| RUSH TICKETS AVAILABLE! Last Minute Discount…Only $9.99! |
||
|
||
|
||
|
||
|
||
| Lehigh Valley Arts Council www.LVArtsCouncil.org ◊ www.LVArtsBoxOffice.org Rush Ticketing is a service of the Lehigh Valley Arts Council. For more information, visit: |
Tag Archives: Lafayette College
Lehigh Valley Arts Advocate – June 2016
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
Lehigh Valley Arts Council
840 Hamilton Street, Suite 201 ◊ Allentown, PA 18101 610.437.5915 ◊ info@LVArtsCouncil.org www.LVArtsCouncil.org ◊ LVArtsBoxOffice.org |
||||
Lehigh Valley Arts Council To Present Comedian Josh Blue At Williams Center For The Arts, Lafayette College, June 14
Josh Blue, the celebrated comedian who uses his own affliction with cerebral palsy as part of his routine, will perform in Easton at 7 p.m. June 14 at Lafayette College, Easton, Pa. The event is sponsored by the Lehigh Valley Arts Council, in cooperation with the Williams Center for the Arts at Lafayette, to celebrate LVAC’s yearlong Arts & Access program, a call for Valley arts organizations to be more inclusive of persons with disabilities.
Blue was the grand prize winner at the Las Vegas Comedy Festival, has appeared on NBC’s “Last Comic Standing” and is a favorite on the college comedy circuit. He is known for his ability to improvise and encourage his audience to overcome preconceived notions about people who are labeled as “disabled.”
A recent L.V. Research Consortium survey revealed that more than 13 percent of the Valley’s population has a disability and that this population grows by about three percent per year.
“Josh Blue is the ideal ambassador for greater inclusion of the disabled,” says LVAC Executive Director Randall Forte. “We are overwhelmed at the success of the first year of Arts & Access, particularly with the enthusiasm of our participating arts organizations.”
Since June 14 is also Flag Day, the program has been tagged “Red, White and Blue.” Invitations are in the mail to Arts Council members and the clients of Lehigh Valley non-profit agencies serving clients with challenges such as blindness, deafness, autism and other disabilities. A limited number of tickets will also be available to the public, particularly for individuals with disabilities, by calling LVAC at 610-437-5915.
The event marks the culmination of the Arts Council’s celebration of the 25th anniversary of the passing of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). The LVAC program was a response to a request by the L.V. Partnership for a Disability Friendly Community to encourage local arts organizations to reconsider how their offerings can better serve disabled individuals.
For example, the Josh Blue event will be interpreted by an American Sign Language practitioner, will be audio-described, and the hand-out program will be available in Braille and large print versions. LVAC offers arts groups assistance and lends the special equipment needed for audio description.
As a result of Arts & Access, 30 cultural organizations have teamed with social service agencies over the past year to provide greater accommodation at more than 50 disability-friendly events, including sensory-friendly performances for children with autism, movement classes for Parkinson’s patients, audio-described and open-captioned theatrical performances, lectures, exhibitions, poetry readings, film screenings, and public meetings. LVAC reports that as a result of Arts & Access 2015-16, 589 people with disabilities attended those events, accompanied by 705 family members and friends.
For supporting documents and materials, please click here: http://www.lvartscouncil.org/red-white-and-blue/
‘Arts And Access’ Launches Program For Greater Accessibility
| Lehigh Valley arts and cultural organizations will be welcoming patrons with intellectual, sensory and physical disabilities as a result of the effort of the Lehigh Valley Arts Council (LVAC) and the Lehigh Valley Partnership for a Disability Friendly Community (Partnership).
