Recent News

Recent News

Perpich Arts High School Graduation 2026

May 22, 2026
The Class of 2026 took the stage at the Ames Center in Burnsville, Minnesota in a heartfelt and deeply personal graduation ceremony on May 22, 2026 that celebrated not only artistic achievement, but also community, resilience, and self-expression at Perpich Arts High…

  • CENTRO Students Get a Glimpse of Life at Perpich

    September 2, 2026
    On August 27th, Perpich Arts High School welcomed 18 young people and three chaperones from CENTRO’s Raíces summer youth program for an afternoon of exploring campus, connecting with students, and experiencing the arts.
    The visiting students, ages 12–17, came from schools across the…

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  • A Note from our Executive Director, Allegra Smisek – August 31, 2026

    August 31, 2026

    Greetings from Perpich Center for Arts Education!
    Perpich is both a place people come to and a resource we bring to communities across Minnesota.

    Allegra Smisek, Executive Director

    This August offered a wonderful reminder of both sides of that mission. Perpich…

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  • 2026 Minnesota Dance Summer Workshop: Creating A Space of Belonging

    August 20, 2026

    Dance educators from across Minnesota gathered on August 19th for their annual Summer Workshop. This year’s workshop celebrated the legacy of TU Dance Founding Artistic Director, Toni Pierce-Sands, and her profound impact on the field of dance education. Toni inspired and helped…

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  • Could Popular Music Education Enhance Your Music Program?

    August 19, 2026

    Presenter Mary Claxton introduces participants in Modern Band 101 to a guitar chord

    Approximately 35 music educators participated in a popular music professional development workshop on August 18, 2026, organized through a collaboration of the MN Department of Education,…

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  • New Visual Arts Books from Perpich Library

    August 17, 2026

    The Perpich Library has an extensive collection of visual arts books to be utilized for teaching, creating, and learning. Here are a few of the amazing books we added to the collection this summer.

    All items on this list are available at the…

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  • From Reflection to Action: CAPP Cohort Begins Year Two

    August 14, 2026

    Erika Nesvig, Sarah Christian-Garceau, Laura Grimm, Morgan Losure, and Mariah Dant of Waconia analyze the Brainerd strategic arts plan and give feedback.

    Earlier this week, the Comprehensive Arts Planning Program (CAPP) started its second year of programming for the…

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  • Jeff Baenen Creates Housing Scholarship for Perpich Student

    August 12, 2026

    For Jeff Baenen, a lifelong love of the arts has taken many forms: journalism, theater, music, comedy, and even playing the voice of God.

    Now, that passion is helping make a Perpich education more accessible to a student living on campus.

    Baenen, a retired…

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  • Perpich Hosts BIPOC Authors and Illustrators Book Fair

    August 11, 2026

    On August 10, Perpich Center hosted the 2nd Annual Book Fair: Celebrating BIPOC Authors and Illustrators. The afternoon event featured guest speakers MN State Senator Mary K. Kunesh and author/spoken word artist/program administrator Bao Phi. Several book sellers such as Black Garnet…

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  • Summer Music Professional Development Workshops 2026

    August 10, 2026

    Over 100 music educators attended a series of five professional development workshops last week, hosted on the Perpich Center campus. The sessions appealed to a wide variety of educators, including elementary classroom teachers, arts administrators, general music teachers, band, choir, and orchestra…

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