Museum of Contemporary Art San Diego: School and Youth Programs

Educator supervision and training, bilingual tours, and school and youth programs, including partnerships reaching more than 800 students annually.

At the Museum of Contemporary Art San Diego, I advanced from Education Associate to Manager of Education. I led school and youth programs and supervised approximately 10 Gallery Educators over my tenure as manager, along with interns and teaching artists. My responsibilities included hiring, performance reviews, coaching, addressing performance concerns, and coordinating schedules and assignments.

The Gallery Educator program was a place to develop teaching skills as well as deliver tours. I planned ongoing training that combined lesson planning, demonstrations, practice, observation, and feedback. Educators adapted their approach for school groups, adults, and mixed audiences, with support for different experience levels and learning needs. Approximately half of our team was bilingual, allowing us to offer Spanish and English tours for both adult and youth audiences.

The Extended School Partnership gave students more than a single field trip. Classroom work, museum visits, conversations about exhibitions, and sessions with teaching artists built toward presentations of student work. I coordinated schools, artists, educators, schedules, materials, and culminating events, and expanded the student showcase so families could see it during the museum’s free First Thursday evening and through the weekend. Our school partnerships engaged more than 800 students annually.

The Teen Advisory Group gave high school students room to explore art and the social issues they cared about. I helped recruit and mentor participants, planned sessions with artists, and supported the teens as they developed their own creative projects and public programs. Their interests and perspectives helped determine what we did.

Keeping these programs running also meant managing budgets and grant commitments, documenting participation and outcomes, and working with colleagues in curatorial, visitor services, development, and communications. When COVID-19 interrupted in-person programming, I helped adapt delivery and complete the documentation of work already underway.