Fall Programs are Starting!

It is official! VSA’s fall programs start this week. Here is a sneak peak of what we have coming up:

Start with the Arts/ Art Explorations for Early Childhood
We are thrilled to be starting this pilot program with three of our early childhood special education preschools in Grand Rapids: Ken O Sha at Wellerwood, West Leonard and Ridgemoor. Children between the ages of 2-6 years old will explore pottery, puppetry and creative movement with VSA over the next 24 weeks.

Graduated Art: Art Explosion! And *NEW* Graduated Art: Bookmaking
And for adults, our immensely popular Graduated Art classes are back! These classes are open to any adult over the age of 18 that wants to flex their creative muscles and have a lot of fun.

These classes explore the visual arts with adults. In “Art Explosion” students engage in several projects over the course of the semester. And this semester, we are also offering an advanced class, which will explore the art of “bookmaking.”
These classes start the week of September 30, so there is still time to register. If you are interested, contact Katie at #885-5866 or vsaprogram@iserv.net.

Art& Mentoring/ Art Explorations for Transition Students
The school year is kicking off with a special tour of ArtPrize 2009 for our transition students.

After than, different classes will participate in: drumming, pottery, photography, painting, and music. Whew! That is a lot of creative energy.

Very Special Choir
For adults, our fantastic choir is back. Rehearsals start on Thursday September 24, 2009, at Kuyper College’s Dan Vos Chapel.

And meet our new choir director is Erinn Epp. Erinn is a certified music therapist, having studied music therapy at Wilfrid Laurier University (Ontario, Canada) and New York University. She has worked as a music therapist and educator with people aged 0-103 in a variety of educational, healthcare, and community settings. While living in Princeton, New Jersey, she was a founding member of the music therapy department at Westminster Conservatory, providing music therapy services to individuals with special needs in the context of a community music school. Erinn is also a registered Music Together teacher, and has combined music therapy techniques with the Music Together curriculum in her work with people with autism, developmental delays, attachment disorders, and hearing impairments. Originally from Canada, Erinn has lived and worked in many diverse locations across North America. She is excited to be in Grand Rapids, helping to bring the joy of music participation to people through the VSA. Erinn is also a pianist and vocalist, and loves to perform as well as teach. She lives with her husband and daughter, a very noisy toddler.

Interested in more information about the choir, contact Katie at #885-5866 or at vsaprogram@iserv.net.


Over the year, keep watching our blog for pictures and highlights of our programs.