They will host an “Arts & Access” reception on July 24, 2015, to launch the yearlong plan to celebrate the 25th Anniversary of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) through the lens of the arts. The event will be held 4:30-6 p.m. at the Good Shepherd Health & Technology Center, 850 S. 5th St., Allentown. It is open to the public, particularly to anyone with a disability. “Access to the arts is more than just building a ramp,” said Randall Forte, LVAC Executive Director. “To be truly accessible to those with disabilities, performing and visual arts groups need to make important changes in the way they have always done things.” With the guidance of VSA PA, LVAC has developed staff training and promotional programs to help local arts organizations learn how to remove the barriers that prevent people with disabilities from enjoying their offerings. More than 30 arts organizations have already agreed to move toward greater inclusion and make accommodations for people with disabilities. Workshops will continue this year on implementing open captioning and audio description for people with vision and hearing loss. Open Captioning provides the audience with an electronic text display to the side of the stage, displaying lyrics, dialogue, and sound effects in real time. Audio Description is a form of audio-visual translation, using natural pauses to insert narrative that translates the visual image into an audible form. Patrons use headsets to hear the audio description. Together, the arts council and partnership hope to accomplish the following goals: For more information, visit ArtsandAccess.org Addressing a need The 2012 U.S. Census estimated that more than 12 percent of the Valley’s non-institutionalized population lives with some kind of disability. That’s a potential arts audience of about 81,000 people. “Arts groups should realize that in the community with disabilities there is an untapped market for performing and visual arts,” said Forte. Members of the Lehigh Valley Partnership for a Disability Friendly Community, a coalition of organizations that serve the diverse disabled community, asked the LVAC to involve arts groups in addressing this issue. To date, more than thirty arts and cultural organizations have agreed to participate, including ArtsQuest, Allentown Art Museum, Lehigh University Art Galleries, Muhlenberg College Theatre & Dance, Pennsylvania Shakespeare Festival, SATORI, and Williams Center for the Arts. Arts & Access is already responsible for important changes in the way the arts are presented. For example, this fall the Lehigh University Art Galleries will debut a tactile description program in their teaching gallery, which uses technology to create a three-dimensional relief of a portion of the image for the person to explore through touch. Many local service providers, such as Lehigh Valley Center for Independent Living and the Center for Vision Loss, are offering customer service training free-of-charge. For instance, the staff at Center for Vison Loss will work with ushers and box office personnel on how to interact with a person with vision loss. In addition to providing them audio-description, theatres may offer a pre-show sensory tour, where patrons arrive early, meet cast members and handle props and costume accessories. The LVAC can connect presenters with affordable professionals who do American Sign Language interpreting, audio describing, and open captioning for live events and exhibitions. The council also offers audio-describer training and equipment for organizations who wish to train their in-house personnel. In addition, participants may apply to the council for a Greater Inclusion Grant, a matching grant for up to $300, to help fund a new initiative that meets the approved criteria. The Americans for Disabilities Act, passed on July 26, 1990, prohibits discrimination against the disabled. It set in motion a frenzy of activity designed to prevent discrimination against those who have difficulty navigating modern life, particularly in employment, transportation, and public buildings. But the act did not specifically address the facilities used by the arts such as theaters, galleries, and auditoriums. http://www.ada.gov/cguide.htm#anchor62335 L.V. Partnership for a Disability Friendly Community is a diverse network of more than 75 people and agencies in the Lehigh Valley united in the goal to improve the lives of people with disabilities. Their vision is to be a catalyst for change in making the Valley a disability-friendly community which is inclusive, accessible, and welcoming. http://disabilityfriendlylv.com/ The Lehigh Valley Arts Council acts as both advocate and catalyst to create new gateways, and bring people together to find solutions that advance greater arts participation. It promotes the arts, supports the development of artists, assists arts organizations, facilitates communication among its constituencies, and conducts research to measure the economic impact of the region’s cultural industry. http://www.lvartscouncil.org/ VSA ARTS in Pennsylvania shares its knowledge of inclusive arts education across Pennsylvania and works with artists with disabilities to develop professional careers. Schedule for July 24 Launch Party
5:15 p.m.
5:30 p.m.
6 p.m.
Free, wheelchair accessible parking is available in the Good Shepherd parking deck across from the Health & Technology Center on South 5th St.; it is connected to the center via a bridge on level three. A Partial List of Arts Organizations participating in Arts & Access Allentown Art Museum in collaboration with Via of the Lehigh Valley and artist Jill Odegaard ArtsQuest Muhlenberg Summer Music Theatre Pennsylvania Shakespeare Festival Raker Lecture Series SATORI in collaboration painter William Christine at the Colonial Intermediate Unit #21 Williams Center for the Arts/ Lafayette College |
||
| *** | ||
|
||
| *** | ||
|
Lehigh Valley Arts Council 840 Hamilton Street, Suite 201 Allentown, PA 18101 610-437-5915 / operations@LVArtsCouncil.org www.LVArtsCouncil.org / www.LVArtsBoxOffice.org |
Group Forms To Raise Money For Easton Ambassadors Program In Downtown Area
English: Skyline of Easton, PA from Lafayette College (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
The Easton Ambassadors are looking for a little help from their friends to generate needed money to sustain and expand the program.
The red-shirted Ambassadors clean Downtown streets, assist visitors with local tourism questions and provide police with an extra set of eyes to spot potential trouble.
But officials say reduced funding has limited their ability to perform their duties. Their patrol shrank in 2012 to cover primarily Centre Square and nearby Third and Northampton streets.
The group’s budget is about $230,000 this year but if it can raise its revenues by at least $50,000 to previous years’ totals, it may be able to expand its reach to Pine and Fifth streets, as it had done in the past, officials said.
