Cultural Arts Welcomes New Community Arts Coordinator Last week, Laurette Garner, the new Community Arts Coordinator, joined the Cultural Arts team. Laurette will be focusing on arts education including numerous initiatives detailed in the Arts & Culture Master Plan such as STEAM and mobile outreach programming. Laurette brings experience as an arts administrator, having worked as the Grant Administrator for the Community Arts Partnership at the California Institute of the Arts in Santa Clarita and as the Arts Education Program Manager for Lane Arts Council in Eugene, Oregon. She earned a MA in Arts Management and a certificate in New Media and Culture from the University of Oregon, a BA in Art History/Museum Studies from the University of North Carolina at Greensboro and a BA in English Literature from San Francisco State University. Laurette grew up with art in her life; taking ballet classes and enjoying the visual arts and ceramics in school. She likes to read, hike, cook, play the harp (she says very poorly) and dabble in the visual arts. She is especially passionate about art in schools and believes that all students should grow up with art in their lives just like she did.
Youth Basketball Partnership a Success
The Park & Recreation Department’s youth basketball program is shaping up to have the best season ever. In the second full year of partnering with Master Sports to operate the program, participation levels have placed the Carlsbad program as one of the largest in San Diego County. Master Sports had been under contract with the city for many years to operate youth basketball camps and clinics. The program offers youth basketball opportunities for children as young as Kindergarten, up through twelfth grade. The 2018-19 program has 830 participants, an increase of almost 25% from the 667 participants last season. The growth would not have been possible without the addition of the gymnasium at the Pine Avenue Park Community Center and the partnership with Master Sports. The total number of participants equates to 105 teams coached by a total of 210 volunteer coaches and assistant coaches.