KEYNOTE SPEAKERS

KEVIN REESE

KEVIN REESE is an actor, designer and visual artist with over forty years experience working with communities as an artist- in- residence. In 2001, Mr. Reese initiated SchoolSculptures, a residency program during which he works with communities to create large permanent moving sculptures at schools, community centers and art centers inspired by the participants’ designs. Mr. Reese has received grants from local businesses, city and state arts councils and the National Endowment for the Arts. In 2013, Mr Reese was selected as the Residence Teaching Artist at the National Gallery of Art. In the past 21 years SchoolSculptures has created over 190 installations in 30 states throughout the country.

DR. JIM REESE

DR. JIM REESE directs the Professional Development Collaborative at Washington International School (WIS). In that capacity, he supports educators at WIS, in the DC region, and across the country by organizing high-quality workshops and conferences that focus on using research-based pedagogical tools in practice. Much of this work connects to Project Zero, a research group located in the Graduate School of Education at Harvard University. Jim has worked on a consulting basis with Project Zero for over 20 years, most recently as the Education Coordinator of the Project Zero Classroom summer institute at Harvard and as Education Chair of the Project Zero Perspectives off-campus conferences. A long-time classroom teacher in the U.S. and overseas, Jim has an abiding interest in the way students develop thinking dispositions and understanding; in the professional growth of teachers; and in interdisciplinary teaching and learning. Jim earned his BA degree in English at Davidson College and his Master’s and doctoral degrees at George Washington University.

MARY HALL SURFACE

MARY HALL SURFACE is an award-winning playwright, theatre director and teaching artist specializing in theatre for family audiences and multidisciplinary collaborations.  She uses theatre on stage and drama and creative writing in the classroom to expand perspective, uncover complexity, and deepen understanding. She is a 30+ year National Kennedy Center teaching artist, a six-summer faculty member of Harvard’s Project Zero Classroom, and the founding instructor of the National Gallery of Art’s popular Writing Salon.  Her workshops for educators have been featured at three Kennedy Center’s Partners in Education Annual Meeting, Smithsonian American Art Museum, the National Gallery of Art and in professional development settings at national conferences, museums and arts centers across the US, as well as in London and Pamplona, Spain. Her plays have been produced at major professional theatres, museums, and festivals throughout the US, Europe, Japan, Taiwan and Canada, including 19 productions at the Kennedy Center. She has 14 published plays, three award-winning cast albums of her musicals, and two books of scenes and monologues for middle school students.  She was the founding artistic director of DC’s Atlas INTERSECTIONS Festival from 2009 – 2015, an all-arts festival that fosters connection across boundaries of age, perspective and community.  maryhallsurface.com