Assignment Design

A collaboration among CUNYArts, Baruch College and Museum of Modern Art (MOMA), is creating new opportunities for our faculty and students. If you have any questions about this partnership or would like to discuss ideas on how to utilize the museum in your courses, please contact Karen Shelby in the Fine and Performing Arts Department:  Karen.Shelby@baruch.cuny.edu.

What resources does MoMA offer faculty?

You can learn more about MoMA’s resources here. In November, January, May and July, MoMA will send a detailed list of upcoming exhibitions to help faculty better prepare for upcoming semesters.

How can I incorporate the MoMA and its resources into my course?

Faculty in any discipline are welcome to explore how to utilize exhibitions or other museum resources in their course. For example, faculty can design courses around a specific exhibition or resource and/or plan a brief or extensive assignment. Staff members at MoMA’s Education Department encourage faculty to reach out to them via groupservices@moma.org​ for help designing a pedagogically sound assignment or course. While this step is not necessary, it can be helpful in brainstorming with those in the Education Department, particularly for those faculty teaching in disciplines that do not traditionally incorporate art or museums into their courses.

Can I bring my class to MoMA?

Faculty at Baruch receive complimentary access to MoMA as “Visiting Professors” with a group of up to 25 students during public hours. The regular fee of $32/hour will be covered by MoMA from July 2018-June 2019, for a limited number of one-hour visits, based on availability. Visiting Professor reservations are available only to professors lecturing to their own full time, matriculating students. ​Reservations are required for each visiting group​, and can be made by calling or emailing Group Services or booking tours through the website. Be sure to clarify that you are a CUNY professor and that you are booking a group visit as a “Visiting Professor”:  (212) 708-9685  or groupservices@moma.org​. Policies on reserving a Visiting Professor can be found on the College and University group visits page on the MoMA website.

What is CUNYArts?

CUNYArts is an initiative of the City University of New York founded to create opportunities for all undergraduates to experience the richness of New York City’s arts and cultural institutions. The University recognizes that exposure to arts improves students’ critical thinking skills, broadening their ability to think strategically while acknowledging the absence of the arts in most of higher education. For many undergraduates, the challenges and wonders of the arts are elusive, expensive, unwelcoming, or unknown.  Students tend to traditionally encounter the arts through required art appreciation or survey art history courses. The aim of the CUNYArts Program is to facilitate integration of the arts into all aspects of university curriculum. The successful Baruch College-Rubin Museum of Art Project (2010-14) demonstrated that faculty can successfully fold arts experiences into their courses and co-curricular activities, expanding students’ engagement and appreciation of the arts. The Project provided insights into the way independent arts and cultural institutions and CUNY colleges can work together to build a richer education experience for both CUNY students and faculty through working closely with arts professionals and adopting the city’s cultural institutions as an extended campus. Expanding upon the success of the Baruch-Rubin Project, The University is working with a wide variety of cultural providing all CUNY undergraduates the opportunity to experience the city’s arts and cultural institutions as well as college-sponsored galleries and performance spaces.  Under the leadership of the CUNY Vice Chancellor, the University, through its campuses located throughout the five boroughs, will build a NYC Culture Network developed closer associations between its colleges and local, community-based arts and cultural institutions.