What can schools do to integrate Social-Emotional Learning, Diversity, Belonging, Global Citizenship and Creative Expression into one beautiful package? The answer lies in prioritizing a crucial aspect of schooling: The Arts. And yet The Arts are often relegated to “encore” status, underfunded or even dispensed with when budget crunches hit.
For this show, we assembled an incredibly talented panel of guests who represented multiple years of experience and an array of artistic disciplines: David Gran for Film, Tina Casey for Theater, Nick Stonehouse for Fine Art and Scott Rogal to represent Music.
David Gran has taught visual arts and developed new film programs for over 20 years at institutions including the Harlem School for the Arts and Huntington High School in New York, the Shanghai American School in China, and currently the International School Nido de Aguilas in Santiago, Chile. He and his wife Kim, who is also an art teacher, were founding members and educators of SAS’s Innovation Institute—an interdisciplinary project-based learning program—and Nido’s Changemakers program, which blends art, technology, and social studies to promote student action and advocacy in their communities. David is a former Media Arts columnist for School Arts Magazine, co-founder of the Shanghai Student Film Festival, and recently co-launched the InThinking site for IB Film. David and Kim share their international adventures with their daughters, Elianna and Amaya.
Tina Casey is currently teaching at ISKL as the High School and IB Theatre teacher, as well as serving as the Performing Arts Director. She has been working overseas with her husband, Peter, for over 30 years, including 15 years in Malaysia. Tina has three adult children who were raised overseas in international schools; two of them are still performers in Canada. This year marks Tina’s final year at ISKL, after which she and Peter will return to their home in Northern Ontario for a "nap year" before deciding on their next steps.
Nick Stonehouse is an art and design educator currently working in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam. He has taught a wide range of age groups, from Early Childhood to Secondary, with experience in the UK Curriculum, IB, and Common Core. At present, Nick is thoroughly enjoying teaching grades 2 and 3 art across various visual media. An avid photographer, artist, and art enthusiast, Nick is also a sea-lover who delights in exploring the hidden corners of the world.
Scott Rogal is an avid tennis player, although some matches played in the 52-degree heat of summer don’t go so well. He is also an active composer and continues to write and publish through ApRo Music, a Canadian publisher. Scott previously taught in Canada, Hong Kong and Vietnam. Currently, Scott teaches Band at the American School of Bahrain and conducts the Jazz Orchestra of Bahrain, a semi-professional ensemble featuring many of Bahrain’s top musicians.
Our guiding question for the show was “What are some characteristics that describe basic and exemplary international school arts programs?”
Our panelists shared many insights and practicalities in setting up and implementing an arts program while also sharing specifics about their individual domains of music, theater, film and art.
Here are a few of the topics covered:
What a standard K-12 arts program from a holistic perspective can look like
Unpacking the components of an arts program including mission/vision, infrastructure, curricular outcomes, etc.
Painting the picture of what music, theater, film and art look like in ES, MS and HS
What really made the discussion special was the rich discussion with each participant chiming in with their takes while sharing experiences from their careers. To this point we made it only half way through our questions so plans are already being made for a follow up recording!
This episode was recorded on March 29, 2025.
Categories: The Arts | SEL | Life Skills
