2007 Horace Mann Award Recipient - Susan Warner

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When Susan Warner enrolled in the master’s program in education at Antioch, she already knew museums were her place to shine.

“I came to Antioch to ground my ideas in an academic structure and foundation, validate them and move them further than ever before,” she says. “I knew theory, but I was just grasping at it. Antioch gave me the tools to sustain it.”

Warner, director of public programs at the Museum of Glass in Tacoma, has made good use of those tools since earning her master’s in 1999.

Before the Museum of Glass even opened, this recipient of the 2007 Horace Mann Award worked with regional educators to determine critical areas of need the museum might be able to serve.

When she learned about the skyrocketing number of young women incarcerated at Remann Hall, Tacoma’s juvenile detention facility, Warner worked on a way to reach these troubled teenage girls.

In her nomination letter, Julie Pisto, director of communication at the museum, describes Warner as a savior of teenage girls, many of whom had abandoned hope or been abandoned by their families.

“Susan’s victory for humanity was dreaming of — and implementing — a way to reach and teach this marginalized section of humanity through the universal language of art,” Pisto writes.

Initially, Warner developed the Remann Hall Women’s Project so artists, poets and photographers could teach classes to the teens behind bars and offer them opportunities to express themselves creatively.

“It doesn’t take much to touch and transform a life,” Warner says. “All it really takes is caring adults willing to give of their time and genuinely care.”

Hundreds of girls have participated and created large-scale installations for the museum, produced exhibitions, plays and a book of poetry. Many teens were so enthusiastic about the project, they wanted to continue their relationship with the museum after their release from Remann Hall. 

“Within two years, the need was shifting,” Warner says. “We realized we needed to develop a transitional component, so we started Arts Connect, a program at the museum for those young women who were no longer residents of Remann Hall.

“It was rocky and difficult at first. Just getting them here was a challenge.”

Museum volunteers now bring the girls to Arts Connect from all over Pierce County. Developing relationships with probation officers was a big step. Setting boundaries was another. There’s a code of conduct for the teens that covers matters such as language and accountability.

Arts Connect is now a smashing success, which Warner attributes to its simplicity. It involves just three to three-and-a-half hours a week of a girl’s time, but the support and respect she gets can have a significant impact. Girls arrested for serious crimes are now enrolled in college.

“It doesn’t take much to touch and transform a life,” Warner says. “All it really takes is caring adults willing to give of their time and genuinely care.”

Meagan Dominguez, one of the stars of the program, today is employed by the museum as part-time program assistant for Arts Connect. She says she likes to think she’s a friend and mentor to the young women who participate. 

“What got me the most was the recognition, people thinking of me as other than a juvenile loser. There are cool people and cool art here and I like the museum structure,” Dominguez says.

Working on an art project — be it glassblowing, spoken word, animation or drama — re-engages disenchanted girls with the educational system, according to Warner.

“I think it’s different for every young woman. They all come in with individual needs and challenges to overcome. It can be very intimidating, for example, to just walk across that grand hall,” she says, waving in the direction of the museum’s commanding entrance. “Some have never been in a museum and have to make adjustments. It may take one or two sessions and then suddenly they say, ‘Wow, I like it here!’

“Many of these girls have no concept of the future. They’ve had a hard existence. To think of the future, you have to exercise your imagination. We try to provide that imaginative outlet where the sky is the limit.”

When she was director of education, Warner ran these two dynamic programs. In the fall of 2006, she was promoted to director of public programs and now oversees all education and curatorial programs as well as the Hot Shop, which features glassblowers and other artists at work.

“My role now is to get the funding to sustain these programs,” she says.

Warner’s energy level is an inspiration to all who work for the museum, according to co-worker Pisto.

“I’ll never forget her saying, ‘Working at a museum is not a career, it’s a lifestyle,’” Pisto says.

Repeat that to Warner and her smile tells you it’s true.

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