Perpich Center for Arts Education

Perpich Arts High School
Location
Olson Memorial Highway

Golden Valley
,
Minnesota

United States
Information
Established1989 (1989)
Grades11-12
Capacity310

The Perpich Center for Arts Education is an agency of the state of Minnesota that seeks to advance K-12 education throughout the state by teaching in and through the arts. A 33-acre (130,000 m2) campus in Golden Valley houses the center's three main components: the outreach and professional development group, Perpich Arts High School and the Perpich Arts Library. Perpich serves as a resource for arts education, students, teachers, artists and arts and youth organizations in Minnesota.

Perpich Arts High School is a tuition-free public high school delivering a comprehensive education centered on the arts. The school is open to all 11th- and 12th-grade students who are Minnesota residents. Students apply and audition in 10th or 11th grade in one of six areas: dance, literary arts, media arts, music, theater, or visual arts. With enrollment limited to 310 students, the school offers the benefit of learning in a small community while allowing students to take advantage of arts resources in the Twin Cities. Students living in the Twin Cities area usually commute, while those from the greater Minnesota area live in a supervised residence hall on campus.

History

Former Minnesota Governor Rudy Perpich and his wife, Lola Perpich, provided the vision for the creation of the center after an extended stay in Vienna, Austria. Inspired by the seamless integration of arts and academics in Viennese schools, the Perpiches worked to create something similar in Minnesota when Rudy was reelected governor in 1983. After a long debate, the idea of an arts high school was expanded to include professional development in arts education available to all Minnesota teachers and a statewide resource library.

The center was established in legislation in 1985 and was titled the Minnesota School of the Arts and Resource Center. Opening as The Minnesota Center for Arts Education in the autumn of 1989,[1] the school began with junior students who graduated in 1991. The school has graduated nearly 3,500 alumni, many of whom have gone on to top-ranked colleges and conservatories across the country and are leading practitioners in their arts as well as successful doctors, teachers, lawyers, scientists, and community leaders.

The center is on property that belonged to and was originally part of the Golden Valley Lutheran College. All the buildings have been modified to accommodate the Perpich Center's mission. A major addition to the main school building was made in 1998-99.

Programs

Theater

Perpich's theater program offers a general introduction to theatrical practice, with a primary focus on acting skills. Students gain a working understanding of the Stanislavsky System, with particular emphasis on ensemble performance and physical expression. The program explores classical and contemporary performance theory and practice, including musical theater. All students in the program are engaged in class and production work throughout the year. Together, students study and reflect on their plays and performances, along with their historical and social significance.[2]

Students learn how performances come together, how plays are made, and the cultural context from which stories arise. Students are challenged to develop their own themes, using the principles they have learned in class: collaboration and teamwork, shared responsibility, focusing on the whole, collective effort, unity and balance, and diverse applications. The curriculum is challenging and fit for all levels of experience.[2]

Dance

Perpich's dance program, directed by Mary Harding, focuses on modern dance, with ballet and jazz training. Students are taught improvisation, dance history, theory, and choreography. Three dance concerts are performed each year, along with additional collaborative performances on campus and in the community.

Students develop their technique, a broad movement vocabulary, and a larger perspective on dance. As part of the curriculum, dancers study modern dance or ballet in daily technique classes. They enter the program at varying skill levels and join classes accordingly. All students participate in major performance projects.[3]

Students perform their own works and the works of professional choreographers. They learn to create work from assignments through their own initiative, and in a performing ensemble.[3] Students have made performances for the Walker Art Center, Bryant Lake Bowl, Patrick's Cabaret, and the Southern Theatre.

Music

In the music department, students perform in small ensembles. Unlike a typical high-school music program, there is no orchestra or band. There is a choir for the first part of the year. Students form ensembles of two to five members and work collaboratively to arrange or compose music for their voices and instruments. They perform many concerts a year. Students also study a wide range of music topics in seminars, including theory and ear training, several seminars in electronic music, African drumming, guitar techniques and styles, soloing, and recording.

Learning focuses on developing students' fluency, musical language, performance, and compositional artistry and technique. Students divide their time between music seminars and small non-conducted ensembles. Seminars change quarterly, focusing on topics including theory, musical styles, history, improvisation, vocal music interpretation, and music production.[4]

The school encourages small student-led ensembles, where students direct and choose their ensemble's members, encouraging a collaborative approach to rehearsals. Ensembles are challenged to write original compositions to be performed during the quarterly Sound Works series.[4] The end of the year brings the independent project. Students are tasked with submitting proposals and working with instructors on the logistics and details to make the proposal a reality. Students may choose a performance, a recording, or a research project. The final project is presented in the final month of school as part of a two-week showcase[4].

