California State Summer School for the Arts
Encyclopedia
The California State Summer School for the Arts, commonly known as CSSSA [See-Suh] or InnerSpark, is a four-week, pre-professional art training program for high school student that is held each summer at the California Institute of the Arts
http://www.csssa.org/index.php/general-info/where/. The goal of CSSSA is to provide a supportive environment in which students acquired useful skills that go beyond the practice and improvement of aesthetics and technique. Artistic disciplines offered by the program include: animation
, creative writing
, dance
, film
and video
, music
, theatre arts, and visual arts
. Its purpose is to provide a training ground for future artists who wish to pursue careers in the arts and entertainment industries in California. Founded in 1987, CSSSA is a state agency funded through a unique public/private partnership. Admitted applicants are designated as California Arts Scholars, honored throughout the state’s fifty-eight counties, and presented with a Governor's medallion, the highest distinction in California for artistically talented students. http://www.csssa.org/index.php/general-info/what/
In 1982, a three-year effort by the state’s legislation began to create an educational environment for California’s young artists. Former State Senator Alan Sieroty sponsored legislation to begin the planning process. A 24-member Advisory Council of legislative, arts, and industry leaders was appointed by the California Arts Council
and the State Board of Education
to explore the cause of talent drain and recommend statewide educational opportunities. One of the problems that the Advisory Council discovered was that many of California's young talents were leaving California to attend art programs in New York, North Carolina, Michigan, and other states — and would eventually stay to live and work there while they went to school. http://www.csssa.org/index.php/about-us/history/
The research by the Council concluded on September 28, 1985 when Governor Deukmejian
signed the bill, authored by State Senator John Garamendi
, which created the California State Summer School for the Arts. The first session was held in the summer of 1987. http://www.csssa.org/index.php/about-us/history/
The program would prove to be highly successful. By September 1990, Governor Deukmejian signed follow-up legislation to make it a permanent program of the state. By 1992, Governor Pete Wilson
signed legislation to enable the program to accept a limited number of students from outside California, thereby making it a national program. http://www.csssa.org/index.php/about-us/history/
. Each student shares a room with two to three roommates, and has two to three suitemates in an adjoining room, with whom they share a bathroom. The CalArts campus has spacious lawns with shade trees, open fields and large hillside areas, providing room for informal team sports and relaxation. http://www.csssa.org/index.php/general-info/student-handbook/
. The program now prints the newsletter on purple paper. http://www.csssa.org/index.php/parents/purple-blurrrb/
. These credits can be used as elective units toward a Bachelor’s degree at any of the campuses in the California State University system
. They are also generally transferable to other colleges and universities throughout the United States. http://www.csssa.org/index.php/general-info/student-handbook/
, Zac Efron
, Taylor Lautner, Jeff Soto
, Isabelle Fuhrman
, Craig McCracken
,and Jamie Conde.
California Institute of the Arts
The California Institute of the Arts, commonly referred to as CalArts, is located in Valencia, in Los Angeles County, California. It was incorporated in 1961 as the first degree-granting institution of higher learning in the United States created specifically for students of both the visual and the...
http://www.csssa.org/index.php/general-info/where/. The goal of CSSSA is to provide a supportive environment in which students acquired useful skills that go beyond the practice and improvement of aesthetics and technique. Artistic disciplines offered by the program include: animation
Animation
Animation is the rapid display of a sequence of images of 2-D or 3-D artwork or model positions in order to create an illusion of movement. The effect is an optical illusion of motion due to the phenomenon of persistence of vision, and can be created and demonstrated in several ways...
, creative writing
Creative writing
Creative writing is considered to be any writing, fiction, poetry, or non-fiction, that goes outside the bounds of normal professional, journalistic, academic, and technical forms of literature. Works which fall into this category include novels, epics, short stories, and poems...
, dance
Dance
Dance is an art form that generally refers to movement of the body, usually rhythmic and to music, used as a form of expression, social interaction or presented in a spiritual or performance setting....
, film
Film
A film, also called a movie or motion picture, is a series of still or moving images. It is produced by recording photographic images with cameras, or by creating images using animation techniques or visual effects...
and video
Video
Video is the technology of electronically capturing, recording, processing, storing, transmitting, and reconstructing a sequence of still images representing scenes in motion.- History :...
, music
Music
Music is an art form whose medium is sound and silence. Its common elements are pitch , rhythm , dynamics, and the sonic qualities of timbre and texture...
