The Maine Arts Commission is pleased to announce five new Teaching Artist Leaders to participate in the 2017-18 Maine Arts Leadership Initiative for the upcoming school year.

The candidates recently applied and were selected by the Arts Commission as Teaching Artist Leaders, a process to provide greater access to area artists trained and knowledgeable in classroom requirements to schools and community groups wishing to contract them for educational purposes. They will attend a 3-day professional development institute in early August at Thomas College in Waterville.

The newly inducted Teaching Artist Leaders are:

• Marie Palluotto, a visual artist who teaches pottery and lives in Waterville.

• Tom Luther, a musician and teaches piano and digital/computer music from Union.

• Nicole Cardano, an actress who teaches elementary and middle school improvisational skills as well as theatre productions and show choir. She lives in Seal Cove.

• Dana Legawiec, is an actor whose recent teachings involve grade 3-5 students in mask, improve, physical theatre, and yoga. She is from Bowdoinham.

• Brian Evans-Jones, a writer who teaches creative writing and poetry to elementary school students through higher education levels. Brian lives in South Berwick.

The Maine Arts Leadership Initiative is a collaborative program that brings together arts educators to strengthen leadership skills, classroom practices and learning methods throughout Maine school systems. During the course of the institute, each educator will produce a special project or lesson plan that the Maine Arts Commission will make available as a statewide educational resource.