Biller Family Foundation and Music Center to Host 'Imagination Conversation'

LOS ANGELES, May 5, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- At a time when local school districts are struggling with looming budget cutbacks, leaving educators with little time to teach much beyond the basics, the Music Center and The Sheri and Les Biller Family Foundation will hold an interactive dialogue on Creativity and the Future of Education in Los Angeles: An Imagination Conversation at 5:30 p.m., Monday, May 9, 2011 at RAND Corporation in Santa Monica. The conversation will focus on the critical importance of nurturing and promoting imagination and creativity in students today.

Los Angeles Unified School District Superintendent Dr. John E. Deasy; international creativity expert and New York Times bestselling author, Sir Ken Robinson, PhD; and Lincoln Center Institute Director Scott Noppe-Brandon will speak with educators, business and opinion leaders and policy makers.  Biller Family Foundation President Sheri Biller and Music Center Vice President of Education Mark Slavkin will moderate an open discussion with the speakers and the audience.

Biller commented, "Cultivating imagination is an integral component of education for today's children. We believe we share in the responsibility to help youth develop their own sense of creativity and innovation."

"It is easy to identify the value of creativity in the arts, but imagination also has a tremendous impact on virtually all areas of our society – from business, government, medical research, technology, energy and manufacturing to urban and suburban life," Slavkin explained.

This event is part of the Imagination Conversation, a project of Lincoln Center Institute, the educational cornerstone of Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts and a leader in developing skills of inquiry, imagination and creativity.  The project, which is aimed at building national awareness of imagination, will culminate this summer at a national summit in New York during which an action plan will be presented that will put imagination at the forefront of school curricula.  Issues and solutions raised at the Los Angeles area event will contribute directly to that action plan.

As a national leader in arts education, the Music Center believes the purpose of schooling is to transmit the key understandings of the human experience to youth and to prepare them with the skills and knowledge they will need to contribute to society.  According to Slavkin, the 'Imagination Conversation' dovetails with the Music Center's commitment to arts education as a means to foster creativity and innovation and help prepare young people to shape the future.

The Biller Family Foundation, a local leading education funder in the greater Los Angeles area, recognizes that imagination development is a critical focus not only in the arena of education but also in workforce development.  Imagination, or "the ability and willingness to conceive of what is not" is a critical skill for engineers, doctors, teachers and every other professional to possess in order for America to keep its competitive edge and productive capacity.

About the Music Center

As one of the top performing arts centers in the world, the Music Center is committed to strengthening community through the arts.  Set in the heart of Los Angeles' downtown cultural district and home to four internationally renowned resident companies – LA Phil, Center Theatre Group, LA Opera and Los Angeles Master Chorale – and the celebrated Glorya Kaufman Presents Dance at the Music Center, the Music Center offers the most compelling, highest quality engagements.  In its effort to extend the reach and accessibility of the performing arts, the Music Center is a national model for experiences in which people participate directly through its Active Arts® at the Music Center.  As well, the Music Center presents special productions, events and festivals for children and families, including World City at the Music Center, and plays a leadership role in advocating for and directly providing arts education in schools throughout the County.  The Music Center boasts four venues – the Dorothy Chandler Pavilion, Ahmanson Theatre, Mark Taper Forum and Walt Disney Concert Hall – as well as a vibrant collection of outdoor theatres, plazas and gardens.  For more information about the Music Center's Education programs, visit musiccenter.org.  Follow the Music Center on Twitter @musiccenterla and on Facebook.

About The Sheri and Les Biller Family Foundation

The Sheri and Les Biller Family Foundation works as a catalyst to advance community programs that educate and energize individuals to both achieve personal goals and inspire others.  The Biller Family Foundation is committed to active philanthropy, partnering with organizations to create effective program models in four areas of interest:  K-12 Education, Theatre Enrichment, Career Training and Supportive Care.  The primary guiding principal of the Foundation is a belief that education is the single most important factor to advancing positive, sustainable change in our communities and in the world.  Grants are made primarily in the Los Angeles and Seattle areas.  The Foundation was founded in 2001 by Sheri and Les Biller.  For more information, visit The Sheri and Les Biller Family Foundation's website:  www.billerfamilyfoundation.org.  Follow on Twitter @BillerFamFdtn and on Facebook.

SOURCE Music Center