Sunday Scaries \Sən-dā \ sker-ēs\ (n.) 1. The anxiety that sets in on a Sunday when your realize that tomorrow is Monday. Oh man, it’s already 6:00 and tomorrow is Monday! Time for the Sunday scaries to set in.

There comes a time near the end of every summer when teachers everywhere go into full-on Sunday scary mode. But at a certain point, each and every day feels like a Sunday and we’re just trying to soak up every last bit of pool time and daytime Target shopping that we can. While we’re in the midst of visualizing how we’re going to decorate our classrooms for the year, the last thing we probably have on our minds is “How can I earn additional PD before heading back to school?” Well, have no fear! The Cincinnati Art Museum’s “Summer Teacher Institute” is the perfect PD to get you motivated to start another school year refreshed with new ideas!

The Summer Teacher Institute is a three day professional development program that is hosted at the Cincinnati Art Museum for two days, with a day offsite for an interactive field trip (American Sign Museum, Mercantile Library, etc.). The goal of Summer Teacher Institute is to empower teachers to try new concepts, as well as to recharge their creative energy before the new school year begins. STI is a great way to meet and collaborate with fellow educators from across the Cincinnati area. Themes for the past two summers have included: The Art of Design: Exploring the Creative Process and The Art of Craft. In addition to the WEALTH of resources and information, you will also receive a special STI BINDER to use for the duration of the workshop.

I regularly attend the Cincinnati Art Museum’s monthly “Evenings for Educators” program. STI is very similar, but x 1,000! The day is broken down into various activities in which your group will rotate through. There might be a lecture, artmaking experience, docent-led tour, or special exhibition to view. Lunch (which is always delish) is provided and makes for a nice time to decompress and discuss the day with fellow teachers. While I assumed all of the attendees were art teachers, I come to find out that there is actually quite a mix of all kinds of classroom teachers who are looking for a “different” type of summer PD.

Two of my favorite parts of STI have to be the hands-on artmaking experiences (pictured above) and lesson plan sharing from artmaking sessions. This professional development is so fantastic because you won’t be wasting your time and money sitting in a dark lecture hall on a gorgeous summer day. You’re paying for experiences that you can take back to your classroom! You will have collected so much information and knowledge over the course of three days, that you will be itching to get back to school to show off what you have learned!

Do yourself a favor, fight those summer Sunday scaries, and sign up for the 17th Annual Summer Teacher Institute on Tuesday, July 16-Thursday, July 18, 2019. CEU certificates will be awarded at the conclusion of the program; graduate credit is available through Ashland University.

Please check the website in the spring for more details

For more information, please call (513) 639-2974 or email [email protected]