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THE NEXT DANCE: A Campaign for Old Town School of Folk Music
Facility Expansion Project | Coming Soon in 2010
A 31,000 sq. foot arts education facility at 4543 North Lincoln Avenue, Chicago
Contact the Development Department for more information
Facility features are being designed to address our efforts to further our mission,
expand awareness and access, and improve the quality of arts education for both
teachers and students.
Education: The Heart of the School
The School is first and foremost an educational institution. As a national leader in the field of community arts, we continuously strive to improve the overall learning experience.
Facility features:
  • Dance studios with sizable dimensions, sprung floors, and changing facilities.
  • Sound engineered classrooms designed to accommodate percussion and electric instruments.
  • "Smart" classroom technology for distance learning programs to provide access to even more school students and flourishing artists.
Click below for larger images of the preliminary architectural renderings.
Exterior | Interior 1 | Interior 2 | Interior 3 | Performance Space
Participant Diversity: Breadth & depth of cultures
Old Town School is located in one of the most ethnically diverse neighborhoods in Chicago and serves a broad range of constituents. The School continues to forge partnerships with a range of communities that are under-served and under-represented in the arts.
Facility feature:
  • Flexible performance space that can be converted into a classroom, community gathering area, and social dance hall to meet our partners' wide range of needs.



Old Town School Experience: A Community of Learners
Despite its size and presence in one of the most sophisticated urban capitals of the world, the intensely social, intimate and uncomplicated atmosphere of Old Town School is as accessible and important as it was when it was founded fifty years ago. Old Town School students find lifelong friends, band mates, and even soul mates. Babies take their first steps and speak their first words in our classrooms. These experiences are life-changing moments for so many participants, and continue to blossom here every day.
Facility features:
  • Accessible, street level entrance and other features that provide a "strollers to wheelchairs"" approach to accommodate diverse populations.
  • Informal jam spaces throughout so musicians can gather, play and learn from each other.
National Leadership: A Promise to the Future
The School is a significant local economic engine and one of the largest employers of teaching artists in Chicago, generating 85% of its income from earned revenue sources. The School's uniqueness and sustainable business model are often cited as a national model for community arts education, and staff members continuously share their expertise with arts institutions across the country.
Facility feature:
  • LEED-certified green technology and building materials for low-impact, environmentally sustainable operations.


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CLASS DATES

8-WEEK CLASSES

  • October 27th-December 21st
  • January 5th-March 1st
  • March 2nd-April 26th

16-WEEK CLASSES

  • January 5th-April 26th


HOLIDAYS

  • December 25th, Christmas
  • January 1st, New Years Day

For more class dates, including registration deadlines, check the School calendar.

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OLD TOWN SCHOOL BLOGS

BAU'S BLAUG

The latest news from the Big Cheese - Executive Director, Bau Graves


Paul Tyler convenes

FIDDLE CLUB of the WORLD

the Chicago Chapter


Skip Landt presents

HOT TIMES at OLD TOWN

Holstein CD release - Jan. 11th.


ON THE ROAD

Letters home from Old Town School adventures