Welcome to the Ohio Teaching Artist Roster
The Ohio Teaching Artist Roster highlights artists who demonstrate artistic excellence; the ability to integrate academic content; effective classroom management and student engagement; and strong communication with education, arts, and cultural partners. Teaching artists on this roster are vetted by an application process and are required to participate in on-going professional development to grow their teaching artist knowledge and skills, enabling them to provide high quality arts education experiences to Ohians of all ages and abilites.
For more information, contact Jodi Kushins, arts learning coordinator at the Ohio Arts Council, at jodi.kushins@oac.ohio.gov or 614-728-4481.
The Ohio Teaching Artist Roster is committed to equal opportunity, nondiscrimination, and inclusion in all aspects of this project. This roster does not discriminate on the basis of race, ethnicity, color, religion, gender identity, marital status, national origin, ancestry, age, sexual orientation, visible or hidden disability, socio-economic status, or veteran status. Teaching artists and roster participants work with a wide variety of students and adults and are encouraged to take this into consideration and be supportive and mindful of different needs.
Accessibility features were considered during the project’s development and are part of ongoing maintenance. If you need further assistance, please email Jodi Kushins at jodi.kushins@oac.ohio.gov or call 614-728-4481.
The Ohio Teaching Artist Roster is a partnership between the Ohio Arts Council, Ohio Alliance for Arts Education, OhioDance, and Art Possible Ohio (formerly VSA Ohio). These partner organizations share administrative maintenance responsibilities and manage the roster and related professional development opportunities.
Each organization has opportunities for teaching artists to teach and to learn. These include residencies, workshops, performances, and professional development presentations. Follow the links above to learn more about who we are and the programs and services we provide to suport arts learning throughout the state.
This roster is designed for use by anyone in Ohio, particularly educators and programming directors, working to identify teaching artists who can lead high quality arts learning experiences for participants of all ages and abilities.
School-based educators may look for teaching artists to lead arts-integrated and academic content standard-aligned creative opportunities for students, as well as deep learning in particular art forms.
The roster is searchable by art form and focus, geography, and other key criteria.
Teaching artist fees may vary depending on the partner organization through which a booking or sponsorship takes place. Note: Neither the Ohio Arts Council nor our managing partners serve as booking agents for teaching artists. Please use the contact information provided on roster member profile pages to contact them directly about opportunities.
The Ohio Teaching Artist Roster adopts the Berklee College of Music’s definition of “teaching artist” (also known as an “artist educator”) as:
“an individual who self-identifies as a practicing professional artist, with a dual career as an educator.”1
Teaching artists are not arts teachers employed by schools. Rather they are independent practioners who partner with schools and other arts, cultural, and community organizations to deliver educational performances, workshops, and residency programs. When working in schools, teaching artists serve as curricular collaborators helping supplement and build on existing arts and non-arts curricula and do not supplant the work of licensed or certified arts educators.
1. Berklee College of Music, “Career Communities: What does a Teaching Artist do?” Career Communities. Accessed December 2022.
- Statewide designation as a high-quality teaching artist especially well-suited for working with PK-12 schools and lifelong learners.
- Statewide exposure of artistic and educational talent and experience.
- Opportunities and recommendations for potential work and programming in and out of schools.
- Ongoing participation in low-cost and relevant professional development from industry leaders.
- Opportunities to attend and/or present at unique statewide programs and convenings.
- Access to a professional community of practice with peers and arts learning networks around the state.
- No application fees.
The Ohio Teaching Artist Roster is not currently accepting applications. We accept applications every two years. The next application will be available in spring 2025.
This roster is open to teaching artists living in the state of Ohio. To apply for inclusion in the roster, artists are required to complete an application, which will be vetted and reviewed by partner organizations. Some applications may require in-person observations prior to final approval.
Annually, roster members will be required to complete a summary of activities and participate in at least two-virtual cohort calls and one in-person professional development opportunity.
Successful applicants demonstrate:
- Mastery in at least one arts discipline.
- Knowledge and expertise in pedagogy.
- Knowledge and expertise in arts integration and academic content standards.
- Professionalism in communication, planning, and partnerships.
Application Timeline:
- April 1, 2025 – application available for new roster teaching artists
- July 15, 2025 – application deadline (by 5:00 PM)
- August 2025 – application review and status notification
- September 2025 – online roster updates
