Leadership Network for Accessible Arts Education

The Leadership Network for Accessible Arts Education (LNAAE) 

Brainstorming graphic 2023 ABLE Assembly Conference session, "Arts Make Education More Accessible for ALL": Action, Art, Beat, Brain Dance, Brave, Breath, Color, Connect, Create, Culturally-Responsive, Dance, Disability, Dynamics, Energy, Engage, Form, Harmony, Hear, Line, Music, Melody, Meter, Mood, Perform, Pitch, Plot, Present, Produce, Respond, Rhythm, Role, Shape, Significance, SEL, Space, Spatial-Visual Intelligence, Tension, Texture, Theater, Think, Time, Touch, UDL, Value, Vestibular and Visual Art

LNAAE is a professional learning network of educators, artists, administrators, and activists from across the globe who meet online to further their own learning and share resources. Gatherings address general network topics as well as learning sessions highlighting a particular presenter and topic, including presentations by artists and educators with disabilities and those working with people with disabilities, reports from specialists in the field, first-person accounts of the role of the arts in education, and more. All are welcome!

The Leadership Network for Accessible Arts Education is proud to be part of the Berklee Institute for Accessible Arts Education. The network was originally formed by Dr. Rhoda Bernard, founding and managing director of the Berklee Institute for Accessible Arts Education. Network events are organized and managed by a steering committee of members who serve one-year terms and are appointed by Dr. Bernard.

Join the conversation!

LNAAE meetings are always held on Zoom and are open to everyone. While all are welcome to attend, you will need to sign up for our email list to receive the full meeting invitation.

If you are unable to access the form, please send an email to biaae@berklee.edu with your name and email address, and we will add you to our contact list.

You can also find us on the Neuroarts Resource Center, where we intend to keep the conversation engaging and activated between meetings.

 

2026 Upcoming Meetings

Meetings are held on Thursdays from 4:00 to 6:00 PM (EST) on Zoom. (Sign up to join the network and learn more.)

  • January 22, 2026
  • March 26, 2026
  • May 28, 2026

Dear Leadership Network for Accessible Arts Education (LNAAE) members, Happy New Year! You are cordially invited to our next meeting: Strengthening Accessibility Using the Hub - Free Access Resource with Dani Rose, Director of Cultural Access at Open Door Arts, Boston, MA Thursday, January 22, 2026 at 4 p.m. EST over Zoom. To receive the full meeting invitation with Zoom link, please sign up for our email list.

Past Meetings: 2025, 2024, 2023

LNAAE’s Mission, Vision, and Values

Mission

The Leadership Network for Accessible Arts Education is a welcoming community of educators, artists, administrators, and activists committed to disrupting ableist practices and reimagining equity in arts education through continuous learning, listening, collaboration, and action.

Vision

The Leadership Network for Accessible Arts Education aims to deconstruct ableism in arts education by supporting artists and educators through connection, resource-sharing, and lifelong learning that centers on artists and educators with disabilities.

Values

As a group, we are guided by:

  • Ensuring accessibility
  • Creating high-quality arts and arts education experiences across ages and art forms
  • Ingraining accessibility in artistic approaches to high-quality programming
  • Centering first-person accounts
  • Collectively learning and growing 

2025-2026 Steering Committee

Suzanne Joyal, MA 

Mehdi Raoufi, MA

Elise Sobol, EdD

Krishna Washburn, Med

General Information

Join Us! LNAAE meetings are always held on Zoom and are open to everyone. While all are welcome to attend, you will need to sign up for our email list to receive the full meeting invitation.

To make our meetings accessible to as many people as possible, ASL interpreters are always included, and a meeting summary with audio description is provided afterward.

Resource Spotlight

Check out some resources provided by LNAAE members and presenters! 

Accessible Arts Education Principles, Habits, and Strategies to Unleash Every Student’s Creativity and Learning by Rhoda Bernard

An Approach for Teaching Diverse Students: A Neuro-Inclusive Resource, 4th Edition by Elise S. Sobol

Creative Sound Play for Young Learners: A Teacher’s Guide to Enhancing Transition Times, Classroom Communities, SEL, and Executive Function Skills, by Hayes Greenfield

Sensemaking and Neuroaesthetic, by Piper Hutson

Skin, Tooth, and Bone: The Basis of Movement is Our People, by Sins Invalid: A disability justice primer based on the work of Patty Berne and Sins Invalid.