, theatre arts, and visual arts
Visual arts
The visual arts are art forms that create works which are primarily visual in nature, such as ceramics, drawing, painting, sculpture, printmaking, design, crafts, and often modern visual arts and architecture...
. Its purpose is to provide a training ground for future artists who wish to pursue careers in the arts and entertainment industries in California. Founded in 1987, CSSSA is a state agency funded through a unique public/private partnership. Admitted applicants are designated as California Arts Scholars, honored throughout the state’s fifty-eight counties, and presented with a Governor's medallion, the highest distinction in California for artistically talented students. http://www.csssa.org/index.php/general-info/what/
Admissions
Admission to the program is granted primarily to California state high school students, and up to twenty students from outside of California. The main criteria for admission is an applicant’s potential for further professional development in the arts or creative fields after the end of the program. It's determined through an audition, portfolio review, screening, and teacher recommendations. Approximately one out of three applicants are accepted, parallel to the acceptance rate of CalArts. http://www.csssa.org/index.php/general-info/who/History
During the early 1980s, California was facing increasing competition from other states in the arts and entertainment industry, which is its third-largest source for tax revenue. Film, television, and recording studio complexes, traditionally built in California, were being built in Florida, Texas, among other places. With diminishing interest in the commercial art sector, many of California's non-profit fine arts institutions and the state’s educational community were feeling the effects of a financial backlash. http://www.csssa.org/index.php/about-us/history/In 1982, a three-year effort by the state’s legislation began to create an educational environment for California’s young artists. Former State Senator Alan Sieroty sponsored legislation to begin the planning process. A 24-member Advisory Council of legislative, arts, and industry leaders was appointed by the California Arts Council
California Arts Council
The California Arts Council is a state agency based in Sacramento. Its eleven council members are appointed by the Governor and the state Legislature...
and the State Board of Education
California State Board of Education
The California State Board of Education is the governing and policy-making body of the California Department of Education. The State Board of Education sets K-12 education policy in the areas of standards, instructional materials, assessment, and accountability...
to explore the cause of talent drain and recommend statewide educational opportunities. One of the problems that the Advisory Council discovered was that many of California's young talents were leaving California to attend art programs in New York, North Carolina, Michigan, and other states — and would eventually stay to live and work there while they went to school. http://www.csssa.org/index.php/about-us/history/
The research by the Council concluded on September 28, 1985 when Governor Deukmejian
George Deukmejian
Courken George Deukmejian, Jr. born June 6, 1928) is an Armenian American politician from California who as a Republican served as the 35th Governor of California and as California Attorney General .-Early life:...
signed the bill, authored by State Senator John Garamendi
John Garamendi
John Raymond Garamendi is the U.S. Representative for , serving since November 2009. He is a member of the Democratic Party. Garamendi was the California State Insurance Commissioner from 1991 to 1995, the U.S. Deputy Secretary of the Interior from 1995 to 1998, and the California State Insurance...
, which created the California State Summer School for the Arts. The first session was held in the summer of 1987. http://www.csssa.org/index.php/about-us/history/
The program would prove to be highly successful. By September 1990, Governor Deukmejian signed follow-up legislation to make it a permanent program of the state. By 1992, Governor Pete Wilson
Pete Wilson
Peter Barton "Pete" Wilson is an American politician from California. Wilson, a Republican, served as the 36th Governor of California , the culmination of more than three decades in the public arena that included eight years as a United States Senator , eleven years as Mayor of San Diego and...
signed legislation to enable the program to accept a limited number of students from outside California, thereby making it a national program. http://www.csssa.org/index.php/about-us/history/
Program name
“InnerSpark” is an alternate name for CSSSA, which originated from the program itself. Students use both "InnerSpark" and "CSSSA" interchangeably. In 2010, the original name CSSSA (California State Summer School for the Arts) was reinstated as the official name for the program.Student life
CSSSA students stay in separate male and female dormitories of Chouinard Hall at the California Institute of the ArtsCalifornia Institute of the Arts
The California Institute of the Arts, commonly referred to as CalArts, is located in Valencia, in Los Angeles County, California. It was incorporated in 1961 as the first degree-granting institution of higher learning in the United States created specifically for students of both the visual and the...
