taking classes to learn theories and methods for using the arts as a tool for learning and development. This program currently has one three-quarter-time visiting faculty member who is on a year-to-year contract.

By signing this petition I am recognizing and supporting the need for a full time Faculty Associate Position in the Art Education Program. This position would provide the increased administrative support necessary to enable program participants to have the organized structure needed to lead them through a successful undergraduate program in the above-mentioned fields. Having a permanent faculty member at the helm of Art Education would allow us to look towards the future and grow the program, which serves the diverse needs and interests of the School for Interdisciplinary Arts, Hampshire College, and all the students involved.