On Friday, April 4, a faculty panel titled “Arts and the Hopkins Student Experience” discussed what the arts mean at Hopkins. The event space was open to alumni as part of Alumni Weekend, while other members of the Hopkins community were able to attend virtually through a livestream. As audiences both in-person and online began to settle in, they prepared to hear about vital questions such as: What makes the arts valuable? Why should we pursue them, and how? Is Hopkins committed to the arts?
Featured in the panel were: Danielle Evans, associate professor in the Writing Seminars department; Abraham Stoll, director of the Theatre Arts and Studies program; and Jennifer Kingsley, an associate teaching professor and director of the Program in Museums and Society. The panel was moderated by Daniel Weiss, Homewood professor of the humanities and former president of the Metropolitan Museum of Art.
Following a brief introduction, Weiss invited each panelist to introduce their work along with what they hoped students — even those not interested in arts careers — would take away from the arts programming at Hopkins.
Evans spoke first, representing the Hopkins writing program. She explained that through workshops and discussions, she wants her students to think about “what moves them aesthetically.” Evans argued that creative writing could equip students with social skills like communication and mutual understanding, thereby introducing one of the most vital functions of the arts: connection.
“Part of what we do in the workshop space is think about the difference between what someone meant to say and what someone else heard,” she explained, adding later that this is “part of what makes us human.”
Next, Stoll contributed his perspective based on his work in the Theatre Arts and Studies program. Recognizing the “long history of playmaking” at Hopkins, Stoll began by describing the complex and rich theater ecosystem here, made up of “real artists who know how to do things from every facet of the playmaking process.” The lessons we can learn from theater, he went on to explain, have to with “immediacy” and “humanity.” Because theater requires that all its participants be physically gathered in the same space, it enforces the sensation of a shared presence.
In addition, though the Theatre Arts and Studies program is currently only a minor, Stoll expressed a desire to expand it.
“If Hopkins were serious about the fine arts,” he added, “they would think about building the theater program into a major.”
Finally, Kingsley brought in her experience working in the Museums and Society program. Her goal is to demystify visual arts, art history and museum curation for her students.
“Whatever their background, I want my students to feel like they can go to a museum and make meaning for themselves out of that experience [and] make meaning with their communities,” Kingsley stated.
Kingsley also highlighted the lifelong skills that studying Museums and Society can provide, such as the ability to put yourself out there, and the recognition that failure leads to “innovation, creativity and change.”
The next question Weiss posed for the panelists had to do with the University’s connection to Baltimore. Considering that Hopkins is situated in “one of the great arts cities,” Weiss asked each speaker to reflect on how they are engaging with the local arts community.
Evans began by introducing The Hopkins Review, which often publishes local writing and has a tradition of using the work of Baltimore artists as the cover image. She also talked about the community-based learning program (CBL) at Hopkins, which guides Hopkins students through the process of teaching Baltimore school students about writing. Through CBL, students can learn about concepts like redlining and school segregation — in other words, what it takes to go into a specifically Baltimore classroom.”
Stoll referenced a course he teaches called “Shakespeare to Baltimore,” which engages students with the community through the act of playgoing. Then, Kingsley added the insight she gained from her collaborations with Baltimore’s cultural institutions, as well as the practicum courses she teaches. Much of her and her students’ work in relation to the city has to do with “learning how to ask questions, listen and gather information, and become a historical record of this moment.”
As an example, Kingsley brought up her involvement with a pressing current issue: What should Baltimore do with its Confederate monuments? Questions like these, she explained, must be approached through a curious and artistically-informed position, one that considers “what thinking and feeling in the city [means] in this moment.”
At this point, the panel turned the discussion over to questions from the audience.
The first question, which came from an alum, had to do with the University’s STEM reputation and what steps the University is taking to involve their science majors in the arts.
In response, the panelists spoke on their desire to help students balance anxieties about fulfilling credits with an inclination towards classes in the arts. Kingsley brought up groups like the Museum Club and other ways for the arts to reach students in their social lives. In terms of curriculum, Evans mentioned that the school does mandate certain arts-oriented courses like First-Year Seminars, ensuring that students get some amount of exposure to non-STEM classwork in their time at Hopkins.
Most encouragingly, Weiss chimed in, Hopkins students don’t need a curricular mandate to show interest in the arts. Referencing the museums classes he taught to a majority of STEM majors, he emphasized the potential for engaging students across disciplines in the arts.
“The culture has evolved,” he observed, “but we need to be there for these students at the outset [of their interest in the arts].”
One of the most poignant questions, which came from an online listener, was: “It’s hard to deny that the value of the arts has been under fire both currently and for decades. What can universities and institutions like Hopkins do in the face of such opposition and defunding to relay how vital the arts are to our humanity and economy?”
While both Stoll and Kingsley spoke on the empirical evidence for the benefits of an arts education, Weiss added this call to action:
“Across the planet, regardless of the kind of educational or cultural background they have, we know how important [artistic education] is. It is up to us, as leading educational institutions, not to be passive on these questions, but to be advocates for them, because we know from our own experience that it matters and that we are all touched by the arts — even people who say they aren’t,“ he emphasized. “They go home and read a book or they go to the movies — those are forms of art that touch their lives. So it is not a moment for us to be quiet about [the arts], but to make the case [for it] — not just arguing but to make it thoughtfully and intelligently, in compelling ways.”
This talk happened alongside the work currently being done by the Hopkins Taskforce on the Arts, as Weiss explained in his opening remarks. The Taskforce meets monthly to discuss how to advance the arts at Hopkins, drawing from the strength of preexisting programs while also finding new ways to connect with Baltimore’s resources. Led by Weiss, the Taskforce of 15 people includes trustees and students, as well as Kingsley.
In an interview with The News-Letter, Kingsley elaborated on the importance of advancing the arts, and how she hopes this initiative will affect students.
“Personally, I hope every student comes away feeling like the arts are for them — however they want to experience them,“ she said. “There is so much opportunity here... the possibilities are endless — and arts staff and faculty are super dedicated to connecting students to these opportunities.”
Kingsley spoke on the rich offerings at the school, like courses, clubs and performances. She also urged Hopkins students to connect with Baltimore, pointing out that it is home to acclaimed artists like Billie Holiday and Adrienne Rich.
“I also hope that students take away a sense of what the arts can offer them in terms of self-discovery and connecting with people across differences,” Kingsley concluded. “I think that’s such an important part of the college experience.”