. Each student shares a room with two to three roommates, and has two to three suitemates in an adjoining room, with whom they share a bathroom. The CalArts campus has spacious lawns with shade trees, open fields and large hillside areas, providing room for informal team sports and relaxation. http://www.csssa.org/index.php/general-info/student-handbook/
Identification Cards
Student pictures are taken during the first two days at CSSSA for I.D. cards, which must be worn at all times. Students use the I.D. card for authorization, food service in the cafeteria, recreation equipment, access into the library and supervised study and work areas. http://www.csssa.org/index.php/general-info/student-handbook/Daily Newsletters
The Purple Blurrrb is a newsletter informing students of daily performances and other program-related events, which can be picked up by students in the cafeteria each morning. The name "Purple Blurrrb" originated at the first summer school in 1987, when it was printed on an old Ditto machineSpirit duplicator
A spirit duplicator was a low-volume printing method used mainly by schools and churches. It was also used by members of science fiction fandom and early comic book fandom to produce fanzines...
. The program now prints the newsletter on purple paper. http://www.csssa.org/index.php/parents/purple-blurrrb/
Off Campus Visits
Students are generally not allowed to leave the CalArts campus, other than to go to two plazas located nearby. On Saturday evenings and Sundays, students can receive an off campus pass to leave campus overnight, with parent permission. Visitors can come on campus with a visitor pass that students apply for, but are not allowed in dorms or around the pool. Additionally, the program organizes three weekend field trips that students can choose to attend. Destinations include a theater production, Disneyland, Six Flags Magic Mountain, and the Getty museum. http://www.csssa.org/index.php/parents/parent-handbook/College Credit
After successful completion of the program, students are eligible to receive three semester units of California State University course credit through the Office of Extended Education at Humboldt State UniversityHumboldt State University
Humboldt State University is the northernmost campus of the California State University system, located in Arcata within Humboldt County, California, USA. The main campus, nestled at the edge of a coast redwood forest, is situated on Preston hill overlooking Arcata and with commanding views of...
. These credits can be used as elective units toward a Bachelor’s degree at any of the campuses in the California State University system
California State University
The California State University is a public university system in the state of California. It is one of three public higher education systems in the state, the other two being the University of California system and the California Community College system. It is incorporated as The Trustees of the...
. They are also generally transferable to other colleges and universities throughout the United States. http://www.csssa.org/index.php/general-info/student-handbook/
Faculty
CSSSA faculty is composed of professional artists and arts educators who specialize in the artistic disciplines taught at the program. Faculty members are selected on the basis of artistic excellence in their art forms as well as their teaching abilities. Housing for the faculty is located on the east side of the campus in Ahmanson Hall. http://www.csssa.org/index.php/general-info/student-handbook/Resident Assistants
Throughout the summer session, Resident Assistants, better known as R.A.’s, help students become more familiar with campus and residential life. The R.A.'s are responsible for managing residence halls after office hours and during the evening, and are assigned a room on the same floor where they do room checks on students. R.A.’s are typically CalArts students. http://www.csssa.org/index.php/parents/parent-handbook/Notable Art Scholars
Former Art Scholars include, James FrancoJames Franco
James Edward Franco is an American actor, film director, producer, screenwriter, author, painter, performance artist and instructor at New York University. He left college in order to pursue acting and started off his career by making guest appearances on television series in the 1990s...
, Zac Efron
Zac Efron
Zachary David Alexander "Zac" Efron is an American actor. He began acting professionally in the early 2000s and became known with his lead roles in the Disney Channel Original Movie High School Musical, the WB series Summerland, and the 2007 film version of the Broadway musical Hairspray...
, Taylor Lautner, Jeff Soto
Jeff Soto
Jeff Soto is an American contemporary artist. His distinct color palette, subject matter and technique have been said to bridge the gap between Pop Surrealism and Street Art.-Early life:...
, Isabelle Fuhrman
Isabelle Fuhrman
Isabelle Fuhrman is an American teen actress. Fuhrman is best known for playing Esther in Orphan.-Life and career:...
, Craig McCracken
Craig McCracken
Craig McCracken is an American animator and creator of The Powerpuff Girls and Foster's Home for Imaginary Friends.-Biography:...
,and Jamie Conde.
External links
- Official Website
- Official Facebook Page
- Official Twitter
- Official YouTube Channel
- CSSSA: An Introduction to College Life at Sixteen
- Kids enjoy summer art study by Dailynews.com
- CSSSA Purple Blurrb 2001
- California Summer School for the Arts:More Than an Education by Animation
- "A Summer Spark" by The-Signal.com
- Jamie Conde talks CSSSA
- LiveJournal community for alumni soon-to-be students