U.S. Department of Education TV Series Showcases TUSD's OMA Program

NEWS RELEASE

Contact: Estella Zavala or Jennea Moore, 225-6437 
Posted on: February 22, 2005

The U.S. Department of Education’s national television show Education News Parents Can Use will showcase TUSD’s Opening Minds Through the Arts program to be aired on March 15 on PBS stations across the nation. Locally it will air at 6 p.m. on TUSD-TV, channel 95 on Cox Cable and channel 71 on Comcast. The show will be filmed on Tuesday, Feb. 22 from 8:30 a.m. to 9:45 a.m. at Cavett Elementary School, 2120 E. Naco Vista Dr., and continuing at 10:45 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. at Howell Elementary School, 401 N. Irving Rd.

Titled “Arts Education: Improving Students’ Academic Performance,” the show will include interviews with State Superintendent of Schools Tom Horne, philanthropist and OMA founder Gene Jones, TUSD director of Fine Arts Joan Ashcraft, as well as teachers, teaching artists, parents and students. The film crew will also tape artists teaching students opera, dance, and music using OMA techniques.

Education News Parents Can Use is a one-hour broadcast aired throughout the month on PBS, the Discovery Channel, and TLC. The program showcases schools and school districts from across the country, features interviews with school officials, parents and education experts, and offers advice and free resources for parents and educators. 

TUSD’s OMA program was developed around brain-based learning theories designed to impact at-risk children and significantly increase student achievement. The goal of OMA is to help all students succeed by actively supporting and positively engaging students in all subjects through the arts. More information can be found at www.omaproject.org. 

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