Nicole Robinson Named ED of The California Arts Project

Above & Beyond Teaching is proud to congratulate Nicole Robinson, a 2017 Carlston Outstanding Teachers of America honoree, on her appointment as Executive Director of The California Arts Project, effective August 17, 2026. Nicole succeeds Kristine Alexander, who retired after thirty-four years leading the organization. The California Arts Project is one of the nine California Subject Matter Projects.

Nicole brings thirty years of experience as a dance educator, choreographer, dancer, and advocate for dance education to the role, along with more than a decade of active leadership within The California Arts Project itself, where she has been involved since 2010. She served as team lead for the California Arts Standards Revision Committee in Dance, is a two-term past president of the California Dance Education Association, and served on the National Dance Education Organization's Inclusion, Diversity, Equity, and Access Advisory Committee. Most recently, she spent four years as Content Manager for the National Dance Education Organization's Connected Arts Network.

Nicole's path to this role began at A.B. Miller High School in Fontana, California, where she spent 18 years building a dance program from the ground up. Recognizing that many of her students had never had the chance to experience the performing arts, she used the physical education requirement to open a dance curriculum for students who wanted something different from a traditional PE class. Her approach centered on building students' confidence and belief in their own ability, teaching them that mistakes are a welcome part of growth.

Her contributions to arts education have earned her numerous honors, including the California League of Teachers Region 10 Teacher of the Year (2015), the Carlston Family Foundation Teacher of the Year (2017), the National Dance Education Organization's K-12 Leadership Award (2024), and the San Bernardino County Superintendent of Schools' Excellence in Education Award (2025).

Congratulations, Nicole, on this well-earned next chapter.