Read more: http://www.lehighvalleylive.com/easton/index.ssf/2014/08/group_forms_to_raise_money_for.html
Put Yourself On The Map! Lehigh Valley Arts Council Spring Membership Reception
Join the Lehigh Valley Arts Council for a celebration of the future and twenty-five years of service at the sleek, sophisticated headquarters of Lehigh Gas Partners LP in the soaring, new 11-story tower, Two City Center, which is transforming downtown Allentown.
Joseph V. Topper, Jr., Chairman & CEO of Lehigh Gas Partners LP and partner in City Center Investment Corp, is hosting the event. This annual get-together is a popular occasion for members to renew their connection to the arts and to each other. They will enjoy a tour of the fifth floor offices and expansive views of the Lehigh Valley.
Four prominent cultural leaders will be celebrated for their vision and for taking their organizations in new directions:
- Greg Funfgeld, Artistic Director & Conductor, and Bridget George, Executive Director of The Bach Choir of Bethlehem
- Ellis Finger, Director of Williams Center of the Arts, Lafayette College
- David Mickenberg, President and CEO of the Allentown Art Museum
“We chose to celebrate our twenty-fifth anniversary with a nod to the arts community and to the future,” says Randall Forte, executive director. “And of course there will be cake and merriment!”
Festivities will include “mapping the cultural community,” as arts professionals and patrons will be encouraged to mark their location on a large-scale regional map. Guests will be greeted by a visual panoply of images from more than 100 cultural organizations, highlighting their vision statements.
Light food will be provided. Wine will be available on a cash basis.
Premiere Sponsors: PP&L, EBC Printing, and Lehigh Gas Partners LP;
Supporting Sponsor: Scoblionko, Scoblionko, Muir & Melman Attorneys at Law.
Please RSVP by May 23rd! Reservations are encouraged to expedite check-in at the security desk at Two City Center.
Members attend for FREE and can RSVP http://www.lvartscouncil.org/RSVP.html
Nonmembers can purchase tickets for $10 http://www.etix.com/ticket/online/performanceSearch.jsp?performance_id=1812994&cobrand=lvartsboxoffice
For more information
610.437.5915 ◊ operations@LVArtsCouncil.org
Northampton County Grant Will Buy Trolley For Downtown Easton
English: Skyline of Easton, PA from Lafayette College (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
Easton officials hope to ease the city’s rising parking problems by introducing a trolley to the Downtown area purchased through a Northampton County grant.
Mayor Sal Panto Jr. said today that the city plans to buy a used trolley sometime this month and have it up and running through the Downtown area this summer. With the city’s new parking garage not due for completion until autumn, the city will rely on the trolley to connect distant parking lots to popular tourist spots, Panto said.
“We can’t invent parking, so I think it’s the next best idea,” Panto said.
County Executive John Brown said the $42,000 grant from the Northampton County Gaming and Economic Redevelopment Authority is part of the county’s outreach to regional partners. The county will also allow the city to use the Northampton County Courthouse’s parking lots for the Easton Farmers’ Market and other large events, he said.
Read more: http://www.lehighvalleylive.com/easton/index.ssf/2014/05/northampton_county_grant_will.html
Lehigh Valley Arts Council Presents Spring Membership Reception: Put Yourself On The Map
Allentown, PA – The 2014 spring membership reception, Put Yourself on the Map, embraces the excitement and promise of a new cultural horizon in the Lehigh Valley. On Wednesday, May 28, 2014, from 5:30 – 7:30 PM, the Lehigh Valley Arts Council commemorates twenty-five years of service to the region with a look at what the future holds. Join members and their guests for a celebration at the sleek, sophisticated headquarters of Lehigh Gas Partners LP in the soaring, new 11-story tower, Two City Center, which is transforming downtown Allentown.
Joseph V. Topper, Jr., Chairman & CEO of Lehigh Gas Partners LP and partner in City Center Investment Corp, is hosting the event. This annual get-together is a popular occasion for members to renew their connection to the arts and to each other. They will enjoy a tour of the fifth floor offices and expansive views of the Lehigh Valley.
Four prominent cultural leaders will be celebrated for their vision and for taking their organizations in new directions:
Greg Funfgeld, Artistic Director & Conductor, and Bridget George, Executive Director of The Bach Choir of Bethlehem
Ellis Finger, Director of Williams Center of the Arts, Lafayette College
David Mickenberg, President and CEO of the Allentown Art Museum
“We chose to celebrate our twenty-fifth anniversary with a nod to the arts community and to the future,” says Randall Forte, executive director. “And of course there will be cake and merriment!”
Festivities will include “mapping the cultural community,” as arts professionals and patrons will be encouraged to mark their location on a large-scale regional map. Guests will be greeted by a visual panoply of images from more than 100 cultural organizations, highlighting their vision statements.
