The MAX to Offer Diverse Educational Programming for All Ages
Education and the arts will unite when the Mississippi Arts + Entertainment Experience (The MAX) opens in downtown Meridian, Miss., on April 28.
The MAX’s hands-on workshops and robust educational programming will encompass music, dance, drama, writing, visual arts, and more.
“We have used the arts to explore the human condition since the dawn of time,” said Tiffany McGehee, MAX museum educator. “Our educational programs only enhance the experience and offer current Mississippi artists the opportunity to grow while inviting the rest of the world to witness and explore with us.”
Mini Maestros is a program for toddlers and their caregivers of classes featuring stories, arts and crafts, games, and music.
“Exposure to the arts at the earliest stages of development nurture an individual’s motor skills, social-emotional learning, and cultural awareness,” said McGehee. “By offering a free, weekly enrichment program to Meridian’s youngest artists, we are helping to form creative members of our community.”
For grade-school-aged children, the science- and art-integrated MAX Lab is scheduled to launch in fall 2018. MAX Lab will provide teachers with a Mississippi Career and College Readiness Standards curriculum guide, based on one of the artists showcased in the museum, which they will study with their classes prior to a visit to The MAX. At the conclusion of classes’ tours, they will create a project in one of the museum’s art studios.
Also for students, from pre-K through eighth grade, Any Given Child is a multi-year arts collaboration between The MAX, MSU Riley Center, the Kennedy Center of Performing Arts, Meridian community members, and local educators. The program provides support and resources for the Meridian Public School District, including free tour admission for MPSD schools and grants for arts-integrated studies in the museum’s studios.
High-school juniors and seniors recommended by their teachers may enroll in Picturing Success or Sounds of Success – two-week, intensive visual arts and music programs.
“There is no reason why we should continue to send our talented young artists away to hone their skills,” said McGehee. “Meridian can now host Mississippi’s creative teens in the summer of 2019 to learn from professional artists, build their artistic portfolio in music or visual art, and gain the confidence to pursue their art form.”
Additional offerings will include guided tours; hands-on workshops; lectures and demonstrations by scholars and artists; and MAX Mavens, diverse arts programs for senior citizens.