Asolo Repertory Theatre continues a season of hard-hitting theater with tonight’s opening of Gloria, the Pulitzer Prize finalist from rising playwright Brandon Jacobs-Jenkins. Set in the cutthroat world of the New York magazine scene, a shocking workplace incident sends an office of young editorial assistants scrambling to make sense of the disaster—and possibly capitalize on it—in a tale as much about ambition and authorship as it is tragedy. By turns dramatic, thrilling and darkly hilarious, Gloria runs through April 29. Directed by Greg Leaming.

“It’s very dark humor, but very funny,” assures Leaming, knowing the content carries its own stigma. “But no matter who produces the play,” he continues, “you’re going to have to face that fact—that there’s always the possibility of another very raw event.” And Leaming has faith that Gloria has something important to say, balancing the humor to create an enjoyable production but never to overshadow or cheapen the subject matter.

A lot of that comes down to trusting the playwright, and Jacobs-Jenkins has Leaming’s. “He’s one of the greatest playwrights of the 21st century,” Leaming says, and it should come as no surprise that Jacobs-Jenkins’ Pulitzer Prize-nominated work should be controversial or audacious. “He has no fear in writing characters,” Leaming continues, “and no fear in letting his characters be both courageous and unseemly. He never sentimentalizes anything, and his perception of character and the world we’re living in is incredibly astute.”

Due to the shocking nature of the production, the theater has scheduled “talkback” events after every performance—something the theater rarely does, usually opting for a handful throughout the run. These give audience members the chance to discuss the play with each other, and with members of Asolo Rep. Because, though funny, the play is undoubtedly pretty heavy, says Leaming, “and people will want the opportunity to respond to it and deal with it.” And to end with a community discussion seems fitting, to let the audience address their feelings instead of stew. Because, says, Leaming: “It’s not a play about violence; it’s about how people respond to violence.”

Opening tonight at Asolo Repertory Theatre, Gloria runs through April 29. 

Pictured: Delphi Borich, Aleksandr Krapivkin and Denise Cormier in Asolo Rep's production of �Gloria.� Photo by John Revisky.

In our technically-focused world, The Kennedy Center of Performing Arts recognizes that we have a responsibility to educate the whole child to help him or her become a global citizen in their community. The primary goal of their initiative, Ensuring the Arts for Any Given Child program, assists communities in developing and implementing a plan for expanded arts education in their schools—ensuring full access and equity for all students in grades K-8. The Kennedy Center works with thousands of students, teachers, principals, school district administrators, business leaders and arts managers across the country—Sarasota was selected as the 6th site to participate in the program. There are now 25 locations implemented throughout the country. While a tug of war continues to loom between proponents of STEM education (science, technology, engineering and math) vs. advocates for STEAM (which add art to the mix), Any Given Child Sarasota gains momentum in continuing its district arts integration for all students to have continuous and equal access to learning through all the arts—dance, music, theater, visual arts and media.

In 2011, a community-held team got together in a big collaborative effort—including the Community Foundation of Sarasota County, along with many school, business and arts leaders within the local region. Brian Hersh, who represented Asolo Repertory Theatre at the time, indulges on how the influential group came together with a community-wide vision for Sarasota—referring to it as a collective impact model to ensure children have arts in their complete education. Hersh is now the Program Director for Any Given Child Sarasota and mentions, “the school community should reflect the local community. And everyone knows that in Sarasota, that means a strong arts influence—so we should have a strong arts presence in schools.” Any Given Child solves this by expanding and enhancing programs/clubs such as orchestra, choral or theater in schools that did not previously have them before, connecting students to the our local cultural experiences/organizations such as field trips to the Van Wezel, Ringling Museum or the Sarasota Ballet, and lastly by building classroom culture through professional development or teaching opportunities via dance, drama and visual arts.

“Essentially we’re making sure students are connecting art content with another subject area—teaching both of those disciplines at the same time, and evolving as they go. For example, you could learn about the cycle of water through interpretive dance—you're more likely to remember it, and you're likely to have a deeper, better understanding because you've embodied it,” explains Hersh. Many of our elementary and middle schools now include diverse activities such as this to increase motivation and communication through expression. What’s more, teachers in our district now have increased opportunities to attend intensive workshops put on by The Kennedy Center of Performing Arts, teaching them how to integrate art approaches in their classrooms to which students are able to construct and demonstrate an understanding of a subject area by connecting it with an art form, and meeting both objectives in a more creative process.

