The Press Corps

ABOUT THE PRESS CORPS

The Press Corps is a place for teens to process, interpret, reflect, and think critically about the art and media they engage with. The Press Corps empowers young people to use their voices, and share their opinions about art through discussion and writing practice.

An integral part of the Press Corps is the TeenTix Newsroom which runs throughout the school year. The Newsroom is a group of teen writers from across the region who review events at TeenTix Arts Partners and publish their reviews on our blog. The Newsroom is led by the Teen Editorial Staff, who curate and edit all Newsroom reviews. Both Newsroom writers and Teen Editors receive a stipend for their work!

The Press Corps also hosts workshops in schools and at our Partner organizations. All our workshops are FREE, and are hosted periodically throughout the year. Workshops include discussion and writing practice and help show teens how important their voices are in the arts community. Participants get to learn from professional arts journalists and receive one-on-one feedback on their work.

FOR TEENS AND PARENTS

Take a Press Corps Workshop

We offer one-day Pop-Up workshops and longer Press Corps Intensives. Each style of workshop is offered several times throughout the year. Find out more information about our different styles of workshops and how to apply HERE.

FOR TEACHERS AND SCHOOLS

The Press Corps offers in-school arts criticism residencies that introduce students to the basics of arts criticism and structuring a review. Our curriculum aligns with 21st century learning standards and builds students' creative, critical thinking, and communication skills.

Learn more about our in-school Arts Criticism 101 residencies and how to bring the Press Corps to your school HERE.

FOR ARTS AND MEDIA PARTNERS

Interested in having an upcoming event reviewed by the TeenTix Newsroom? Send press releases, pitches, and requests to the Teen Editorial Staff for consideration: teeneditors@teentix.org.

TeenTix works with several media outlets to amplify the voices of our teen writers. See HERE to see teen writing featured outside the TeenTix blog.

To become a Media Partner and feature teen writing on your publication, contact the Teen Programs Director, Mariko Smithashima: mariko@teentix.org.

PRESS CORPS PROGRAM HISTORY

Since the Press Corps’ establishment in 2006, some of the city’s most talented professional arts critics from The Seattle Times, The Stranger, Seattle Globalist, Seattle Dances (and more!) have taught over 700 teens through workshops and intensives focused on arts criticism training, resulting in over 600 reviews of arts and culture events that live on the TeenTix Blog. When the Press Corps re-launched in 2018 after a short hiatus, the updated program was designed to include racial equity and social justice priorities.

Since our re-launch in Spring 2018, the Press Corps has:

• trained over 350 teens in the craft of arts criticism
• published over 150 reviews of our Arts Partner’s events
• established a school-year round Newsroom of teen writers, led by a dedicated Teen Editorial Staff.
• worked with 20 professional arts journalists to teach and mentor teens
• held 8 Pop-Up Arts Criticism Workshops
• held 5 arts journalism Intensive Workshops
• taught 6 multi-week workshops at public high schools

The updated Press Corps' program strategies center around accessibility - including ensuring all Press Corps workshops are free to participants, offering laptop check-outs to increase digital accessibility, and working closely with schools and TeenTix Arts Partners and Community Partners to program culturally responsive workshops.