Ohio Alliance for Arts Education
Education Update May 7, 2012
Joan Platz
Special Alert: Update on the Revised Academic
Content Standards for the Fine Arts
Edited drafts of Ohio's Academic Content
Standards for Fine Arts are expected to be posted
on the Ohio Department of Education (ODE) web
site soon, as the State Board of Education is
scheduled to consider an intent to adopt these
standards at their meeting on May 15, 2012.
As of this writing, the draft standards from
November 2011 are still posted on the ODE web
site.
The OAAE will alert members when the "edited"
standards are posted. If you would like to
comment about the standards, please contact your
representative on the State Board of Education at
http://education.ohio.gov/GD/Templates/Pages/ODE/ODEDetail.aspx?page=3&;TopicRelationID=575&ContentID=58806
To learn more about the draft revised standards
please visit
http://www.education.ohio.gov/GD/Templates/Pages/ODE/ODEDetail.aspx?page=3&;TopicRelationID=1700&ContentID=98202&Content=123780
1) 129th Ohio General Assembly: The Ohio House
and Senate will hold committee hearings and
sessions this week.
*Legislative Update
-The House Ways and Means Committee reported out
on May 2, 2012 HB521 (Dovilla) Ohio Motion
Picture Tax Credit. The bill would increase the
maximum total amount of tax credits allowed per
year for completion of motion pictures certified
as tax credit-eligible productions.
-The Ohio Senate approved on May 3, 2012 SB331
(Patton) Ohio Motion Picture Tax Credit (Patton),
which would extend the motion picture tax credit
program.
-The Ohio Senate approved on May 3, 2012 SCR14
(Jones), which recognizes the 2012 World Choir
Games in Cincinnati, Ohio, as a global event of
cultural significance to Ohio and the U.S. and
expressing support by designating the month of
July 2012 as "World Choir Games Month."
*WebSite Launched: The Constitutional
Modernization Commission has started a web site
at http://ocmc.ohio.gov/ocmc/. The site includes
information about the commission's meetings and
membership.
2) News from Washington, D.C.
*Career Tech Revamp: Secretary of Education Arne
Duncan announced on April 19, 2012 the Obama
administration's plans to revamp the Career
Technical Education (CTE) program through
reauthorization of the Carl D. Perkins Career and
Technical Education Act of 2006. The plan would
make CTE more relevant to the employment needs of
the 21st century and emphasizes learning as a
life-long process.
According to a press release, the blueprint to
revamp CTE is based on the following principles:
-Effective alignment between CTE and labor market
needs to equip students with twenty-first-century
skills and prepare them for in-demand occupations
in high-growth industry sectors.
-Strong collaboration among secondary and
post-secondary institutions, employers, and
industry partners to improve the quality of CTE
programs.
-Meaningful accountability for improving academic
outcomes and building technical and employability
skills in CTE programs, based upon common
definitions and clear metrics for performance.
-Increased emphasis on innovation supported by
systemic reform of state policies and practices
to support CTE implementation of effective
practices at the local level.
The proposed plan supports a structured sequence
of CTE courses spanning secondary through
post-secondary education, leading to an industry
certification or license and a post-secondary
certificate or degree. Secondary school teachers
would be encouraged to work with college faculty
to teach integrated academic, career, and
technical content, and potential employers would
provide more opportunities for students to
participate in work-based learning experiences
and receive credits.
For more information about the CTE plan, please
visit
http://www.ed.gov/news/press-releases/us-department-education-releases-blueprint-transform-career-and-technical-educat
*Groups Urge ESEA Reauthorization: Leaders of
several organizations have signed a letter dated
May 3, 2012 urging Congress to take action on
bills that would reauthorize the Elementary and
Secondary Education Act (ESEA) before the 112th
Congress adjourns. The organizations include the
Council of Chief State School Officers (CCSSO),
the National Governor's Association, the National
Conference of State Legislatures, the National
Association of Counties, the National League of
Cities, the National Association of State Boards
of Education, and the National School Boards
Association.
The letter states that the last reauthorization,
the No Child Left Behind Act, had "commendable
intent" but was flawed and shifted "....too much
control away from state and local elected
officials, diluted the impact of federal
resources, and relied on a method of identifying
academic progress that focused on failure instead
of rewarding excellence. Ten years later, it is
past time to rewrite the law and correct its
mistakes."
The organizations believe that the flexibility
offered states by the U.S. Department of
Education through the waiver process provides
temporary relief, but also imposes additional
challenges for states/schools to meet, and not
all states will be able to take advantage of the
waivers. "Federal policy must not set up a
system that disadvantages some states and some
students," the letter states.
The letter is available at
http://www.governing.com/news/federal/gov-state-and-local-leaders-urge-congress-to-reauthorize-esea.html
*Budget and Appropriations Update: The U.S.
Senate is supporting the $1.047 trillion budget
for U.S. government departments and agencies
negotiated in the Budget Control Act (BCA), a law
passed by Congress and signed by President Obama
on August 2, 2011. The U.S. House adopted on
March 29, 2012 House Concurrent Resolution 112
(HCR112), establishing a $1.028 trillion FY13
budget and budgetary levels for FY14-22. The
House budget plan is entitled "the Path to
Prosperity" and was developed by Representative
Paul Ryan (R-Wisconsin). It would reduce the
size of government to 20 percent of the economy
by 2015, and abandons the bipartisan Budget
Control Act of 2011, which already includes
non-discretionary spending caps.
The $19 billion difference between the House and
Senate budgets means that lawmakers will need to
compromise by October 1, 2012 on appropriation
levels in order to avoid a government shut-down.
