Teaching Artists for Educational Theatre Workshops

Teatro Milagro, Milagro’s Touring and Arts Education program, serves diverse communities in the Northwest region and the U.S., particularly those with large Latino populations that have been traditionally underserved by the arts. Current global issues are crafted into cutting edge, original dramatic plays infused with Latino culture, Spanish language and original music. Performances are frequently accompanied by arts residencies and workshops for schools and communities. Teatro Milagro workshops are tailored for Spanish speaking students, students of color, and schools in underserved communities, and has been recognized as a model of best practices by the Oregon Arts Commission. Teaching artists will visit many classrooms, including but not limited to: ELD, Language Arts, Social Studies, Spanish, Health, Science, and Theatre Arts. Curriculum uses arts integration techniques to teach civics, history, ethnic studies, and health, but it also is a sequential art learning experience where students develop creative, communicative, and organizational skills necessary for a career in theatre arts. Unique among arts organizations, Teatro Milagro developed a curriculum using popular education methodology and the Theatre of the Oppressed.

As a part time Teatro Milagro teaching artist you will be responsible for leading classes of 5-25 students ages K-12 in engaging and educational arts learning experiences. With provided material, you will be responsible for executing lesson plans thoroughly and in a timely manner. You will be responsible for keeping demographic data and reporting to the Education Director. You will communicate with teachers, educators, and school staff in executing workshops and residencies.

Teaching Artist Responsibilities:

• Establish a positive and open learning environment, for students of all backgrounds
• Inspire students to use theatre to create positive social change
• Lead discussions surrounding topics relating to social justice, the environment, self-image, and health education
• Collaborate with other teaching artists to execute lesson plans in an engaging, welcoming, and creative way
• Travel to various locations in Oregon and the PNW including but not limited to: Multnomah County, Clackamas County, Clark County, and Washington County.
• Manage and maintain partner spaces following all facility and safety guidelines
• Maintain positive relationships with school partners, and students
• Communicate effectively with the Education Director

Desired Qualifications:

• Bilingual in Spanish and English
• Experience working with youth, especially in underserved communities
• Background in the performing arts: movement, dance, storytelling, acting, or singing

Required Qualifications

• Candidates must be at least 18 years of age and able to Speak Spanish
• Candidates must pass a state of Oregon background check.
• The position will require the ability to drive a car and hold a current drivers license with a good driving record.

Compensation DOE

Resume and cover letter are required for consideration and can be emailed to Milagro Education Director Clarrissa Rodriguez, clarrissa@milagro.org

About the Arts Education Program:Workshops/Residencies

Through the 30 years of development of the UNIDAD: Multicultural Living curriculum, Milagro’s arts education wing has expanded, sustained, and solidified its arts education programming in schools across the PNW. The UNIDAD curriculum has 4 specific areas of focus in Self, Family, Community, and Environment. In coordination with each stage production, a corresponding workshop and/or residency is planned using one of these areas of focus. Scaffolding residencies are conducted during classroom instruction time, with Milagro’s teaching artists of theatre professionals. Classroom activities consist of culturally specific open discussion, research, visual art, movement and performance. Copies of UNIDAD Multicultural Living workbooks are shared with teachers, along with a closed-captioned video copy of a coinciding play. With the high quality video production, Milagro teaching artists conduct show-specific residencies long-after a play on the mainstage closes. This is beneficial to teachers who want to view a production at their own rate, in a way that fits best with their existing curriculum and makes experiencing theatre more accessible. Then students work together to create short performances of their own. Especially since Covid-19, the importance of social and emotional learning has increased and having students creating vs. just watching fills the need to give students the ability to build meaningful connections through theatrical practices.

Through Covid-19, focus has shifted from mounting original, bilingual live touring productions and Milagro has dedicated itself to the production of professional closed-caption recording of plays produced at El Centro Milagro. With the understanding that low-income schools and schools outside of the Metropolitan Portland area are not able to travel to El Centro Milagro to watch a live performance Milagro can still provide programming via these video plays.

Teatro Milagro has been working in southwest Washington since 2014, collaborating with multiple schools to coordinate bilingual arts programming. The goal of Teatro Milagro’s educational outreach initiatives is to further Latino participation in the arts and build communities that have a greater tolerance and appreciation for cultural diversity. Teatro Milagro’s bilingual performances and residency programs have furthered those goals by working to make bilingual arts education an integral part of curricular activities in schools. Through a two-year case study, Milagro demonstrated that students were able to achieve a 50% gain in higher comprehension learning through bilingual arts integration, and furthering student retention in schools, an essential element in improving the effects of intergenerational poverty.

Teatro Milagro chooses to showcase plays that showcase positive role models and pathways to academic success. These productions also address intersectionality by showing how identities of socioeconomic status, race, and gender can influence outcomes, and techniques for overcoming adversities that may entail. Teatro Milagro workshops are tailored for Spanish speaking students, students of color, and schools in underserved communities.

Bilingual education has been shown to bolster the academic achievement of English learners. It preserves children’s sense of pride in the language of their parents, allowing them to move freely in an English-language dominant society while retaining an important link to their cultural and linguistic heritage. Pre- and post-testing that was implemented during Milagro's past residencies demonstrated a 15% gain in reading fluency, and 42% gain in reading comprehension. Milagro also implements professional development sessions through their school residencies, helping teachers to gain engagement skills. In response to Covid-19, Milagro also now has enhanced online leave-behind materials for schools, using Google Classroom to engage both teachers and students, as we advance into a digital age of education. Milagro's workshops also address Common Core Standards for Language Arts in speaking and listening objectives. Students can meet these standards through the theatre exercises that are incorporated in the classroom workshops.