On Wednesday, December 9, the Senate passed the Every Student Succeeds Act 85-12, on the heels of its passage in the House last week.

The bill — which the president is scheduled to sign Thursday, 12/9 — would "dump the current law’s intense focus on test scores and the well-intentioned but impossible goal of having all students reading and calculating at grade level." We're one step closer to saying a permanent farewell to the widely unpopular No Child Left Behind Act. 

Turnaround Arts and Wolf Trap Foundation for the Performing Arts announce a national partnership to support arts-integrated learning in early childhood classrooms across the country. Through in-class services for young children, ongoing training for educators, and resource development for the early childhood community at-large, the two organizations will work together to use the arts as a tool to improve student outcomes and school culture.

WASHINGTON, D.C.—Americans for the Arts, the leading organization for advancing the arts and arts education in America, announces its annual National Arts Awards honorees. The awards recognize artists and arts leaders who exhibit exemplary national leadership and whose work demonstrates extraordinary achievement. They are individuals who share a common belief in the power of the arts and arts education to enrich individual lives and communities alike.

This year’s National Arts awards recipients are:

Arlington Sons, a moving musical performance accompanied by select ensemble members of the USAF Band, is currently touring the DC area, with performances at Arlington, VA on September 21 and the Bowie Theater in MD on September 25, 2014.

Today the U.S. Senate confirmed Dr. Jane Chu as chair of the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA). Chu is currently the president and CEO of the Kauffman Center for the Performing Arts in Kansas City, Mo. She fills a chair position left vacant at the NEA since Rocco Landesman stepped down in 2012.

Americans for the Arts' Artists Committee member John Legend will perform a free concert at The Kennedy Center on Wednesday, May 28th at 7:30 PM.

Every year, grassroots advocates from across the country join Americans for the Arts and 85+ other co-sponsoring organizations for Arts Advocacy Day - a two-day event where atendees learn the tools and talking points they need to make an impact when they visit their members of Congress in support of issues like arts education policy, charitable tax deduction, and funding for the National Endowment for the Arts.

Since spring 2006, The National Endowment for the Arts and The Poetry Foundation have been partnering with U.S. state arts agencies to support Poetry Out Loud, “a contest that encourages the nation's youth to learn about great poetry through memorization and recitation.” Participating students recite a poem of their choice, using materials that schools receive by partnering with their state arts agency.

Now that it's back-to-school time and upcoming National Arts Education Week is right around the corner (September 14 - 18), WorldWideLearn's May article on the 15 most inspiring cities for young arts professionals and arts students piques our interest yet again.

Americans for the Arts, in conjunction with the Congressional Arts Caucus and 86 national co-sponsors, celebrates Arts Advocacy Day 2010 today. More than 500 arts advocates from across the country are meeting with their representatives on Capitol Hill, calling on Congress to support arts-friendly legislation and policies. A highlight of the day is a congressional hearing entitled “Arts Build Communities” hosted by Rep. James P. Moran (D-VA), Chairman of the House Appropriations Subcommittee on the Interior. Advocacy has been at the core of Americans for the Arts’ history and is one of the many milestones being celebrated during the organization’s 50th anniversary year. Arts Advocacy Day 2010 brings together a broad cross section of America’s cultural and civic organizations, along with hundreds of grassroots arts activists.

Noted singer-songwriter and record producer Ben Folds will perform at the Americans for the Arts 25th Annual Nancy Hanks Lecture on Arts and Public Policy on April 16 at The John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts. The lecture is presented by Americans for the Arts, the nation's leading nonprofit organization for advancing the arts and arts education, in partnership with Ovation, the only television network celebrating art, artists, and all forms of artistic story-telling.

A round of applause for Americans for the Arts board member Dorothy McSweeny! She is this year'€™s recipient of the National Assembly of State Arts Agencies (NASAA)'€™s Distinguished Public Service Award, which honors an individual volunteer leader whose outstanding service, creative thinking and leadership have had a significant impact on public support for the arts in his or her state and across the country. She will receive her award today during NASAA's annual conference in Washington, D.C.

There are only two weeks left to vote for a community to win a $15,000 innOVATION Grant from Americans for the Arts and Ovation!

Having already awarded a total of $85,000 to organizations in Tacoma, WA; Fort Collins, CO; Lanesboro, MA; Bethlehem, PA; and Washington, DC earlier this year, there are 58 organizations vying for the $15,000 Viewer's Choice Award on Facebook.

Liz Lerman, renowned choreographer and Americans for the Arts board member, is launching a new project commemorating the 150th anniversary of the Civil War.

The National Civil War Project begins on March 6 and events will take place throughout the DC/Baltimore Metro area for the next two years.

The Baltimore Sun's coverage of this exciting event follows:

The 26th annual Arts Advocacy Day in Washington, DC, brought together a cross section of America's cultural and civic organizations, along with more than 500 grassroots advocates from 40 states, to underscore the importance of developing strong public policies and appropriating increased public funding for the arts and arts education.

The national winners of The Art Institutes and Americans for the Arts Poster Design Competition 2013 traveled to Washington, D.C. on Wednesday, June 19 to accept their scholarship awards at a Congressional Reception on Capitol Hill. Whitney Lanier of Statesboro, GA, was the grand prize winner in the high school senior category of the competition. She earned a full tuition scholarship to The Art Institute of Atlanta. Morgan Stevens of Athens, IL, was selected as the grand prize winner in the high school graduate category. She earned a $10,000 tuition scholarship to The Art Institute of St.