Art participation has been known to link with academic achievement and it’s no coincidence that Sarasota County schools are incredibly successful—as one of the only districts to maintain its ‘A’ rating from the Florida Department of Education for the 14th year in a row. “You can easily connect that to our leading arts programming being significantly robust,” says Hersh, “You’ll find state and nationwide that when students participate in at least two arts classes a year, they’re more likely to do better in school, graduate and go to college.” In regards to the STEM/STEAM debate, Any Given Child simply wants to expand and amplify students’ learning tools—no matter what type of learner they are. By turning up the volume in between math and science lessons, every child can still experience what the arts and our community has to offer so that they may become creative, engaged learners prepared to lead successful lives.

The Community Foundation of Sarasota County is proud to partner with SRQ Media Group to highlight stories about community impact powered by philanthropy in our region, thanks to the support of donors and our local nonprofit partners. The Community Foundation is a public charity founded in 1979 by the Southwest Florida Estate Planning Council as a resource for caring individuals and the causes they support, enabling them to make a charitable impact on the community. For more information, visit www.CFSarasota.org 

Image provided by Any Given Child Sarasota

Any Given Child, 1960 Landings Blvd., Sarasota, 34231

Children First, Sarasota County’s exclusive provider of Head Start and Early Head Start programs serves more than 700 of the county’s most vulnerable children and their families each year, providing high-quality education, care, nutrition and family support services. Children First’s Families First Institute helps the non-profit achieve its mission of strengthening children and families by offering a variety of free parenting classes, ranging from the award-winning Nurturing Dads class to courses on calendar-based budgeting and career readiness.

The Nurturing Dads program hit a milestone this spring when it kicked off its 200^th class with its 2,000^th participant! The free 10-week course is modeled after The Nurturing Father’s Program, a curriculum created by Sarasota author Mark Perlman that allows fathers the opportunity to explore and discuss parenting topics in a comfortable setting with other dads. 

“This course is the perfect way of introducing new dads to 21^st-century parenting.  It’s amazing curriculum from start to finish,” said Nurturing Dads Class graduate Israel.

Another component of the Families First Institute is the Kinship Care Support Group which provides an opportunity for friendship and support among fellow grandparents turned parents. 

“We never thought we would be raising children during our retirement years, but our three young grandchildren needed a stable home. So much had changed since raising our own children, and we were grateful for the classes offered at Children First. From ‘Nurturing Dads’ and ‘5 Keys to Better Behavior,’ to the ‘Kinship Care Support Group’ for grandparents, the Families First Institute has been a priceless resource,” said Families First Institute graduate Alan.

Every class is free, open to the public, and includes childcare. The courses are made possible by generous community support and partnerships. For more information and a full list of classes, visit www.childrenfirst.net/classes/. 

Children First

Given the high demand for skilled workers in our region, CareerEdge Funders Collaborative is partnering with educational institutions to provide cutting-edge short-term “express” programs to quickly move individuals into apprenticeship-based occupations in the trades.

CareerEdge began working with Suncoast Technical College last fall on a tuition-free accelerated automotive technician course.  Employer partner Gettel Automotive hired the individuals with no experience at $12 per hour for trainee positions and then enrolled them in the CareerEdge-funded course at the college.  The program was such a success that six other local dealerships are participating in a second cohort of students in 2018, funded by CareerEdge through a Gulf Coast Community Foundation donor Walt Eppard.  According to Gettel Fixed Operations Director Fred Bartholomew, “It’s really a win-win for the community to have CareerEdge help facilitate recruiting and training programs for critical shortage occupations like automotive technicians.”

CareerEdge also partnered with Manatee Technical College on Plumbing and Electrician express programs, by helping to recruit individuals, providing funding for the courses and offering soft skills training for the students.  In the summer of 2017, when the program was launched, over 100 individuals came to the information session to learn about this offering, and the potential for a career in these growing fields. 

Currently, CareerEdge Funders Collaborative is exploring this fast-track curricula in other high growth occupations, such as heating and air conditioning technicians (HVAC). CareerEdge continues to establish creative ways to connect people to in-demand career-laddering jobs while assisting employers with their workforce needs. To learn about these innovative workforce solutions, visit www.careeredgefunders.org, or call Deborah Chapman (941)328-6985 or email at dchapman@uwsuncoast.org.    

