A brief (and personal) glance back: David W. Baker: past editor, SchoolArts (1978-89). (A Look at the Past).

When reflecting on past experiences, my recollections tend to fall into three broad clusters: what actually happened, the effects then until now of what happened, and the values or feelings I hold that are a consequence of what happened. In a career that spans well over four decades and covers a considerable range of work-related roles, the professional and personal experiences I had as an editor of SchoolArts, the impact the job had upon myself and the field of art education, and the multitude of feelings I have about all of it stand out sharp and clear. While a full, or even partial, accounting of that period of my life as an art educator is surely of little interest to anyone other than myself, there are a few observations that I believe to be worth sharing in a public forum.

An Intimidating Task

Perhaps the strongest impression that I hold as a past editor of this magazine was formed during the interviews that led to my invitation to serve in this role. During this process, Gerald Stashak, at the time the general manager of Davis Publications, and the owners of the firm, Warren Davis, and his sons, Gilbert and Ronald, asked questions, expressed concerns, and shared insights that left me convinced of their long-standing dedication to the field of art education and their commitment to provide it the best support that was in their power to deliver--which was, and remains in may ways, most potent.

As publishers of our field's oldest and most widely read professional periodical, they understood its importance and what was necessary for it to sustain its professional substance and influence. For reasons know best to them, I was selected to edit the magazine--a person who had taught art in the public schools at all levels of instruction for many years, was then the director of a K-12 interdisciplinary arts program in a prominent and progressive urban/suburban school system, and scared out of his wits when he realized what he had agreed to do!

Making SchoolArts a Must Read

In keeping with a long-held belief--seek counsel from others wiser than yourself, and then heed what they say--and with the firm and confident support of Jerry Stashak and the Davis family, an editorial board was formed to help "kick start" my tenure as editor. Together, we faced a hard fact that the magazine had experienced an unsettling drop in subscriptions due to the economic--and accordingly, educational--depression that characterized the 1970s. What had, over the earlier decades, become a subscription habit strongly supported by school funds, needed to be reassessed.

Clearly, the magazine had to become perceived as an even greater value to the field than it had been or was currently if it was to regain and the increase its readership by convincing art teachers to spend increasingly scarce funds for personal subscriptions, and to insist that their schools include it in their faculty subscriptions. With this challenge, the new editorial board members, who represented a truly national perspective--Laura Chapman (independent art education consultant and author in Cincinnati, Ohio), Joseph Reis (then curator in charge of extension programs at the National Gallery of Art), Jo Kowalchuk (then an art administrator for the Delray Beach, Florida Public Schools), and Ronald Silverman (then a professor of art, California State University-Los Angeles)--set to work refining the editorial focus of the magazine, creating features--some of which remain central to the magazine to this day--and pondering the process that would make SchoolArts a "must read" for art teachers at all levels of instruction.

Making Changes That Endure

As a consequence of the visionary contributions of the editorial board, and with the invaluable support and advice provided us through critiques of each issue by a rotating group of contributing editors and the ever-supportive publishers and excellent staff of Davis Publications, Inc., SchoolArts took on a new look (see September 1978 issue) that would be consistent with a highly proactive editorial format. These changes were evident in:

* articles that were well balanced between how-to presentations and features which reported on special events, important initiatives affecting the field, opportunities for both art teachers and their students, and unique articles of special interest. Also, the past predominance of short, "tickler" type of presentations were balanced by more in-depth articles that would be of interest to teachers of art. Furthermore, particular care was taken to increase the number of articles addressing middle and secondary school interests, concerns, and instructional strategies--areas that had a somewhat weaker presence in previous years of the publication.

* articles that were aggressively solicited by myself, the editorial board members, and contributing editors. This was done through my travels around the country for such purposes, through correspondence, by referrals of colleagues, and downright good luck. We also urged readers to submit articles on a speculative basis, all of which greatly increased our editorial options to provide the best content that our field had to offer for our readers.

* new monthly features created to broaden information provided to an increasingly diverse readership: i.e., the editor's Comments; the exceptionally popular Clip-Cards; student/teacher/artist profiles; comprehensive reviews of nationally noteworthy art exhibits--Exhibitions in Sight; in-depth professional commentaries Viewpoints; and the Looking/Learning centerfold, which remains a favorite to this day. Also, posters were included in a couple of issues per year and special articles and/or series by leading authorities in the fields of art education, studio arts, and museum education were commissioned to deal with important and timely concerns and interests.

* an increasing emphasis on theme issues that would provide both broad and in-depth reporting about, and corresponding support for, studio practices, curricular issues, and professional development.

Lasting Contributions to the Field

The impact brought on by these changes was both immediate and long lasting. The submission of articles accelerated from a few per week to several per day--professionals from great universities to those teaching in the most remote elementary schools in the land readily responded to invitations to contribute to the magazine, and the most telling test of all was passed--subscriptions began a slow-but-steady climb upward. Further, we were gratified by the large number of public and private school art teachers, university teachers, advocates, and arts administrators from around the country who took the time and trouble to let us know that the changes made were noticed and very well received.

Several consequences of the work done by everyone involved with SchoolArts during the eleven years I was its editor easily come to mind. Perhaps the most significant contribution made was to the shift that occurred in the field during the 1980s from its historically dominant curricular focus on studio practices to a fuller inclusion of instruction in art classes related to works of art and artists.

The steady presence of articles in the magazine dealing with the study of works of art, artists, and presentations addressing museum education and related practices, I believe, did much to broaden curricular content as we know it today. Also, the magazine gave greater voice to a wider range of art educators than ever before. It went out of its way to include authors who worked outside of the field but had much to say to art teachers and in doing so, increased the advocacy for our work in the schools. And finally, we all worked hard to establish rich professional relationships with art museums across the country, the National Art Education Association, professional and advocacy groups interested in the arts, and other such partners that are critical to the well-being of the field.

I believe these efforts contributed to the great increase in advocacy and professional events that brought about the good health the field enjoys today. In sum, I was constantly impressed with the impact the magazine seemed to have on the way art teachers thought about their work and the kind and quality of work they did and, I am convinced, it still does.

A Job Worth Doing

In bringing this glance back to the present day, I can report that being responsible for the editorial content of SchoolArts had professional significance for me. I remain humbled by the demands and challenges of editing what has long been an icon in our field. I also remain amazed by the extraordinary generosity of all who were, and continue to be, called upon to contribute to the support of art teachers through the magazine. Further, I acquired a deep, appreciation and respect for the remarkable quality of work done day in and day out by public and private school art teachers who meet large groups of students in a punishing schedule. Year after year, with limited resources, great wisdom, and a professional passion that can only be envied, they make clear, through their writings about and photographs of classroom practices, that our field is in good, strong hands.

I will forever be indebted to the editorial board members, the contributing editors, and the staff of Davis Publications for their good humor, support, and especially, the trust they gave me during my tenure as editor of SchoolArts. I must also take advantage of this forum to thank the publishers, Ronald and Gilbert Davis, for their unqualified belief in the value of the magazine and their unwavering confidence in my work with it. And finally, a special thank you goes to Gerald Stashak, the person who was my boss at Davis Publications--simply put, he stands out among the very best of all who I have ever worked for and with. Through conflict and success, he was there to properly scold, wisely mentor, provide help, and give cheer to an art teacher who had the exceptional privilege to view his profession deeply, widely, and close-up through the special window provided by SchoolArts for those who have been, or will be, its editors.

Dr. David W. Baker is a retired professor from the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, Department of Art. He is currently teaching in the art education graduate program at Concordia University in Wisconsin.