Arts charter school to open in Columbia this fall

The Midlands Arts Conservatory (MAC) is pleased to announce our new school facility at 3806 North Main St. in Columbia. The school will open in fall 2018 with a focus on the visual arts, theater, dance and music. MAC’s principal is Ms. Shannon Hickey, an educator with 20 years experience working as a principal, senior school administrator, assistant principal, and fine arts and athletics departments director as well as a music teacher, band director, chorus director, and classroom teacher.

The school will hold informational meetings for parents and the community at 6 p.m. every Tuesday and Thursday in June at 3806 North Main St., the former Imagine building.

MAC will provide a free, public education that effectively combines arts and academics. The school will open in the fall of 2018 with 6th and 7th grades, and will add a grade level each year until 12th grade opens in 2023. The Midlands Arts Conservatory will be free for any South Carolina resident student in the appropriate grade level who has an interest in the arts and is willing to meet the high academic expectations of the school.

The school will be staffed with highly qualified arts and academic instructors in an environment that provides training, exposure and practical application in the arts and the integration of arts into the academics of the school. The student-teacher ratio in classes will be no higher than 20 to 1 and lower in specialized arts areas. MAC will have small group and individualized instruction in the arts with a wide spectrum of academic support available.

The MAC Planning Committee members understand the importance of a high-quality arts education for young people. They want to ensure that every child in the Midlands has the opportunity to experience the power of creative self-expression.

For more information:

• go to MidlandsArtsConservatory.org,
• contact Shannon at Shannon.Hickey@MidlandsArtsConservatory.org,
• or call J Britt at 803.630.1MAC.