CareerEdge

This year, the University of Florida Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences' Bug Week celebration arrives almost two months earlier than usual—March 30 to April 7—and UF/IFAS Extension Manatee is buzzing with excitement about the theme—pollinators. Bug Week is raising public awareness about all of Florida’s pollinators. To see a few examples and learn what pollinators do, check out the Bug of the Day and Bug Word of the Day posts on Twitter and Facebook. Find them by searching for #UFBugs on Twitter and Facebook. If you've taken a bug photo, reach other bug enthusiasts statewide by using the hashtag #UFBugs when you post it on your Twitter, Facebook or Instagram account. Throughout Bug Week and the rest of the year, the faculty with UF/IFAS Extension - Manatee County are ready to answer bug-related questions from local residents. Whether they need help attracting pollinators, identifying an unfamiliar bug or solving a pest problem around the house, there are science-based solutions available. Contact our office at 941-722-4524. Now in its sixth year, Bug Week is UF/IFAS’ annual outreach event celebrating entomology, the scientific study of insects and their close relatives. To learn more, visit the website below. 

Bug Week at UF

Ringling College of Art and Design has announced the appointment of Lora Wey as Assistant Vice President of Strategic Philanthropy and Anne Riker Garlington as Senior Development Officer in the Office of Advancement. Lora Wey brings an extensive background in senior level organizational management, large-scale fundraising ventures, strategic leadership and project management. She was most recently executive director of annual giving, director of development for Milner Library and served as interim executive director of alumni relations at Illinois State University. Garlington comes to Ringling College from PNC Wealth Management, where she was most recently a vice president and senior relationship strategist. She has an extensive background in banking and trust administration, investments, business development and estate and charitable planning. Anne has been involved with many organizations in Sarasota, including board positions with Asolo Repertory Theatre, Child Protection Center, Cotillion Club of Sarasota, Debutante Program of Sarasota and Manatee Counties, Field Club, Habitat for Humanity, and Jewish Housing Council Foundation. 

Ringling College of Art and Design

With the recent commemoration of National Mom and Pop Business Day, State College of Florida, Manatee-Sarasota (SCF) is spotlighting its Entrepreneurship Program. SCF offers associate degree and certificate programs in entrepreneurship designed to prepare students to open, manage and market their own small business. The certificate program’s 15 credit hours include the following five courses: Introduction to Entrepreneurship, Marketing for the Entrepreneur, Entrepreneurship Finance and Taxes, Entrepreneurship Legal Issues and Entrepreneurship Business Plan. Offering quick and efficient training for entrepreneurs just beginning their business or as a refresher course with new, creative ideas for established business owners, the entire certificate program costs about $1,500 and can be completed in one year. For more information, call 941-752-5281 or follow the website below. 

State College of Florida, Manatee-Sarasota Entrepreneurship Program

Sarasota-based luxury homebuilder Ryan Perrone of Nautilus Homes has been appointed to a three-year term serving on the Sarasota County General Contractors Licensing and Examining Board. Perrone will contribute his experience and expertise as a second-generation home builder to the board, which is tasked with examining applications and qualifications for general, building, residential, roofing, pool and spa, and specialty contractors doing business within Sarasota County. The board also conducts disciplinary hearings and other licensing and examining related functions. The 13-member board meets monthly and is comprised of contractors, citizen representatives, trade members and an architect and a civil structural engineer. 

Sarasota County General Contractors Licensing and Examining Board

Executive search firm Brooke Chase Associates has announced the successful recruitment of Mike Hagen as regional builder sales manager with Rinnai, a leading brand in North America in the tankless gas water heater category. Hagen will be responsible for creating and executing residential programs among the top national and regional builders in the Pacific Northwest and the Rocky Mountain regional area to expend Rinnai’s market share.  He will coordinate with the national builder sales manager, regional sales directors and manufacturer representatives to ensure the team is effectively maximizing all opportunities to achieve the corporate objectives at Rinnai. With an extensive background in Regional and Territory Management with Geary Pacific Supply, Grainger and Kohler, Hagen most recently held the position of national builder account manager with Delta Faucet where he was responsible for leading the West Trade Sales Builder Team to achieve the Top growth region for the company. 

Brooke Chase Associates

New this April 2018, is our guide to giving opportunities that will impact the non-profit organizations working in the region. Become a part of the local philanthropic story by fulfilling their giving back wish lists! 

Link to the section can be found here