Connected Arts Networks (CAN) Call for Applications

Leveraging Arts Learning Communities for Teacher Leadership and Student Achievement

We invite educators in visual/media arts, music, theater, and dance to apply to be part of a Connected Arts Networks (CAN) Professional Learning Community (PLC)! These PLCs will meet virtually each month of the school year starting in January 2024 through June 2026. Gain access to a creative community of peers, leadership opportunities, professional learning and certificates, and more focusing on the areas of equity, diversity, and inclusion; social emotional learning; and teacher leadership through standards-based arts instruction!

Connect with colleagues nationwide through online Professional Learning Communities. Together through the arts, we CAN make a difference in student learning!

See the full list of benefits below and program details below.


Project Description

The National Art Education Association, in partnership with the Educational Theater Association, the National Association for Music Education, the National Dance Education Organization, and the NYC Dept. of Education’s Arts Office launched Connected Arts Networks (CAN).

CAN is a multi-year grant initiative to create nationwide virtual Professional Learning Communities (PLCs) with educators in visual/media arts, music, theater, and dance. The purpose of CAN is to build a sustainable model of professional learning for arts educators in public schools and public charters to strengthen their pedagogy, instruction, and leadership skills in order to better serve students.

We are recruiting arts educators to join arts-based PLCs with CAN! These PLCs will meet virtually each month from September 2025 through May 2026 and will focus on improving teacher practice through individual and collaborative action research in the classroom.

Overall Goals of the Project

  • Students: To develop highly effective arts educators, building their capacity to serve every student by incorporating equity, diversity, and inclusion and social-emotional learning practices in their standards-based arts instruction through sustained, intensive, and job-embedded blended professional learning.
  • Teachers: To develop a local and national cadre of Teacher Leaders in the arts by building their content knowledge and leadership skills in order to expand the impact of arts learning for students and their communities.
  • Resources: To develop accessible arts-based instructional materials, strategies, and toolkits to disseminate to arts educators nationwide, including synchronous and asynchronous professional development programs and digital resources.
  • Partnerships: To create a model for developing, deepening, and maintaining effective partnerships among school communities, Local Education Agencies (LEAs), and national arts education associations.

Requirements

  • Be a current art educator at a PreK-12 public or public charter school and have support from your supervisor/principal. Certified arts teachers as well as teaching artists and community-based arts educators are welcome.
  • Commitment to participating in monthly 1.5 hour arts-based, virtual PLC Meetings (September 2025 - May 2026) with 75% attendance or higher. Meetings will be outside of school hours.
  • Interest in participating in the CAN action research model, which requires teachers to design and investigate a “wondering” and communicate with peer teachers to redesign curricula around the inquiry question.
  • Familiarity with standards-based arts education instruction.
  • Strong collaboration skills.

Benefits

In addition to building skills and gaining tools in standards-based arts instruction and curriculum development, CAN Teacher Participants will receive:

Upon acceptance:

  • Participant letter of acceptance and commitment for arts educator to sign
  • Supervisor letter of acceptance and support for principal/supervisor to sign
  • Virtual arts-based PLC access
  • Professional learning opportunities
  • Opportunities to meet and network with educators around the country

Upon completion of annual project goals:

  • Record of hours completed towards professional advancement
  • Certificate from art form association recognizing achievements
  • Virtual badges to be utilized in email signature, CV, grant awards for any asynchronous professional development completed (optional)
  • Completion letter for principal/supervisor
  • National recognition at association conventions

Timeline

  • May 30, 2025: Applications go live
  • July 28, 2025: Application submission deadline
  • August 31, 2025: Notification of PLC assignment
  • September 2025: CAN Orientation
  • September 2025-May 2026: Monthly PLC meetings
  • May/June 2026: CAN Celebration

How to Apply

To be considered as a CAN Teacher Participant, please complete the online application at https://survey.az1.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_eQxRBW3TjssHiV8 offsite link

Do you teach in NYC Public Schools? If so, there is a different application link for you! NYCPS CAN Landing Page - Google Docs offsite link

Application Deadline: Monday, July 28, 2025


Questions?

Contact Amy Appleton, CAN Project Director at aappleton@arteducators.org.


Interested in finding out more?

Visit the CAN Main Page to view the map of CAN teachers, hear from Teacher Leaders, and view other CAN resources.

Collaborations, Collisions, and Connections: The CAN Model of Professional Learning for Arts Educators & Leaders, NAEA Convention in Louisville, KY, March 2025


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U.S. Department of Education

Program activities for this project are fully funded through the U.S. Department of Education’s Assistance for Arts Education Program for a total of five years.