Generously underwritten by PP&L, EBC Printing, and Lehigh Gas Partners LP, light foodwill be provided. Wine will be available on a cash basis. Parking is available in the lot on the southwest corner of 7th & Hamilton Streets.
Members attend for FREE; nonmembers pay $10. RSVP by May 23rd. Reservations are encouraged to expedite check-in at the security desk at Two City Center; please call the Arts Council at 610-437-5915 or register online at http://www.LVArtsCouncil.org.
Members RSVP for free here: http://www.lvartscouncil.org/rsvp.html
Nonmembers can purchase tickets ($10.00) here: http://www.etix.com/ticket/online/performanceSearch.jsp?performance_id=1812994&cobrand=lvartsboxoffice
For more information:
Call: 610-437-5915
Email: operations@LVArtsCouncil.org
Web: http://www.lvartscouncil.org/RSVP.html
Location: Two City Center, Lehigh Gas Corp., Fifth Floor
645 Hamilton Street, Allentown, Pa. 18101
Date / Time: Wednesday, May 28, 2014, from 5:30 to 8:00 p.m.
Fee: Free for Members; $10 for nonmembers.
Attendance: Reservations are required. Tickets can be purchased online.
***
About the Lehigh Valley Arts Council
The Lehigh Valley Arts Council is a nonprofit 501(c)3, membership-supported organization that serves as a regional advocate and ambassador for the Lehigh Valley arts community. Its mission is to promote the arts; to encourage and support artists and their development; to assist arts organizations; and to facilitate communication and cooperation among artists, arts organizations and the community. Through collaborative partnerships, it continues to provide access to the local arts community through education, research, professional development seminars and cooperative marketing initiatives.
***
Lehigh Valley Arts Council
840 Hamilton Street, Suite 201
Allentown, PA 18101
610-437-5915 / operations@LVArtsCouncil.org
http://www.LVArtsCouncil.org / http://www.LVArtsBoxOffice.org
Two Haverford School Graduates Charged With Selling Drugs At Main Line High Schools And Colleges
Map of Pennsylvania highlighting Montgomery County (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
Two graduates of the Haverford School on the Main Line were arrested Monday after authorities said they led a drug trafficking ring the dealers called “the Main Line takeover project” that targeted local high schools and colleges.
As the name implied, the goal of the dealers was to “take over from existing drug dealers the marijuana business in the Main Line section of Montgomery County,” authorities said.
The Montgomery County District Attorney’s Office said that Neil K. Scott, 25, of Haverford, and Timothy C. Brooks, 18, of Villanova, employed high school students at Lower Merion, Harriton, Conestoga, and Radnor High Schools and college students at Haverford, Gettysburg and Lafayette Colleges to be “sub-dealers.”
The ring allegedly also sold cocaine, hash oil and ecstasy to students on the Main Line, police said.
Pottstown To Offer $110K To $130K For Manager’s Post
Location of Pottstown in Montgomery County (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
Editor’s note: For the proposed salary level, a national search had better be conducted! There are rumors flying around that Pottstown Borough Council has already decided to give the manager position to a current borough employee. If a wise decision is not made, Pottstown will suffer greatly!
POTTSTOWN — Borough council will decide formally Monday whether to offer a salary range of between $110,000 and $130,00 a year for a new borough manager.
It surfaced during Wednesday’s work session when council heard a presentation from David L. Woglom, former QuakertownBorough Manager and now the associate director for public service at the at Lafayette College.
The Meyner Center was hired by borough council to perform a search for a new borough manager after Jason Bobst submitted his resignation in May after getting a job as West Norriton’s township manager, a post Bobst has already taken up.
Last month council appointed Pottstown Police Chief Mark Flanders as interim borough manager.
Easton Moves Forward With Commuter Tax
English: Skyline of Easton, PA from Lafayette College (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
Easton City Council approved a commuter tax Wednesday, raising the earned income tax for more than 10,000 people who work in Easton but live outside the city an average of $127.
City officials estimate the new tax will generate $1.35 million, which Easton can use only toward offsetting a $1.8 million increase in pension obligations. The commuter tax, which takes effect Jan. 1, raises the earned income tax for non-Easton residents from 1 percent to 1.75 percent, the same rate city residents pay.
Council’s 6-1 vote came after an impassioned debate between Mayor Sal Panto Jr. and Councilman Jeff Warren, who wrote a recent op-ed piece opposing the commuter tax. Panto accused Warren, the only council member to vote against the tax, of political grandstanding.
“You keep saying you’re against this but you haven’t laid out any alternatives,” Panto told Warren. “What are you coming up with? What is your solution?”
Read more: http://www.mcall.com/news/local/easton/mc-easton-commuter-tax-vote-20120808,0,1762718.story
Roy's Rants - For Your Information 