Varner, Edward
Edward Varner has been an educator, researcher, musician, actor, and arts education specialist and advocate for more than 33 years. He is particularly excited about liberal arts education and continues active participation in relevant organizations. He has presented creativity and the importance of play, SEL, music, arts, language experience, and literacy workshops at a wide variety of local, regional, national, and international conferences and strongly believes we can never stop recruiting teachers and administrators to our cause! Ed has published about the alignments between arts education and Social Emotional Learning competencies and continues to advocate for quality music and arts programming in our schools and community. Ed is the author of the “Social and Emotional Learning Column” for the Journal of General Music Education, a peer reviewed journal of the National Association for Music Education: "I hope by increasing my publication profile, I can reach more teachers and thereby positively impact the educational lives of children exponentially."
In addition to his work as a teacher and teacher trainer, Ed provided seven years of leadership as the supervisor of music and art education for the Great Falls Public Schools in Great Falls, Montana, and served twelve years as the Director of Visual and Performing Arts for the Milton Hershey School in Hershey, Pennsylvania. He earned his Doctor of Education (Ed.D.) in School Leadership from Concordia University Chicago, completed the master’s degree in educational administration and leadership from the University of British Columbia, and holds a Bachelor of Arts in Music from California State University, Los Angeles.
"As an educator, I have always been a firm believer in the philosophies of integration and differentiation of curriculum to better meet the needs of students. I must know my students in order to adequately and effectively meet them where they are and help them progress to the next level. This philosophy of knowing your students necessitates an added element of care. Educators must care for their students, themselves, and have the fortitude to continue caring when it appears that others have surrendered." —Edward Varner, Ed.D.
www.edwardvarner.com
Workshops
Breaking Through: Disrupting Barriers to Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Access within an SEL Approach to Music, Language, and Math - Music Education
Structured cross-curricular exposure to music, language, and math is vital to helping students gain a larger understanding of the world. They open the door to a global citizenry and help eliminate the worst enemies of humankind: ignorance and prejudice. This workshop promotes healing-centered considerations for teachers striving to disrupt the barriers to equity faced by so many of our students.
Creativity, SEL, and the Importance of Play in the Classroom - Music Education
A celebration of the very important role of play in education and a reminder that teachers also have a responsibility to teach to student creativity, student engagement, and ongoing student success in school—more than your written curriculum.
Take Time in Life: Finding Success, Finding Balance, and Enjoying the Ride - Music Education
Who are you? You were born to dance, sing, act, create, make music, and play. And then, life happened! This presentation helps participants explore personal strengths and challenges to living an authentic life.
The Fun Factor: Relevance, Rigor, and FUN Can and Should Coexist in the Classroom - Music Education
All learning needs to be active and fun. Students need to respond to their academic life by moving, singing, playing instruments, creating, and having fun. The linking of academic information with actual life experiences encourages students to be actively involved. This active involvement, the Fun Factor, will lead to better assimilation of information. It also encourages greater student interest and motivation and helps to establish a more efficient environment for learning. Relevance, rigor, and fun can and should be in the classroom.