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Federal Arts Funding, Arts Education and Americans for the Arts

Americans for the Arts                  - Arts Action Fund
              

It’s time for members to cast their annual 2018 Arts Policy Vote.

Arts Advocacy Day is just around the corner on March 12, 2018. The Arts Action Fund would like to join 90+ national arts partners with a unified message to Congress. Please cast your vote on these three policy agendas for 2018. Click below to vote and you’ll also be given an option to make your annual gift to the Arts Action Fund Political Action Committee (PAC) to support our legislative efforts.

Thanks,

Nina Ozlu Tunceli
Executive Director

P.S.  Please cast your vote by March 12, 2018. 

National Arts in Education Week

Join us in celebrating National Arts In Education Week from September 11-17, 2016. Take two minutes to issue a Letter to the Editor to your local papers and tell them why the arts matter in education!

Designated by Congress in 2010, House Resolution 275 names the week beginning with the second Sunday in September as National Arts in Education Week. During this week, the field of arts education and its supporters join together in communities across the country to tell the story of the transformative power of the arts in education.

In 2016, it is a particularly important time to celebrate arts education, as we usher in a new chapter of American educational policy with the new Every Student Succeeds Act and its many arts-friendly provisions. In the new law, the arts remain a “well-rounded” subject and are empowered to be central to a child’s education in our public schools.

Our municipal, education, and state leaders need to know about the impact the arts have on young peoples’ lives and that they must support the arts in every district and every school in America. Write a letter to the editor now to tell them how and why the arts matter in education!

After sending in your letter, you can join the movement of thousands of arts education advocates celebrating National Arts in Education Week. Contribute to the visibility campaign on social media during the week of September 11-17, 2016 by using the hashtag, #BecauseOfArtsEd. People from all walks of life can share their story of the transformative power of the arts in their own education and the impact the arts have had on their work and life.

  • Post on Facebook. Tell the world your #BecauseOfArtsEd story on Facebook. Describe what you are doing now in work and life and how arts education has a positive impact with a photo! Be sure to use #ArtsEdWeek, too.
  • Send a tweet.  Share your quick #BecauseOfArtsEd story on Twitter. Be sure to include an image or video along with #ArtsEdWeek.
  • Share a photo. Post your favorite arts education photo on Instagram along with your #BecauseOfArtsEd story about the impact of arts education on your life. Be sure to use #ArtsEdWeek.

Be sure to do your part to advocate to our decision makers and bring attention to the cause of arts education!


What’s the Gov’t saying about Arts in Schools?

The Dept. of Education released a report on Monday with valuable information about how the arts are being offered in our public schools. Read more here: http://blog.artsusa.org/2012/04/02/ten-years-later-a-puzzling-picture-of-arts-education-in-america/

Almost ninety percent of public schools offer music and visual arts instruction. Far fewer offer dance and theater; at the elementary level it’s about three percent.

Equity gaps between which students have access to arts education also show up in the report. These must be addressed!
Want to know what actions to take? Read this blog http://blog.artsusa.org/2012/04/02/ten-years-later-a-puzzling-picture-of-arts-education-in-america/ to learn what you can do next to support arts education in your community.

Kids sell fruit snacks to save their arts program! video | Keep the Arts in Public Schools | causes.com

 
A group of kids in Maine created a campaign selling fruit snacks to save their arts program. They made this video to explain the importance of their efforts. They even got a local advertiser. Share this video with five friends and invite them to join, today! It’s important.

 

via Kids sell fruit snacks to save their arts program! video | Keep the Arts in Public Schools | causes.com.

Help Keep the Arts in Public Schools | Keep the Arts in Public Schools | causes.com

From the Editor:

I joined this cause because publishing many articles over the past two years has opened my eyes to how important the arts are in conjunction with a well-rounded education. Children whose early education includes the arts experience greater development in their brains, are better at creative problem solving and any kind of collaborative effort, are more likely to attend classes regularly, get better grades, are more likely to complete higher education, are more likely to be hired when they enter the workforce and are more creative, innovative and proficient in whichever field they choose to pursue. Despite budgetary constraints, I firmly believe that stripping arts education from the curriculum in public schools is a huge step backward for our children and the future of our country. I hope you’ll join us!
Keep the Arts in Public Schools Cause: Keep the Arts in Public Schools

 

1,231,917 MEMBERS (Follow the link to read the wonderfully stated reasons this cause’s supporters have for joining! Then join yourself…) Here’s one example:

I was born into the arms of artists… to be raised in an environment that nurtured and encouraged creativity was the foundation that shaped my life. I will be forever grateful to my loving parents for giving me such a fabulous gift. Now it’s my turn to give back. Please help me ‘pay this gift forward’, and join me in support of this wonderful cause.

About Keep the Arts in Public Schools

Music, Dance, Theater, Humanities, Visual Arts, Graphic Arts, Martial Arts, you name it. The Arts are a fundamental part of society and we cannot just let the leaders of our schools throw it out just because it is a financially convenient option.

1. The Arts are among the most important things we learn about in school. They provide a well-rounded education not based on a test’s requirements.

2. Maintaining a strong arts program will help not only the students to succeed, but it will strengthen the community in which they live.

3. Students and their parents should act against cutting the Arts from their schools’ curricula.

4. The Arts prepare students for the real world by exposing them to culture, and teaching critical thinking skills that test-score classes don’t teach.

Donations Go To

AMERICANS FOR THE ARTS INC
A 501(c)(3) nonprofit (EIN: 52-1996467)

Selected actions by Help Keep the Arts in Public Schools at causes.com you may want to check out:

Alternative Funding for Projects

Crowdfunding has become a viable alternative over the last couple years. This puts the engine and ingenuity in the hands of students and teachers. Set up your project today.

Many of you have been following the story in Los Angeles about the proposed total elimination of the elementary arts program. This great blog shows highlights from yesterday’s school board meeting, where celebrities such as famed choreographer, Debbie Allen, and Guns N Roses drummer, Matt Sorum, make public comment on the value of arts education.

It seems that rock star Matt Sorum wooed the superintendent and school board into postponing this budget decision while they work on finding funding solutions.

What happened on this week’s Webinar?

This was the first of a seven-part series designed to demystify the world of Arts Education so that more of us can be effective at rescuing that aspect of our children’s future from the hungry hands of bureaucratic efficiency. It is available on demand here: http://eo2.commpartners.com/users/afta/archiv… See More

Around the country parent groups are filling in the gap where needed. http://heraldnet.com/article/20111207/TWH06/712079940/-1/news01 Here’s a great example. Consider a donation today and help get public policy back on track.Click here to see all Keep the Arts in Public Schools actions at Causes.com