Listen to this articleSummary:
– 300 educators and artists attended workshops across literary, visual and performing arts.
– Participants earned 18 professional development hours.
– Most public school educators attend on full scholarship.
LONE WOLF — Nearly 300 educators and artists from across Oklahoma gathered this October at Quartz Mountain State Park & Lodge for the 2025 Oklahoma Fall Arts Institute, a series of immersive weekend workshops designed to spark creativity, strengthen artistic skills and inspire innovation in the classroom.
Led by nationally acclaimed artists, the institute offered in-depth instruction in literary, visual and performing arts. Over three weekends, participants from more than 210 schools statewide engaged in hands-on learning while earning 18 hours of professional development credit. Collectively, their experiences will enrich the education of more than 50,000 Oklahoma students.
Since 1983, the Oklahoma Arts Institute has hosted the Fall Arts Institute, providing adult artists and educators with transformative opportunities to refine their craft or explore new artistic disciplines. The program complements the organization’s flagship Oklahoma Summer Arts Institute, a nationally recognized residential academy for talented high school students celebrating its 50th year in 2026.
This year’s Fall Arts Institute featured a diverse range of workshops, including poetry, theatre, stop motion animation, drawing, printmaking, Cherokee pottery, photography, world music and drumming and painting. Educators also benefited from specialized sessions such as “Adaptive Art: Tools, Techniques, & Transformation” and “STEAMology: Spark Artful Leading & Learning,” which connected creativity directly to classroom practice.
Reed, an educator from Tulsa Tech, described the program’s impact on her teaching career.
“The Oklahoma Fall Arts Institute has truly changed me both personally and professionally,” Reed said. “It was such a rejuvenating and inspiring experience that reminded me why I became a teacher in the first place. I’ve already created new lessons inspired by what I learned, and my students are more engaged and excited than ever.”
Most Oklahoma public school educators attend the institute on full scholarship, with tuition discounts also available for college students, private school teachers and other adult learners. Removing financial barriers allows participants to focus on artistic and professional growth while developing creative strategies to integrate into their classrooms.
The four-day, all-inclusive retreat also offers extracurricular opportunities such as tai chi and guided stargazing, creating a well-rounded and restorative creative experience.
Scholarships for Oklahoma educators attending the institute are made possible in part by the Oklahoma State Department of Education and the Oklahoma Arts Council, which receives support from the State of Oklahoma and the National Endowment for the Arts. Scholarship funding is also provided by the Albers Family Fund, Anne and Henry Zarrow Foundation, Avedis Foundation, BancFirst Charitable Foundation, Cresap Foundation, Edward E. and Helen Turner Bartlett Foundation, E.L. and Thelma Gaylord Foundation, Express Employment International, and Sam Viersen Family Foundation.
Next summer, Oklahoma high school students can experience the same transformative arts instruction at Quartz Mountain during the 50th Oklahoma Summer Arts Institute. Auditions for this prestigious program will begin in December and run through February 9, 2026. Every selected student receives a full scholarship to attend. More information is available at oaiquartz.org.
