Long Beach Welcomes New Director of Media, Performing, and Fine Arts

The Long Beach School District has appointed Julia Lang-Shapiro as director of media, performing and fine arts, effective July 1. The role is an expansion of the director of comprehensive arts position, from which Dr. Dale Johanson is retiring.

Ms. Lang-Shapiro comes to Long Beach with 10 years of experience as an art department administrator. She currently serves as visual arts department chairperson in the Northport-East Northport School District, a post she has held since 2011. She has overseen both International Baccalaureate and Advanced Placement arts classes and coordinated exams for both. She has also organized student and staff art exhibits and professional development initiatives, and wrote grants for various projects.

Prior to her role in Northport, Ms. Lang-Shapiro was art department chairperson in the Sayville Public School District, and earlier in her career she taught art in Glen Cove and Hicksville school districts. She is also a professional development instructor for the Suffolk County Organization for the Promotion of Education. Ms. Lang-Shapiro has led many presentations on art education at local, state and national conferences and taught a course in the subject at Dowling College for several years.

This is Ms. Lang-Shapiro’s sixth year serving as Youth Art Month chairperson for the New York State Art Teachers Association. In this capacity, she writes curriculum guides and presents at conferences to help promote the importance of art education and integration of the arts into all curricula. Ms. Lang-Shapiro has earned a number of awards for her work with this initiative, which is a collaboration between the Art and Creative Materials Institute, Inc. and National Art Education Association.

Ms. Lang-Shapiro holds a Bachelor of Arts degree, a Master of Science degree and a Professional Degree as a school district administrator from Long Island University’s C.W. Post Campus. She is a member of the Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development, Art League of Long Island, National Art Education Association and New York State Art Teachers Association.

“I am proud to become a part of such a wonderful district, and I am excited to work with the incredibly creative and talented students and faculty of the media, performing and fine arts departments,” Ms. Lang-Shapiro said. “The arts serve as the voice and memory of all societies, and I look forward to celebrating this in Long Beach.”

“We are pleased to welcome Ms. Lang-Shapiro to our district, and believe that her background experience will benefit our program,” said Superintendent of Schools David Weiss. “The incorporation of media into the arts has evolved over the years, and we are taking the administrative change as an opportunity to officially add this component into the director’s position and curriculum.”

Submitted by Long Beach Schools

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