CALL FOR COURSE PROPOSALS

DEADLINE:
JULY 17, 11:59 PM EST

What is the Education Program Schedule?  

• Fall Term: November 6th – December 15th, 2023
• Winter Term: February 5th- March 29th, 2024
• Spring Term: May 6th – June 28th, 2024

Please note that all courses will take place Monday-Friday between 12PM and 8PM.

How long are courses? 

Courses are 6 weeks in length and take place once per week for a duration of 2 hours.

Where will I be teaching?

Courses may take place virtually via Zoom or in person at one of the WA studio spaces in Toronto. We currently have 2 spaces- our Onsite CAMH space at 1025 Queen Steeet West and our Offsite location at 180 Shaw Street.

What is the instructor fee?

In order to compensate instructors fairly, all instructors working within WA’s Education Department will now be paid CARFAC rates; the current CARFAC rate is $335 per workshop for a workshop that is 4 hours or less.

The total instructor fee for a 6 week term will amount to $2010. This fee is all inclusive which means that it also covers the mandatory instructor orientation at the start of term, and any curriculum/lesson prep and administrative labour required for instructing the course.

How many courses can I teach? 

Instructors are assigned one course per term and may teach a maximum of 2 terms per year. (An education year is 3 terms in length). If you are proposing to instruct for 2 terms, the course taught in the second term cannot be an exact repeat of the course taught in the previous term. In other words, you may either propose a two-term course (for instance the same course with Part I taking place in the Fall and Part II taking place in Winter – Part II should build and expand upon Part I and not be an exact repeat) OR you can propose 2 different courses (for instance, an acrylic painting course focused on portraits for the Winter term and then an oil painting course focused on still life for the Spring term).

*Please note that depending on the volume of applications we receive as well as the needs of the artist membership, applicants proposing 2 courses or a two-term course, may ultimately be selected to teach a single course only. WA strives to provide all instructors with an equal opportunity to share their skills and knowledge with the membership.

How many participants are there per class?

Class sizes can range anywhere from 5 participants to 15+.  If selected to instruct, you will work with the Education Manager to determine what class size is best for your particular course.

Does Workman Arts supply materials? 

We have a modest budget for purchasing art supplies for participants who require them. Please inquire with the Education Manager if your course requires specialized equipment or art materials.

If you have any more questions, please connect with the Education Manager at Hanan_Hazime@workmanarts.com

Art Cart is a partnership between Workman Arts and Gifts of Light, which pairs established Workman Arts member artists with CAMH client services to provide peer-to-peer arts instruction with an emphasis on skill development and creative exploration. These art workshops connect artists with lived experience of mental health and addiction issues with those currently in recovery through structured 10-week workshop series exploring a specific art medium in-depth and building a body of work. Each season of workshops concludes with an exhibit of work produced across all of the classes, and participating artists are given the option to select works to exhibit and sell. Art Cart engages participants in a process of creation that not only provides recreational richness, expressive agency and quality of life, but allows them to create pieces that are theirs to showcase and keep.

Art Cart classes are deeply treasured and appreciated by the participants and provide something really special in clinical settings. Teaching in the Art Cart program can be a bit different than teaching in the Workman Arts community or with community partners. Some things that an instructor might expect include:

• Materials restrictions: many participants may have certain arts materials that they cannot use during recovery. We often need to be adaptable in the materials participants will use. Common materials restrictions include scissors or sharps, carving tools or long strings. Note that some groups have no restrictions at all, so you are still welcome to propose courses that include these materials.
• Shorter class time: Art Cart classes are 45 minutes to 1 hour in length, depending on the group. This time can fly by very quickly, so classes well suited to the program will be able to set up rather quickly, get folks into the practice and wrap up on time.
• Participant turnover: Some clinical partners will allow for a consistent group of participants across 10 weeks to really allow your group to build a practice and work on some longer term projects. Most groups, however, will have some turnover – either having new participants each time, or some new and some returning. Classes well suited to the program will be able to suit both new and returning participants.

If you are interested in teaching as part of the Art Cart program, please indicate that in your proposal. There will be a field that will allow you to comment on how your course would be flexible for these differences.

Workman Arts instructors have collaborated and hosted courses and workshops with the following organizations:

Homes First

Hong Fook Mental Health Association

Liaison of Independent Filmmakers of Toronto (LIFT)

Recovery College

Tangled Art + Disability

The 519

Toronto Community Housing

Trinity Square Video

• Paid teaching opportunities during the Winter/Spring term(s) at Workman Arts, Art Cart, and/or partner sites
• Free access to training and professional development opportunities
• Community-based peer support from artists who have mental health experiences
• Access to Zoom Pro for planning and running courses
• Access to equipment and/or gear for teaching, temporary digital storage space

Click here to apply online.

Workman Arts also invites applicants to submit their applications in the following format:

• Paper sent by mail
• Oral format*
• ASL

*This includes: an interview by phone or video conferencing (Zoom, Skype, or Meet), a voice recording (MP3 or WAV), or a video recording (MP4, AVI, or MOV)

Applicants who would like to apply by mail, orally, or with ASL services can get in touch with the Education Manager by June 23rd to make arrangements. Workman staff or a peer support may be assigned to help the applicant complete the submission process.

Applications will be assessed on the content itself and not be judged based on the format of the submission.

• Apply by the deadline (Monday, July 17, 11:59 pm)
• Workman Arts staff will review all applications and create a shortlist (by end of July)
• Final decisions will be made by Workman Arts staff (by early-mid August)
• Instructors will be confirmed (by early September)