Posted on March 23, 2012 by Christopher St. Clair

Photo by Iñaki Vinaixa
It was once proposed, by someone who liked our work, that it was Lincoln Center Institute’s (LCI’s) mission to “build bridges between art and life so that children may learn to see the world transformed by the artist’s vision.”
Very close, but… There is danger incipient in that statement that the students will only see an artist’s point of view. What’s missing is the students’ contribution in the process; what’s missing is the act of free will.
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Filed under: Article | Tagged: American Academy of Arts and Letters, arts education, community, creativity, empathy, Hume Cronyn, imagination, individuality, Lincoln Center Institute, the arts | 2 Comments »
Posted on March 2, 2012 by Scott Noppe-Brandon

Image by Paul Lim*
We’ve all heard the advice, “Think outside the box,” but now, thanks to a team of researchers, the cliché takes on a whole new, literal meaning. In a Times op-ed piece, three scholars of management and organizations—two from the University of Michigan, one from New York University (NYU)—reveal their compelling new findings about creativity. The writers indicate a direct correlation between people’s physical experiences and their ability to come up with fresh ideas and solutions.
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Filed under: Link | Tagged: creativity, embodied cognition, Eric Liu, imagination, Imagination First, innovation, New York Times, New York University, outside-the-box thinking, problem solving, Singapore Management University, think inside the box, think outside the box, University of Michigan | 2 Comments »
Posted on February 24, 2012 by Scott Noppe-Brandon
In three weeks, more than 10,000 North American educators will converge on the Hilton New York for WNET’s seventh annual Celebration of Teaching & Learning. The Celebration is a major professional development conference that includes over 40 featured speakers and 100 interactive workshops, as well as two exhibition halls full of education resources. This year, as in 2011, I’ll have the privilege of presenting there, on a panel with Madeleine Holzer, director of educational development at Lincoln Center Institute, and 2010 National Teacher of the Year Sarah Wessling.
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Filed under: Announcement | Tagged: 21st century education, 21st century skills, 21st century teaching, America Revealed, American Federation of Teachers, Celebration of Teaching & Learning, creativity, Eric Liu, Henry Louis Gates, imagination, Imagination First, innovation, inquiry, Khan Academy, Lincoln Center Institute, Madeleine Holzer, National Teacher of the Year, Randi Weingarten, Ron Thorpe, Sal Khan, Sarah Wessling, Teacher Laureate, WNET, Yul Kwon | Leave a comment »
Posted on February 14, 2012 by Scott Noppe-Brandon

Image by ToGa Wanderings*
Disney is at it again. In 2011, The Walt Disney Company co-sponsored America’s Imagination Summit, the major education event that Lincoln Center Institute held here in New York City. Now Disney has announced that it will donate $1.6 million to support the United Nations Children’s Fund and China’s Ministry of Education, as they work to enhance the education—and creativity—of young people in China. I applaud the organization’s depth of commitment.
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Filed under: Link | Tagged: America's Imagination Summit, China, China Daily, creativity, Disney, East Asia, imagination, innovation, Jay Rasulo, Lincoln Center Institute, Ministry of Education of The People's Republic of China, UNICEF, United Nations Children's Fund, Walt Disney Company | 6 Comments »
Posted on February 9, 2012 by Scott Noppe-Brandon
In our book Imagination First, Eric Liu and I write about Oblique Strategies, a deck of cards created by musician Brian Eno in 1975: “Each of the over one hundred cards contains what Eno calls ‘a worthwhile dilemma’—a concise, cryptic prompt….meant to give direction.” Today, I bring news of another novel deck of cards, this one aimed at children: the Spark Your Imagination Story Starters.
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Filed under: Link | Tagged: Brian Eno, creativity, education, Eric Liu, imagination, Imagination First, innovation, iPhone, Learning, Lincoln Center Institute, MyToySmart, Oblique Strategies, play, Spark Your Imagination, Story Starters | Leave a comment »
Posted on February 1, 2012 by Scott Noppe-Brandon

