What to Advocate for Within Your Organization

Quick Takeaways

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Be clear before beginning the residency about what kinds of classes you’ll be teaching in.

Every arts organization functions differently. As a Teaching Artist (TA) working within an organization, there are areas where you can advocate to receive support from your administrative staff. If you work independently, you may have to work directly with the school to receive this information.

When asking for support, it is a good idea to keep in mind your organization’s practices when it comes to harmful yet prevalent ideologies such as ableism and white supremacy. Is your administrative staff making assumptions about you, your students, or the settings that you work in? Educating yourself about the history of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) and learning what information or support you should have access to in your work can have a huge impact on your students.

Remote Teaching and Learning Tip:

Remote learning will operate differently than an in-person classroom experience, but much of the information expected of your organization should remain the same. If you are preparing for a synchronous online class, keep an eye out for specific additional resources for remote learning, which we’ve noted throughout this page, as well as in a separate, comprehensive checklist at the bottom of the page.

Names of Classroom Teachers, Paraprofessionals, and any other Classroom Professionals leading and supporting the class.
Type of class. Examples of General Education and/or Special Education class types:
- ICT: Integrated Co-teaching Classroom;
- ACES: The Academics, Career, and Essential Skills (ACES) program provides students with an opportunity to learn academic, work, and independent living skills in a District 1-32 school;
- NEST: The Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD) Nest and ASD Horizon programs are specialized programs that serve some students with autism. They are available in some District 1-32 schools;
- Self-Contained: A self-contained classroom gives students with disabilities specialized interventions and support. The class is usually smaller in size than a General Education class, with a lead Teacher and several other Educators or Paraprofessionals who provide support—sometimes referred to by the number of students to Teachers to Paraprofessionals (e.g., 6:1:1, 8:1:1, 12:1:1, 12:1:4).
- More details on these class types.
Goal of the partnership as defined by your organization’s administrators.
Prior relationship with the school/Classroom Professionals.
List of student names, indication of students who work with a one-to-one Paraprofessional.

Timing of class.
Testing schedule or other school-specific dates.
Class locations.
Does the space work for the students and for success with this specific art form?

Setting up a planning meeting with the Classroom Professionals.
Clarification on whether there will be administrative staff attending the meeting, and if not clear, instructions on what needs to be covered.
Setting up a pre-residency class observation.
- If unable to get either of these, requesting class and student information from teachers ahead of time.

Process for reporting incidents in the classroom.
- Who should be informed first, school staff or arts administrators?
- How should incidents be reported, and what is the recommended timeline?
- Is there a difference in reporting structure depending on the situation and the content of the situation?

Providing adaptive materials or tools that you may need for your residency.
Connecting with Related Service Providers to access adaptive materials or to program devices that may support your students.

Supported Access to Learning Management System(s) which may include:
- Access to platforms used to post assignments and content.
- Access to a video call platform if teaching synchronously.
  - If a class requests a video call platform that requires a subscription fee, your organization should cover this cost.
  - Link to video call if hosted by the school.
Information about what devices students will be using to access class.
If possible, information about what space(s) the students will be in during class.