National Arts in Education Week: Illuminating the Power of “GIVE” with Teaching Artist Sofiya Cheyenne

This week we’re celebrating National Arts in Education Week—a nationwide celebration where everyone across disciplines comes together to tell stories about the importance of arts education.

To celebrate, we’re highlighting our program GIVE (Growing Inclusivity for Vibrant Engagement) and the transformative power of promoting inclusive education practices. The planning of the GIVE Guide was three years in the making and culminated in the launch of TeachWithGIVE.org in the fall of 2021. The New Victory Education Department, along with GIVE partners ArtsConnection and Community-Word Project, aims to build inclusive practices for disabled students within the arts across all sectors serving young people.

Select New Victory Teaching Artists got to dive into the GIVE Guide and its various inclusive resources for educators as GIVE Trainers. We wanted to hear more about that first-hand experience, so we approached New Victory Teaching Artist Sofiya Cheyenne. Sofiya was kind enough to reflect on the importance of GIVE and equity in the classroom.

Niki Cruz: What has it meant to be a New Victory Teaching Artist?

Sofiya Cheyenne: Being a New Victory Teaching Artist means that I am a social and emotional impactor in New York State! I see my work as a Teaching Artist as a huge responsibility, giving the youth of NYC an opportunity to lean into their most creative selves in a safe and brave space. It has also given me many opportunities outside of teaching, from expanding my artistry with our Teaching Artist ensemble to growing my network as a Disability Inclusion Consultant.

NC: What do you want to tell people about GIVE who may not be familiar with the program?

SC: GIVE is an incredible online resource for Teaching Artists and educators alike who work with students with disabilities. It is a resource full of tips, lesson plans, activities and disability culture knowledge that is crucial to working with this community. As a disabled person, I have had the honor to work with this resource and help it expand. It is a living breathing resource that is always influenced by feedback, just as we are as humans—and isn’t that lovely?

NC: Can you tell readers the necessity behind implementing strategies found on the GIVE website in a classroom?

SC: It is a shame, but unless you are connected to the disabled community through a family member or a friend, most people do not educate themselves about disability. Most of us only understand what mainstream Hollywood tells us about disability, which is typically written and created by non-disabled people. GIVE is a place that has included disabled perspectives and strives to center disabled people in the classroom. When we as educators take a person-centered approach with a trauma-informed lens and disability culture perspective, we will shift the mainstream. Implementing the strategies in GIVE will empower students with disabilities to have control of their education and thus their own lives as individuals. We all know knowledge is power, and disabled people deserve to be seen and see themselves as smart, intelligent, creative beings.

NC: The heart of GIVE is its inclusive resources; how do you think GIVE will influence the classroom experience for all learners?

SC: GIVE, although very specific for students with disabilities, is useful for any classroom. As we all strive to be more inclusive and equitable in our day-to-day lives, as educators, we must strive for equity in the classroom. GIVE resources share many useful tools to work with students of all kinds of abilities, specifically neurodivergent, low vision, hard of hearing and physical mobility disabilities. When we can understand how to create access for these communities that are typically left out, we create access for all. This is how we change education to never leave anyone feeling like they do not belong.

NC: What was your experience like engaging with these resources?

SC: GIVE is loaded with information. There is a lot to digest, but everything in the GIVE Guide is useful. Everything! From tips for your students to teacher reflections of your own work, I was really blown away when I first came across GIVE and was excited to see how it could grow.

NC: What was your takeaway after going through the pilot of GIVE? Were there any surprises?

SC: I think some of my main surprises were the disability culture parts that still continue to grow. One of my favorite parts of the GIVE Guide is when it reflects on shame and stigma, which is something that many marginalized communities feel and experience. The fact that this guide has made space to dig deep into that is truly remarkable. We need to not be afraid to talk about shame and stigma and to call it in, not out; we need to name it when it happens so we can heal as a people and thrive together.

To learn more about the GIVE Guide and how you can implement its resources in your classroom, visit TeachWithGIVE.org. Happy National Arts in Education Week!