This track/ concentration encompasses all things related to community and social innovation, social change, and the role of arts in these fields, by prioritizing the use of non-formal teaching methods, developing the lifelong learner, and providing experiential learning opportunities. It is designed for students who are interested in the arts (any type: visual, music, dance, literature, etc.) and aspire to become leaders in community-based organizations related to the arts, promoting the service, care, and education of children, adolescents, and life-long learners. In addition, it prepares students for new, upcoming, and future careers that are involved in and include the arts as a catalyst and medium for social change and community innovation in local, national, and international communities to address societal needs, inspire movements, and empower advocacy.

Career Opportunities

Career opportunities are manifold. Graduates can work in the more traditional arts sectors by filling roles of directors, coordinators, or program developers of art for the lifelong learners (e.g. children, young adults, adults, and senior citizens) in their communities and a number of place-based settings. They can work in private school settings, before/ after-school programs, non-, or for-profit organizations, or in community centers. Entrepreneurial areas, as well as freelance and social media engagement, visual and media literacy, are also quite popular. Some students prefer to work in more progressive fields of Community Innovation and the Arts, by becoming advocates, and/ or directors and coordinators of innovation and impacts, addressing societal needs and innovation changes through the arts.

This track/ concentration also can serve as preparation for graduate school to further students’ studies and work in allied areas of their chosen field.

Courses

The Bachelor of Arts in Community Education degree program with Community Innovation and Arts major at West Liberty University requires minimum total 120 credit hours course of study.

The coursework includes:

• General Studies: 31 – 39 credit hours
• Common Core: 40 credit hours
• Track/Concentration: 41-49

Click to view and download the complete Planning Check Sheet.

West Liberty University’s Bachelor of Arts in Community Education Program follows the 120 credit hour model for a bachelor’s degree and is designed for completion in three academic years. Despite the intention of this program to be an accelerated three-year program, students who wish to expand their studies to four years have the option to do so, by not taking summer classes but adding a fourth year of Fall IV and/or Spring IV classes.

Community Education’s Community Arts Partnership 

• Andy Warhol Museum, Pittsburgh, PA
• Brooke County Historical Museum & Culture Center, Wellsburg, WV
• Children’s Museum of the Ohio Valley (CMOV), Wheeling, WV
• Children’s Museum, Pittsburgh, PA
• City Theatre, Pittsburgh, PA
• CREATE Lab, Carnegie Mellon University Pittsburgh, PA
• Gateway to the Arts, Pittsburgh, PA
• Mattress Factory, Pittsburgh, PA
• Oglebay Institute, Wheeling, WV
• Towngate Theatre, Wheeling, WV
• West Liberty University Theatre, West Liberty, WV

Questions

For more information, please contact:

Director of Community Education
Dr. Miriam Roth Douglas
West Liberty University
308 Main Hall
208 University Drive
Campus Union Box 162
West Liberty, WV 26074
Office: 304-336-8561
Fax: 304-336-8627
miriam.douglas@westliberty.edu