CONSTRUCTION & DEVELOPMENT
Northern California School of the Arts
Sacramento ’ s Performing Arts Education Leader
Northern California School of the Arts provides holistic and professional theater arts training programs , supporting young artists from diverse communities to create , express and participate in theater arts educational opportunities . With a focus on Title 1 schools , NorCal brings its programs to school districts to help address relevant issues that young people face today through the arts .
The pandemic did not prevent NorCal from thriving , though the school was launched in 2020 . “ Our programs are in high demand and we ’ re growing rapidly ,” says Executive Director Michele Hillen-Noufer . “ We ’ ve presented programs in several regional school districts , including Elk Grove Unified , Folsom Cordova Unified and Twin Rivers Unified , but our biggest partner so far has been Sacramento City Unified School District . NorCal teaching artists were in 150 SCUSD classrooms in the 2021-22 school year and will expand to 280 of their classrooms and 35 school sites in the afterschool space in 2022-23 .”
As this arts education organization collaborates with school districts , teachers as well as students benefit from the programs . After her students participated , SCUSD teacher Natalie Zarza said , “ Students with a lot of energy who struggle academically and are often mentally distracted were fully engaged . They were so motivated to contribute .”
NorCal School of the Arts offers after-school programs , in-school residencies , professional development for teachers , summer camps , performance opportunities and a nine-month training program called The Performing Arts Corps , which includes college counseling and a leadership training program . NorCal is pleased to provide teaching artists with a variety of employment opportunities , including a comprehensive training program through NorCal ’ s Teaching Artist Hub .
“ Our passion is to help young people , especially those who wouldn ’ t otherwise have the opportunity to participate in the theater arts , to fully realize who they are and to gain life skills ,” Hillen-Noufer says . “ Through theater arts , we teach collaboration , communication , creativity , and we address student identity , activate student voices , and bring culturally responsive content to the forefront .”
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Our passion is to help young people , especially those who wouldn ’ t otherwise have the opportunity to participate in theater arts , to fully realize who they are and to gain life skills .
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— MICHELE HILLEN-NOUFER Executive Director
803 Vallejo Way Sacramento , CA 95818 916-955-9462 www . norcalsota . org
70 comstocksmag . com | August 2022
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