Through the collective partnership and collaboration between Katie Black-Bowling, Episcopal School of Jacksonville’s director of Fine Arts, and Jennifer Ketchum, head of Lower School, Beaches campus, Episcopal’s Beaches campus successfully rolled out the Fine Arts Wheel for the 2020-2021 school year.
The collaboration across two campuses started as part of the merger discussion last year to enhance the fine arts program and to align the fine arts as one program across both campuses. The Fine Arts Wheel has three components in which the three class sections rotate each trimester through theater, dance and music.
The theater program, directed by Weatherly Donald, provides drama students the opportunity to enjoy popular games to enhance improvisational skills, record their own radio commercials and work on monologue performances. The dance program is led by Andrea Hagan and teaches various genres of dance. The music program is led by Cameron Strine, and students gain exposure to Orff instrument instruction. The Fine Arts wheel rolled out to students in grades five and six on the Beaches campus; however, the program will extend into after-school offerings for some of the younger students.
Beaches campus welcomes Durden as PE teacher, athletic coordinator
Kayla Durden joins the Episcopal School of Jacksonville, Beaches campus community this week as the new physical education teacher and athletic coordinator.
Durden also serves as the girls varsity basketball head coach and program director on Episcopal’s Munnerlyn campus. Under Durden’s leadership as coach, students have set school records and finished their last season with a 13-1 record.
For more than five years, Durden also has been a professional surfer with the World Surf League and is a highly regarded surf instructor in the Beaches community.
“Kayla brings to the Beaches campus her strong leadership skills and energy, and we are thankful our students will benefit from her talents,” said Jennifer Ketchum, head of Lower School, Beaches campus. “We are excited to welcome Kayla to Episcopal and the Beaches campus!”
