Mr. Tooshar K. Swain

Arts Education Advocacy in a Post-Pandemic World

Posted by Mr. Tooshar K. Swain, Sep 12, 2022


Mr. Tooshar K. Swain

National Arts in Education Week is upon us, and it is a wonderful time to reflect on where arts education has been and where it can go with impassioned arts advocacy. K-12 arts students and educators have endured a rocky road through the pandemic, and their perseverance must continue as we head into a new normal of education in the United States. The arts improved the social and emotional well-being of students during the pandemic. In 2020, at the outset of the pandemic, 125 national groups including Americans for the Arts endorsed the Arts Education is Essential Statement affirming the need for all students to have access to equitable arts education opportunities in dance, media arts, music, and theater. The statement was prompted by concerns that cutbacks in staff, funding, and scheduling would put K-12 arts education subject areas at risk, particularly for the traditionally underrepresented, those with special needs, and students from low-income families. While schools throughout the country have resumed in-school learning and arts education programs are thriving in some communities, quality arts programs continue to be limited or not available at all in many schools. The renamed Arts ARE Education statement is a now full-fledged national arts education campaign recognizing that all pre-K through grade 12 students have the right to a high-quality school-based arts education in dance, media arts, music, theater, and visual arts. 

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Camille Zamora

Creative Confidence and the Education Revolution

Posted by Camille Zamora, Sep 16, 2021


Camille Zamora

Art-making seeds a certain bone-deep faith in one’s instincts, a deeply grounded sense of comfort that frees one up to try new things. Developing one’s artistry is an exercise in taking risks and living to tell the tale. Mistakes aren’t only tolerated, they’re expected. Built into the artistic process is the act of rough-drafting, rehearsing, reframing, “take-it-again-from-the-top”-ing. The voice will crack at some point as we seek our sweetest, most vulnerable sound, and our foot will falter occasionally as we attempt a new pirouette. Producing meaningful art means that we’ve given ourselves space to experiment, iterate, fall and fail and get up and try again. The opportunity to correct flies in the face of an educational system predicated on the right/wrong binary of standardized testing. It’s radically freeing to look beyond that binary, and creative confidence is the byproduct. With creative confidence in place, anything is possible for our students.

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Mrs. Kelly Fey Bolender


Rena A. Cohen

10 (Newer!) Arts Education Fast Facts

Posted by Mrs. Kelly Fey Bolender, Rena A. Cohen, Sep 18, 2020


Mrs. Kelly Fey Bolender


Rena A. Cohen

During this year’s National Arts in Education Week celebration, we’ve heard hundreds of #BecauseOfArtsEd stories from students, parents, and educators about the transformative power of the arts in education. The stories we share demonstrate the social and emotional impact of the arts, and are a vital part of effective advocacy. Great stories should be paired with compelling data and facts to help round out your advocacy strategy. In honor of the 10th anniversary of National Arts in Education Week, we’ve put together 10 new fast facts—exclusively featuring data collected within the last five years—illustrating the benefits of, support for, and challenges facing arts education in America today. You can put these facts to good use as part of your personal advocacy plan to make the case for arts education in your local schools and communities. 

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Alex Gartner

From Fearful to Fierce: Creating Authentic and Engaging Virtual Arts Experiences for Youth

Posted by Alex Gartner, Sep 17, 2020


Alex Gartner

Until eight months ago, many arts educators would’ve scoffed at the idea of teaching art, music, dance, or theatre online. Now, virtual learning is a lifeline for arts education. With so many youth enrolled in virtual schooling, the need to design authentic and engaging online artistic experiences is ever more pressing. This challenge is coupled with the reality that so many young people are reeling from trauma caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. The CDC reminds us that stark changes in routine, breaks in the continuity of learning, the cancelation of milestone life events, and the perceived loss of safety and security can be very damaging to a child’s social, emotional, and mental well-being. Furthermore, moving arts education online has interrupted social interactions and created limits on self-expression. Can virtual arts experiences still foster the social and emotional needs of young people during this difficult time in their lives? If you ask Maria Ellis and Morgan Luttig, the answer is yes.

