1. What is EdTA?
Educational Theatre Association

2. INCLUDED Mission Fun Facts History Programs
International Thespian Society
International Thespian Festival
Publications
EdTA National Conference
Role of Chapters
Future Priorities

4. FUN FACTS
Founded in 1929
More than 2.2 million students have earned induction into the Thespian Society
Current Membership
100,000 students
5,000 teachers
About 20% of U.S. high schools have a Thespian troupe
International Thespian Festival attracts 4,000
Chapter Festivals reach more than 54,000
Operating Budget
National budget of $6 million
Combined chapter budgets of $7 million

5. THESPIAN ALUMS YOU MAY KNOW
Aidy Bryant
Adam Driver
Ilana Glazer
John Goodman
Tom Hanks
Christina Hendricks
Zoe Kravitz
Julia Louis-Dreyfus
Jane Lynch
Janelle Monae
Vincent Rodriguez
Miles Teller

6. HISTORY
1929 – Dr. Earl Blank suggested to Dr. Paul Opp the idea of a society for the improvement of dramatics in secondary school
First meeting at the Rosana Tea Room in Fairmont, WV
Decided the society’s colors were blue and gold
Motto was “Act well your part; there all the honor lies”
Membership fee set at $1.50 per student and $5.00 to charter a troupe
1935 – moved to Cincinnati, chosen because there were many printers and a central location for mailings across the US
1941 – the First National High School Drama Conference (now known as the International Thespian Festival) was held at Indiana University
1989 – the Educational Theatre Association (EdTA) was created to house the Thespian Society as well as address the professional needs of the theatre educator
1998 – EdTA moved to the Graveson House at 2343 Auburn Avenue

7. EdTA EdTA’s PROGRAMS International Thespian Society Advocacy
Festival
College
Scholarships
EdTA
Publications
Dramatics
Teaching Theatre
Professional Development
Advocacy

8. An honor society recognizing excellent work in theatre by middle and high school students
Students earn points toward induction by participating in productions, technical work, community service, etc.
Provides structure and motivation that helps the theatre educator build an effective drama program

9. Weeklong celebration of student achievement in the performing arts held every June
Showcase for outstanding student productions
About 500 students audition for admission and/or scholarships from 50 college theatre programs
About 1,200 students are adjudicated in the National Individual Events
Tech Challenge – competition of technical theatre
Playworks & Musicalworks – student play-writing and musical-writing programs
More than 200 workshop sessions for students and teachers
Professional Development Intensives for teachers
More than 4,00 attendees

10. PUBLICATIONS Dramatics
Gives readers tools to make them better theatre artists; make informed decisions about theatre careers; and become knowledgeable, appreciative audience members
Average circulation of 45,500
Teaching Theatre
A professional journal, with exclusive articles on actor training, technical theatre, and curriculum.
Average circulation of 5,300

11. ONLINE RESOURCES schooltheatre.org Ready-to-use resources for teachers
Video library
Online store for student awards and classroom resources
100,000+ unique visitors
schooltheatre.org/community
Theatre education community that is open to the public
Networking opportunity
Place to share best practices

12. TEACHER EVENTS EdTA National Conference
Professional Development Intensives
Keynote speeches
Workshops
Panel discussions
Continuing education credits
Networking
Leadership Summit
Chapter Directors share best practices

13. ORGANIZATIONAL STRUCTURE
Board of Directors (national)
National office
36 full-time staff
5,000 Volunteers

14. ROLE OF CHAPTERS
Each Chapter is incorporated as an affiliate of EdTA, led by a Director with its own volunteer board
Chapters produce theatre festivals and competitions, broadening the reach of EdTA from 4,000 attendees at the International Thespian Festival to more than 50,000 combined at the state festivals
Chapter Directors advocate at the state level for theatre education standards and program support
Several territories outside of U.S. also have Thespian troupes

15. FUTURE PRIORITIES Advocacy
Our vision is that every student has access to theatre in the school curriculum
Research
Support research to demonstrate value of theatre education in building life skills
Growth
Broaden our reach to increase diversity, membership, and involvement
Technology
Deliver evolving services and knowledge that leverage technology