Community Engagement Lab / NETAC

I CO-FOUNDED CEL IN 2012 IN VERMONT, WHERE IT HAS BUILT A STATEWIDE FACULTY OF TEACHING ARTISTS WHO CAN MAXIMIZE CREATIVITY IN SCHOOLS AND COMMUNITIES. CEL’s new NETAC (New England Teaching Artist Collaborative) builds regional capacity for teaching artists to design and lead “thriving community projects.” This network deepens teaching artists’ skill sets, enabling them to design and lead projects that target local wellness goals and bring communities and schools together for collective impact.

NETAC’s first project launched in late 2024 in the city of Montpelier, Vermont, which has been devasted by river flooding. The Bridges Project brought schools, community groups and families together to revitalize the bridges that connect residents to each other, with a creative bridge-lighting project and a festival of music, dancing, and circus celebrations.