Image by RDECOM*
One of the most tradition-based organizations in the country, the Boy Scouts of America (BSA), is getting into the innovation act. Today it announced, in partnership with product developer Edison Nation®, the BSA Innovation Challenge. This represents yet another opportunity for our children to put their imagination and creativity to work—and be rewarded for the fruits of their labor.
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Filed under: Link | Tagged: Boy Scouts of America, Boy Scouts of America Innovation Challenge, creativity, Edison Nation, Everyday Edisons, imagination, innovation, invention, Louis Foreman, young innovators, young inventors | 2 Comments »
Posted on January 27, 2012 by Scott Noppe-Brandon

Patrick McMullan Company © 2011
Once a year, supporters of Lincoln Center Institute (LCI) gather, enjoy dinner and a world-class musical performance, and honor individuals and organizations that embody LCI’s ideals. These fundraisers celebrate LCI’s tireless efforts to bring the arts to young people, and to develop their skills of imagination, creativity, and innovation. So it is with great anticipation that I announce this year’s Annual Benefit Gala, to be held on March 7 at Frederick P. Rose Hall in New York City.
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Filed under: Announcement | Tagged: arts education, Arts for Life!, Columba Bush, creativity, Foundation for Excellence in Education, Frederick P. Rose Hall, IBM Corporation, imagination, innovation, Jeb Bush, Kelli O'Hara, LCI, Lincoln Center Institute, Lincoln Center Institute Annual Benefit Gala, Stanley S. Litow | Leave a comment »
Posted on January 25, 2012 by Scott Noppe-Brandon
Today I had the honor of addressing the Arts School Network’s annual conference, held this year in Florida. (Alas, I spoke via Skype, so I wasn’t able to enjoy the Sunshine State’s weather.) ASN is a professional association of arts school leaders, with over 300 members worldwide, so this was a great opportunity for me to engage with a large gathering of arts educators. The organization’s executive director, Kristy Callaway, asked me to talk about Lincoln Center Institute’s (LCI’s) imagination initiatives.
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Filed under: News Bulletin | Tagged: America's Imagination Summit, arts education, arts schools, Arts Schools Network, Craig Collins, creativity, Florida Imagination Conversation, Harrison School for the Arts, imagination, imagination conversations, innovation, Kristy Callaway, Larry Thompson, LCI, Lincoln Center Institute, Ringling College of Art and Design | 1 Comment »
Posted on January 18, 2012 by Scott Noppe-Brandon
Here’s an imaginative idea: Latitude, an international research consultancy, asked 348 children around the world, “What if robots were a part of your everyday life—at school and beyond?” The kids were to answer in the form of an illustrated short story. Now the results of the Robots @ School study are in, and they reveal what today’s young people think and feel about learning and technology.
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Filed under: Link | Tagged: creativity, imagination, innovation, Latitude, Learning, LEGO Learning Institute, play, Project Synthesis, robots, Robots @ School, Steve Mushkin, technology | 1 Comment »
Posted on January 13, 2012 by Scott Noppe-Brandon

Image by Jane Hoffer
What do Disney, the National Council of Juvenile and Family Court Judges (NCJFCJ), and the U.S. Army have in common? Representatives from all three organizations appeared at America’s Imagination Summit, the education event that Lincoln Center Institute (LCI) hosted in New York City this past July. Their presence was not arbitrary; rather, I believe that the dynamic intersection of such diverse influencers can lead to change in our country’s schools.
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Filed under: Article | Tagged: America's Imagination Summit, Celebration of Teaching & Learning, Center for BrainHealth, Council on Competitiveness, creativity, Disney, EdBlog, education, imagination, innovation, LCI, Lincoln Center, Lincoln Center Institute, NASA, National Council of Juvenile and Family Court Judges, Scott Noppe-Brandon, U.S. Army, U.S. Department of Education, U.S. Department of Homeland Security, U.S. Naval Academy | Leave a comment »