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Anthony Beatrice


Ruth C. Mercado-Zizzo

Boston Public Schools Arts Educators Creatively Meet the Moment

Posted by Anthony Beatrice, Ruth C. Mercado-Zizzo, Sep 16, 2020


Anthony Beatrice


Ruth C. Mercado-Zizzo

Within a week of Boston Public Schools closing its schools due to COVID-19, the district’s nearly 300 BPS visual and performing arts educators quickly shifted to offering remote learning in the arts. The creativity, responsiveness, and community approach educators brought to this task have ensured the arts remain a priority for our students during the spring and moving forward into the new school year. Within days of school closures, BPS visual and performing arts educators congregated on our first Zoom meeting to take stock of the moment and build a plan going forward. In a traffic-jammed city where it can take over an hour to get from one neighborhood to another, meeting online quickly turned into a silver lining, creating a new outlet for collaboration and camaraderie. Discussions rapidly led to an action plan focused on pedagogy and approaches that would make arts learning relevant and sharing resources to do so.

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Abigail Alpern Fisch

Member Spotlight: ArtsEd Washington

Posted by Abigail Alpern Fisch, Sep 15, 2020


Abigail Alpern Fisch

ArtsEd Washington is a nonprofit organization dedicated to making arts education equitable and accessible to every K-12 student in Washington State. Danielle Gahl has been the Executive Director since 2017, but beginning in September 2020, she will be stepping down from that role and continue to run Internal Operations for the organization. Courtney Clark stepped up from the organization’s Board and became the Interim Executive Director in July 2020 after being furloughed during COVID-19 from Seattle Opera as the School Programs Manager. “It’s easy to send out an email that tells everybody what you’re doing; it’s a lot harder to do it. We’ve been focusing our efforts for a while now on walking the walk before we start talking the talk. ... The work of ArtsEd Washington is an everchanging landscape as the world of education is ever evolving. We choose to advocate through an equitable lens of equality that The Arts Matter! And FOR All!” 

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Josh Groban and Lindy Groban

Letters from Josh Groban and his mother, Lindy, in support of Arts Education

Posted by Josh Groban and Lindy Groban, Sep 14, 2020


Josh Groban and Lindy Groban

When I write to you about the importance of the arts, I know full well that I am preaching to a large and supportive choir. But we are living in unique times. We are fighting inequality, cynicism, otherism, disconnect, disease. The arts have the powerful ability to remind us who we are, to remind us how to celebrate our similarities as well as our differences. So to you, the choir, I write to you because now more than ever we need to sing our loudest. Without the arts, stories like mine, and millions more, will go untold. The connectivity that makes us who we are, that releases the better angels of our nature, will fade into the dark. Americans for the Arts is here to ensure that we never fade. They are fighting that fight from the capitol building to the streets. They are working to ensure that the mission of the arts, the millions of jobs they provide, the heartbeat they give our humanity, the spark they give our youth, is never muted. 

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Samika A. Satterthwaite

Advancing the Arts: African Proverbs Provide a Blueprint

Posted by Samika A. Satterthwaite, Sep 13, 2019


Samika A. Satterthwaite

I attended the 2019 Americans for the Arts Annual Convention in Minneapolis, Minnesota. It was amazing to be in a place with thousands of other arts supporters and enthusiasts. I was among artists, researchers, educators, community organizations, politicians, board members, and so many others. All of us came together to learn, share, network, and champion the cause of elevating the arts in our communities. There was power in the sheer number of people who traveled from all over the country to be in attendance. All of us traveled individually—one by one, to come to one place for one reason: the arts. We came together to advocate, connect, and support the power of the arts in America. I believe the African proverb: “If you want to go fast, go alone. If you want to go far, go together.” In those simple words, the proverb teaches us the blueprint for monumental progress. 

