Foundations in Art: Theory and Education is a national organization dedicated to promote excellence in the development and teaching of college-level foundation courses in both studio art and art history.

FATE membership is diverse. It includes full-time and part-time faculty members, art school administrators, department chairs, and graduate art students from colleges and universities in the United States and abroad. Members are all involved in some way with development and teaching in the area of the art core curriculum- general art, introduction to art, basic design, basic drawing, or art history survey courses.

Founded by a group of dedicated art educators in 1977, FATE's mission is to provide a forum that encourages exchange, development of strategies, goals and understanding in the foundation art curriculum. The principal activities of the organization include the sponsorship of conferences and publications.

------------------------------------------------------------------------

FATE Activities

As an affiliate member of the College Art Association (CAA), the Mid-American College Art Association (MACAA), and the Southeastern College Art Conference (SECAC), FATE sponsors one or more panels every year in each of these conferences. Panel themes range from general topics, such as visions and philosophy in foundations education, to specific issues, like multiculturalism in foundations curriculum, to technical topics, such as the use of computers in foundations design.

In the last 20 years, FATE organized national conferences in Louisville (hosted by the University of Louisville in 1986), Amherst (hosted by the University of Massachusetts in 1988), Chicago (hosted by the School of the Art Institute of Chicago in 1990), Philadelphia (hosted by the University of the Arts in 1992), St. Louis (hosted by Eastern Illinois University in 1995), Richmond (hosted by Virginia Commonwealth University in 1997), Ft. Collins (hosted by Front Range Community College in 1999) and Boston (hosted by Massachusetts College of Art, 2001). These conferences provided participants with in-depth discussions and exchanges.

The next FATE national conference is scheduled 2005 in Columbus, Ohio. It will be hosted by Columbus College of Art and Design. Members are encouraged to participate by working on the various committees and serving as panel chairs, as well as submitting proposals for presentation.

FATE publishes a newsletter and a journal. The newsletter contains current information, such as calls for papers, announcements and reports on FATE-related conferences, membership notices, and news of other activities of the organization. The journal, FATE in Review, is comprised of articles on art core practicum and critical studies and is published once a year.

FATE Officers

President:

Barbara Nesin

Spelman College

batyat@yahoo.com

Secretary/Treasurer:

Jeff Boshart

Eastern Illinois University

cfjgb@eiu.edu

Vice President for Communications:

Jeff Link

Columbus College of Art & Design

jlink@ccad.edu

Vice President for Regional Coordinators:

Kitty Kingston

University of Wisconsin Colleges

kkingston@uwc.edu

Vice President for Biennial Conference:

Jan Feldhausen

Milwaukee Institute of Art and Design

jfeldhau@miad.edu

Editor-FATE in Review:

Lee Ann Garrison

University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee

garrla@uwm.edu

Associate Editor:

Steven Bleicher

Coastal Carolina University

bleicher@coastal.edu

See the conference page for a list of regional coordinators