President's Message (April 2026)

Hello DARTS members!  

CEC 2026

Juli Dorff was presented with the DARTS Lifetime Achievement Award at CEC 2026. Throughout her remarkable career, Juli has been a passionate advocate for arts education and a powerful voice for ensuring that students with exceptionalities have meaningful access to arts education. As a teacher, mentor, scholar, and leader, she has shaped our field in many ways, from serving as President of DARTS to her work with the NAEA. She has influenced countless students and educators. Juli’s career reflects the very spirit of this award, lifelong commitment, leadership, and a deep belief in the transformative power of the arts.

Kathleen Farrand, Past President of DARTS was recognized for her exceptional leadership during her 6 years of service in the presidential line. 

The CEC 2026 Convention in Salt Lake City was excellent. DARTS was well represented.

Emotional, Creative & Regulation Skills for Improved Life Outcomes

Beverley Johns, Brandon Ellsworth, Helene Lieberman, & Kate Bachtel

DARTS Showcase: Accessible Arts through AT

Sara Lucas-Dreiss & Hannah Lucas-Dreiss

Resource Opportunity: GLINT for DARTS Members

GLINT is a tool for creating communication supports that uses the same symbol set as Boardmaker, but many find it more streamlined and easier to use. They’ve also recently partnered with Attainment Company, which means there are now templates available for a variety of their devices.

Right now, this link (https://nerchat.com/su/SLD) provides 30 days of unlimited use, including the ability to create additional projects each month, even without a subscription. 

Feel free to explore and decide if it’s a good fit for your needs.

Partnership Highlight: EdTA

DARTS has a budding partnership with the Educational Theatre Association (EdTA; https://schooltheatre.org/). If any of these opportunities align with your interests or expertise, I’d encourage you to get involved by emailing Sara Lucas Dreiss [email protected] 

• They are forming a disabilities committee and are looking for theatre educators or researchers who would like to be involved. A key focus will be improving accessibility and equity within their Thespys program, particularly around adjudication.
• The EdTA online professional development portal (https://learn.schooltheatre.org/) has recently been refreshed, and they are seeking accessible/adaptive theatre content.
• EdTA is also interested in having DARTS members present at their annual Theatre Education Conference. We will share when the call for proposals comes out. Here is info about the 2026 conference: https://schooltheatre.org/tec-2026/ 

Journal of the Arts and Special Education (JASE)

Now Published: Journal of the Arts and Special Education (JASE), Volume 6, Issue 1

Read the full issue: https://docs.lib.purdue.edu/jase/

This issue includes:

• A 10-year reflection on DARTS and its impact on arts advocacy

• An inspiring interview with musician and disability advocate Lachi

• A review of Artful Instruction focused on accessible art education

• A community partnership promoting inclusive dance

• A systematic review on puppetry for teaching social skills

• Practical strategies for inclusive community theatre programs

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Thank you for all you do to make the arts meaningful and inclusive for each and every student! 

Jasmine Begeske

DARTS, President