Literary arts

In their junior year, literary arts students start with an intense study and practice of memoir, and then move on to short fiction, eventually creating a research-based, character-driven short story. In their senior year, students work in various genres, with a strong emphasis on poetry. In both their junior and senior years, students may read selected pieces of their writing in public readings arranged by the school. Literary students are also encouraged to arrange public readings not affiliated with the center. Several collaborative works have come from the center's literary arts community, including an anthology independently published by the graduating classes of 2006 and 2007: Lit Kids: Mama Bird and the Electric Rabbit (Mill City Press, 2007).

Students can explore their ideas and experiences through daily in-class writing. They study and write poetry, fiction, and nonfiction. This includes reading literature from diverse periods. The program tests a wide range of writing abilities and encourages students to pursue their interests.[5]

Students are entrusted with a level of responsibility and choice. They engage with the publication process by submitting their works to literary magazines and by running their own. All publications are student-led. The program requires formalized literature study, identifying literature, and placing it in social-historical contexts. Students peer critique their work and interact with their work in a public setting. They may pursue projects of their own choosing. The goal of the program is to offer support and a constructive writing community.[5]

Media arts

The media arts program includes work with digital and traditional photography, computer animation, digital film, film history and criticism, and screenwriting. The department competes annually in national competitions, and the students are required to present their work in the community and develop a portfolio for review.

Students are encouraged to exercise their creativity through moving images, sounds, and photography. Juniors start with a range of genres that encourage them to vary their approach to their subject matter. This encourages the development of critical thinking skills by creating works that showcase their perspectives and ideas. Seniors study advanced skills and techniques, history, and theory, career planning, portfolio development, and their choice of topic for an independent senior project.[6]

Students' work is evaluated through self-assessments, peer reviews, critiques, projects, portfolio interviews, group discussions, exhibitions, and demonstrations.[6] They are involved with regional and international community projects. Students have won more than 250 regional and national awards, such as the Scholastic Art & Writing Awards Program and the National YoungArts Foundation.[6] Notable community projects arts high school students have interacted with include the Walker Art Center, Minneapolis Institute of Arts, and the Minneapolis Community and Technical College.[6]

Visual arts

The visual arts department is the school's largest. It comprises a painting and drawing studio, print-making studio, ceramics room, computer lab, and gallery space. All juniors are taught painting, drawing, graphic design, printmaking, documentation, portfolio development, and art history.

The senior year is a year of electives, including paper making, oil painting, advanced drawing, stop motion animation, ceramics, sculpting, digital imaging, public art, sculpture, jewelry, mono-type printmaking, screen printing, and portfolio development. The curriculum fosters community building and prepares students for careers and higher education in the visual arts. The department is supported by arts colleges and liberal arts programs nationwide. Students study media, critical thinking, and decision-making.[7]

Noted alumni

Location

The Perpich Center is on Olson Memorial Highway in Golden Valley, Minnesota.

References

  1. ^ Russell, Scott (March 6, 2008). "Perpich High School for the Arts—A mecca for creative teens". Twin Cities Daily Planet.
  2. ^ a b "Theater". Perpich. Retrieved March 11, 2026.
  3. ^ a b "Dance". Perpich. Retrieved March 11, 2026.
  4. ^ a b c "Music". Perpich. Retrieved March 11, 2026.
  5. ^ a b "Literary Arts". Perpich. Retrieved March 11, 2026.
  6. ^ a b c d "Media Arts". Perpich. Retrieved March 11, 2026.
  7. ^ "Visual Arts". Perpich. Retrieved March 11, 2026.
  8. ^ Gill, Richard (April 28, 2010). "Punk Rock Prom Interview: Kitten Forever". Switchblade Comb.
  9. ^ Hansen, David (February 25, 2009). "Pawlenty's cuts causing Perpich arts high school to downgrade: Perpich Center For The Arts was home to Har Mar Superstar, Doomtree members". City Pages. Archived from the original on February 21, 2014. Retrieved February 1, 2014.

44°59′00.3″N 93°21′34.8″W / 44.983417°N 93.359667°W / 44.983417; -93.359667

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