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2019 National Arts in Education Week Recognized by US House of Representatives

Thursday, September 12, 2019

Chellie Pingree

The US House of Representatives formally recognized this year's celebration of National Arts in Education Week during a session on September 11, 2019. Representative Chellie Pingree of Maine, who also serves as co-chair of the bi-partisan Congressional Arts Caucus, offered remarks to mark the occassion.


Will Bonfiglio

From the Barre to the Boardroom: The Power of Arts-Based Learning for Business Professionals

Posted by Will Bonfiglio, Sep 12, 2019


Will Bonfiglio

Arts education certainly doesn’t have to (and really shouldn’t) end after high school. At least that’s our belief at COCAbiz, the arts-based business training division of COCA-Center of Creative Arts in St. Louis. COCAbiz provides immersive arts-based training, programming, and consulting for business professionals. We are constantly exploring how to unlock creative energy and build skills to meet today’s business challenges by providing leaders with new tools, techniques, and perspectives from the arts. COCA’s Executive Director, Kelly Pollock, wrote about COCAbiz for Americans for the Arts back in 2011, suggesting “businesses might be more innovative and achieve greater success when they give their employees all of the tools that the arts and the creative process have to offer.” She’s right. As we round out our first decade of COCAbiz, we have learned that arts learning is powerful and needed with business professionals. In a world where automation and technological dependence are becoming the norm, human creativity still reigns as the ultimate competitive advantage.

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Kate McLeod

Engaging Partners on Art Education for Students with Visual Impairment

Posted by Kate McLeod, Sep 11, 2019


Kate McLeod

“You mean an artist made this for us?” A student with a visual impairment is seeing a work of art for the first time at an art museum. The student had just been told that a visual artist recreated Native American on Horseback by Ronald Lockett for their group especially. The group is part of a program called STARS (Social, Therapeutic, Academic and Recreational Services) at the Center for the Visually Impaired in Atlanta, Georgia. This year-long program is for students with visual impairments and helps them “gain the self-confidence and skills necessary to thrive.” The Center for the Visually Impaired (CVI) is in Midtown Atlanta, less than two miles from the High Museum of Art. CVI and the High officially began a partnership in 2016 through a Museum Access for Kids contract from the Kennedy Center VSA. Through this partnership and others, High Museum staff have received training on working with visitors with various abilities.

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Ms. Argy Nestor

A Reflection on the Current Climate for Arts Educators in Schools

Posted by Ms. Argy Nestor, Sep 10, 2019


Ms. Argy Nestor

Summer is coming to an end and schools across the country once again are opening their doors and welcoming learners of all ages. The education systems of 2019 are shifting to meet the needs of these learners, and this is an ongoing and huge challenge for school leaders. Some students aren’t returning to a traditional school, while others never stopped their learning when the last school year was “officially” over. Fortunately, we have excellent educators across the country leading with innovative ideas to tackle aspects of these differences. As a veteran arts educator of 43 years, this blog is a reflection of what is circling around in my head.

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Americans for the Arts Reports Record Number of Celebrations Held During National Arts in Education Week September 9-15

Monday, September 24, 2018

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Americans for the Arts reported that more than 800 celebrations were held in communities across the nation for the 8th annual National Arts in Education Week, September 9-15 – a significant uptick compared with 428 in 2017. The celebrations ranged from block parties to city hall meetings to online visibility campaigns. 

Americans for the Arts Celebrates the Life, Work, and Impact of Dr. James Catterall

Americans for the Arts dedicates National Arts in Education Week in his honor

Friday, August 25, 2017

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Dr. Catterall built his career on the inquiry of creativity and produced pervasive works that fueled the advancement of arts and arts education friendly policies in the United States and around the world. Americans for the Arts wishes to dedicate the upcoming National Arts in Education Week celebration in his honor. 

PBS to release "Teachers" as part of Spotlight Education initiative

Wednesday, August 24, 2016

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On Thursday, Sept. 15 at 8 p.m., the "Teachers" episode of PBS's "Craft in America" series will be broadcast as part of PBS's Spotlight Education initiative. "Teachers"—the only arts education related broadcast of the initiative—follows artists including Barbara Teller Ornelas, Lynda Teller Pete, Therman Statom, Mark Mitsuda at Punahou School, and Linda Sikora at Alfred University as they pass on the traditons and techniques of their crafts, highlighting the arts as a fundamental component of an American education.

