Veronica's current home is located at Chicago, IL. The backlash was swift. function daysToMinutes(numDays) { In courthouses, they conduct student tours. Stein joins the Art Institute from Chicago's Snow City Arts Foundation, an organization dedicated to inspiring and educating children and youth in hospitals through the arts, where she has served as program director . The Art Institute of Chicago abruptly dismissed all of its docents. Many are retired or not employed in full-time paying jobs. This lack of respect for women who work without pay is disgraceful and discriminatory. setNewsletterCookie('recentlyShown', 1); + '' Almost all were retired white women. It is our hope that these comments be taken as constructive, so that accessibility to art, and arts education among all museum volunteers, staff, donors, AIC members, students, and guests be equitable and inclusive.. } }, 7500); if(valid){ + '<\/div>' //and we can just return here. These are ladies who believe they have a calling to give back to their communities. Oh, good! At the same time, I'm thrilled to begin my new role as the Executive Director of Learning and Public Engagement at Art Institute of Chicago on 4/19. Buy, Sell, and Trade your Firearms and Gear. // Signup submission Well wager museum lawyers had pointed that out. w = pagetype + 20 * Math.round(w / 20), h = pagetype + 20 * Math.round(h / 20), googletag.cmd.push(function() { checkCookies(); //if there are cookies indicating that we shouldn't show the signup bar, then the modal won't have been added to the page When the museum closed its doors in March of 2020, we began an extensive reevaluation of our institution, taking a hard look at our resources, goals, and priorities, a spokesperson told Artnet News in an email. document.getElementById( "ak_js_1" ).setAttribute( "value", ( new Date() ).getTime() ); This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. var generalSettings = { The Chicago Tribune, hardly Fox News, wrote in an editorial, Once you cut through the blather, [Steins] letter basically said the museum had looked critically at its corps of docents, a group dominated by mostly (but not entirely) white, retired women with some time to spare, and found them wanting as a demographic, stated the Chicago Tribune. sensitivity: 50, $.each(a, function () { function setCookie(cname, cvalue, expMinutes, prefix) { I am Hispanic, and I dont feel included. Just such a weaselly letter was sent out Sept. 3 by Veronica Stein, the Woman's Board executive director of learning and engagement at the Art Institute of Chicago. // Show signup failure error and hide other errors By definition, the docents were people who could afford to volunteer their time out of love of the arts. (Indeed, the blogger who posted Steins letter and the docents response used that catchphrase to describe the museums move.) var initOuibounce = setInterval(function() { + 'Please enter a valid email address' Stein joins the Art Institute from Chicagos Snow City Arts Foundation. Photo Credit: Bumble Dee stock.adobe.com. This isnt hyperbole: Recently Jacqui Shine spotted a sign on Michigan Avenue that makes the laughably false assertion that the museum hates white people. The museum and its staff have fielded anger and threats. Rather than refresh our current program, systems, and processes, we feel that now is the time to rebuild our program from the ground up.. if (window.jQuery) { The New York City Independent Budget Office estimated that de Blasios proposal would cut qualified Asian American students enrollment at these specialized high schools by half. Taylor Dafoe, (Several are already interviewing for the new jobs, the museum confirmed.). clearInterval(initOuibounce); init: function (formElement, onSuccess) { citing what they called the "weaselly letter" from Veronica Stein, the Woman's Board executive director of learning and engagement that was sent to the museum's roughly 150 volunteer docents. The idea behind having demographic representation in education instead of having the best is why our schools are failing today. Without question, much of this exchange and inspiration happens directly in our gallerieson school tours, during family visits, and recently, through virtual programs. Volunteers pay her freight. if (prefix == undefined) { Many of those are in the Terms section, but I need to add a few. The Art Institute of Chicago crouches on Michigan Avenue, defending the surrounding Grant Park from the citys skyscrapers crowding in. How surprising could this move have been? And about that letter: cutting through the blather is no easy task. + '