Hi everyone! My name is Dyeemah Simmons and I am currently in my third year of the Art Education Master’s Program at CCNY. In addition to being a student, I work at the Whitney Museum as the Coordinator of Teen Programs. I help run all of the Museum’s free art-making programs for teens. I am also an artist who works mainly in analog photography and collage.
For my thesis, I’ve decided to delve into research about programming for English Language Learners and immigrant communities at arts museums/organizations. I will mainly focus on the impact that Youth Insights (YI) Introductions, an art-making program at the Whitney for high school students who identify as English Language Learners, has had on past participants. In order to do this, I’ve distributed an online survey and conducted in-person interviews, asking past participants to speak about their experience in the program and share what they liked most, and what they feel can be improved for future participants. During the in-person interviews, I asked participants to represent a favorite memory from their time in YI Introductions using colored pencils and a small sheet of white paper. Below is a drawing from a past participant which she says represents her last day of the program.
The purpose of this research is not only to improve the Whitney’s YI Introductions program, but to make the case for art museums/institutions/organizations everywhere to consider the resources they have and how they can create critical spaces for English Language Learners and immigrant communities. During my research, I’ve come across many scholars and educators who are thinking about the best ways in which we can serve young people who are learning English. One of the most inspiring figures has been Ofelia García, a professor in the Ph.D. programs of Urban Education and of Latin American, Iberian, and Latino Cultures (LAILAC) at the Graduate Center of the City University of New York. She has written numerous books and essays about educating “emergent bilinguals”, a term which I was introduced to through her writing. Her work has introduced me to a whole new perspective on students who are learning English: instead of focusing on what students are missing, it’s a lot more productive and affirming to acknowledge all of the wonderful things they bring to the table. Creating space for students to express themselves creatively is critical; spaces that bolster the arts have an amazing opportunity to help these students grow, while simultaneously helping their own institutions change for the better.