Arts in Education Webinar Series: What You Need to Know

Followed by Twitter Chats on the topic each night!

Monday, September 14, 2015

Every year there are new buzzwords which affect our work. Each day during the week of September 14–18, we will gather thought leaders to unpack these terms, where they came from, and their impact on our day to day work in arts education. These daily webinars will be held at 3:00 p.m. (EST) and last approximately 20 minutes. To continue the conversation, join Jeff Poulin (@JeffMPoulin) and special guests for a Twitter chat from 8:00 p.m.–9:00 p.m. (EST) by following the specified hashtag. 

Enchanted Circle is celebrating National Arts in Education Week with the unveiling of The Secret Stream Story Walk, a public art and advocacy campaign created with 5th grade students at Holyoke’s Sullivan School to raise awareness of Day Brook, an underground stream in Holyoke that flows into the Connecticut River.
The Story Walk unveiling will take place on Thursday September 14th at 1:15pm at Sullivan School in Holyoke.

Is Arts Education your jam?
Join Any Given Child Indy as we celebrate the power of Arts Education! Artists, educators, and community stake-holders who are experts in their fields will share their perspectives and insights into the value and challenges of arts education. Through a series of short, engaging, and interactive presentations, our speakers will delve deep into the heart of what makes arts education vitally important to building robust and equitable communities in Indianapolis.

Herkimer Central School District (Central NY) will be taking over their social media for the week in Celebration of National Arts in Education week.  
We will be posting to our Facebook, Instagram and Twitter pages.  Why Arts Education is important.

 

NYSATA (New York State Art Teachers Association) Region 3 (Central NY) will be taking over their social media for the week in Celebration of National Arts in Education week.  
We will be posting to our Facebook, Instagram and Twitter pages.  Why Arts Education is important.

 

Artivate joins together with our summer programming partners and friends with PTA Cultural Arts and Reflections programming to celebrate our collective roles in advancing the arts and artists working in schools every day!

Randolph School will serve as a hub for the Huntsville community in celebrating National Arts in Education Week beginning this September, 2017 with our “Celebrating the Arts.” In this inaugural year, we feature visual artist Dan Dunn, musical artists of The Rodney Marsalis Philadelphia Big Brass, and theater artist and satellite radio show host Seth Rudetsky.

The Utah-made adaptation of 'Romeo & Juliet' will be having its worldwide theatrical premiere on Saturday, September 16th at 4 p.m. at the Jordan Commons Megaplex in Sandy, Utah.

What better way to celebrate National Arts in Education Week than by watching Indianapolis Public School students perform and showcase their artistic talents? Continue the celebration of National Arts in Education Week in Indianapolis on Friday, September 16, at 12:15 p.m. at the Indianapolis Artsgarden with special musical performances by the following student groups:

This interactive presentation will delve into the history and current landscape of teaching artistry, a growing profession. Learn about teaching artists’ roles in education and the unique skills and inspiration they bring to the classroom. Hear from professional teaching artists Bob Sander and Jingo de la Rosa and student Janay Watson on their experiences in the field.
NATIONAL ARTS IN EDUCATION WEEK, SEPTEMBER 11 – 17

Curious to know what the arts look like when implemented in the classroom? During National Arts in Education Week, you will have the opportunity to visit two high-performing schools and learn what students experience in the arts on an every day basis.

Do you remember what you learned in art class in the third grade? Do you know what fifth graders typically learn in music class? Here’s the chance to find out what you know! Come out to Sun King Brewing Co. on Monday, September 12 from 5:30–7 p.m. to test your knowledge of arts education with a trivia night!

As part of the Indianapolis community’s celebration of National Arts in Education Week (September 11 – 17), Any Given Child Indy and the Arts Council of Indianapolis will officially kickoff the week at the Indianapolis Artsgarden on September 12.

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