MERRIMACK – Esther Kosofsky has been surrounded by the arts her entire life, so taking on the deputy director position at Gate City Charter School for the Arts seemed like a natural fit.

Kosofsky was born in Detroit as one of six children. From an early age, she and every child in her family learned a musical instrument and made frequent trips to art museums, theater performances and symphonies.

She also attended an elementary school that integrated the arts, and acted in her first play in fifth grade.

"It was very rich," Kosofsky said.

The mission of the school, for kindergarten through eighth grade, is to use an arts-integrated curriculum to produce graduates who excel in both academics and the arts. The newly created deputy director position primarily focuses on integrating arts into the curriculum.

Kosofsky received her bachelor’s degree in speech communication and theater from the University of Michigan and would later to go on to earn a Master of Arts in expressive arts therapy from Lesley University in Cambridge, Mass.

While she discovered that she enjoyed teaching, Kosofsky found that she didn’t enjoy the traditional public school teaching environment.

"I had worked (in) public schools briefly, and it wasn’t so much fun," she said. "The politics of being in a public school system were pretty deep. And I just said, ‘I don’t want this, I want to teach, I want to be working directly with people and kids, and I don’t want to have to spend my time with that.’?"

So, Kosofsky moved into the private sector, working as a therapist in Massachusetts while also getting involved with local after-school programs. Eventually, she took on a part-time role as theater/stage director at High Mowing School, a Waldorf school in Wilton.

Now, as deputy director, she gets to do what she loves full time.

It isn’t hard to tell that Gate City isn’t like other K-8 institutions. Post-impressionist color-rich paintings cover the walls (interpretations of works by Henri Mattisse), first-graders put on jackets to explore the outdoors and create a terrarium, and kindergarteners create musical instruments out of paper towel rolls.

Kosovsky’s objective is to take the school’s art-focused curriculum to the next level while following Common Core state standards.

"It’s very exciting," she said. "There’s a lot of art here, but in my opinion, there can be a lot more."

For instance, Kosofsky said, instead of playing a recording of the national anthem or a patriotic song after the Pledge of Allegiance, a rotation of students now perform the songs themselves.

"I had one boy who came up and said, ‘Can I play it on trumpet? I’ll play it on trumpet every Tuesday and Thursday.’ And I said, ‘How about Tuesdays?’?" Kosovsky said.

Another student wants to start a school newspaper, and Kosofsky is working with him and Executive Director Karin Cevasco to make it a reality.

Kosofsky said Gate City’s arts integration approach isn’t so much a rebellion against traditional public school education, but a response to parents’ demands.

"This school was started by a group of parents who said, ‘We’re missing that in the schools, and we feel like our children are being stifled because the model is now assessment, assessment, assesment,’?" she said.

"Everyone still has a curriculum," she said, while lifting a large binder with two hands. "It just happens to have more arts integrated into it."

Derek Edry can be reached at 594-1243, dedry@nashuatelegraph.com or @Telegraph_Derek.

Newsletter