In addition, if Congress does not approve
appropriations for FY13, under the Budget Control
Act of 2011, mandatory budget cuts of up to 7.8
percent will be made on January 2, 2013. In
testimony before the House Appropriations
Committee in March 2012, U.S Secretary of
Education Arne Duncan said that "It would be
impossible for us to manage cuts of that
magnitude and still achieve our fundamental
mission to prepare our students from the earliest
ages for college and careers."
The House and Senate are now working on
allocations for government departments and
agencies, referred to as FY13 302(b) allocations
through House and Senate Appropriations
Committees. So far the House has allocated
$150.002 billion for Labor, Health and Human
Services and Education, while the Senate set the
level for Labor, Health and Human Services, and
Education at $157.7 billion, an increase of $1.5
billion over the current level.
3) This Week at the Statehouse
TUESDAY, MAY 8, 2012
*Senate Education, Senator Lehner chair
The Senate Education Committee will meet at 9:30
AM in the South Hearing Room. The committee will
receive testimony on the following bills:
-HB375 (Butler) Property Sale by School
Districts, which would allow school districts to
sell real property to private, nonprofit
institutions of higher education.
-SB316 (Lehner) Mid Biennium Review - Education
-SB335 (Turner/Lehner) Municipal School
Districts/Community Schools, which would revise
the management of school districts and community
schools located within municipal school districts.
*House Finance and Appropriations Committee, Representative Amstutz chair.
The House Finance and Appropriations Committee,
will meet at 1:30 PM in Hearing Room 313. Paolo
DeMaria, a principal at Education First, will
present information about local revenues for
funding schools.
*Senate Finance, Senator Widener chair
The Senate Finance Committee will meet at 2:30 PM
in the Senate Finance Hearing Room to receive
testimony on HB487 (Amstutz) Mid Biennium Review,
which makes operating and other appropriations,
levies taxes and provides for implementation of
those levies, and provides authorization and
conditions for the operation of state programs.
WEDNESDAY, MAY 9, 2012
*Senate Finance, Senator Widener chair
The Senate Finance Committee will meet at 2:30 PM
in the Senate Finance Hearing Room to receive
testimony on HB487 (Amstutz) Mid Biennium Review,
which makes operating and other appropriations,
levies taxes, and provides for implementation of
those levies, and provides authorization and
conditions for the operation of state programs.
House Education Committee, Representative Stebelton chair.
The House Education Committee will meet at 5:00
PM in Hearing Room 313. The committee will
receive testimony on HB525 (Williams/Amstutz)
Municipal School Districts-Community Schools.
THURSDAY, MAY 10, 2012
*Senate Finance, Senator Widener chair
The Senate Finance Committee will meet at 3:30 PM
in the Senate Finance Hearing Room to receive
testimony on HB487 (Amstutz) Mid Biennium Review,
which makes operating and other appropriations,
levies taxes, and provides for implementation of
those levies, and provides authorization and
conditions for the operation of state programs.
4) School Funding Hearings Begin: Paolo
DeMaria, a principal of Education First,
presented information to the House Finance and
Appropriations Committee, chaired by
Representative Amstutz, on May 1, and 2, 2012.
(Please note: The following summary is made
possible in part thanks to Susan Schwarz, who
attended the first hearing and made available her
notes.)
The presentations are part of an effort by the
Ohio House to jump-start discussions about
developing a new school funding formula for
Ohio's schools. Representative Ron Amstutz, chair
of the House Finance and Appropriations
Committee, announced in January 2012 that the
House Finance Committee/Primary and Secondary
Subcommittee would hold hearings and regional
meetings about Ohio's school funding system
starting in May 2012. The subcommittee will
gather information this year and align their
findings with the recommendations of the
Governor's office to create a new state school
funding formula for FY14-15. Membership on the
subcommittee will be increased for this purpose.
The members of the Extended Subcommittee for
Primary and Secondary Education include
Representatives Amstutz, McClain, Hayes, Maag,
Stebelton, Sykes, Lundy, and Phillips.
Currently schools/districts in Ohio are funded
through a temporary "bridge formula", which was
enacted in HB153, the FY 12-13 budget. Total
State General Revenue Fund (GRF) for K-12
education is $7.5 billion for FY12 and $7.6
billion for FY13. This amount is comparable to
the total GRF funding for K-12 education in
FY08-09 of $15.8 billion. According to a Policy
Matters Ohio analysis, state funding for schools
is $1.8 billion less than the previous two years.
("The State Budget and Ohio's Schools Big Cuts,
Hard Choices, Local Impacts" by Wendy Patton,
Piet van Lier, and Elizabeth Ginther, January 19,
2012 at
http://www.policymattersohio.org/wp-content/uploads/2012/01/SchoolFinanceJan2012.pdf.)
The temporary formula included in HB153 replaced
the "Evidence Based Model" (EBM) proposed by
Governor Strickland and enacted by the 128th Ohio
General Assembly through House Bill 1 (Sykes).
In Part 1 of the presentation on school funding,
Mr. DeMaria reviewed the number and types of
schools in Ohio and some basic statistics.
According to the presentation, 90.1 percent of
the 1.8 million students in grades K-12 are
educated in traditional public schools; 6.3
percent in community schools; 2.3 percent in
vocational schools; and 1.1 percent in private
schools using a voucher.
K-12 education is a big business in Ohio. The
largest share of the state's General Revenue Fund
is allocated for K-12 education (41.7 percent).
Using data from the 2010-11 school year, overall
funding for K-12 education equals $20.5 billion
and includes revenue from local sources (44.6
percent); state sources (45.5 percent); and
federal sources (9.9 percent). As a part of state
aid, the Ohio Lottery provides about $650 million
each year. To increase state funding by just 5
percent would require $1 billion.
School districts receive more or less state aid
based on their local wealth, determined by
property value and sometimes income value.
Information from 2010-11 shows that the average
amount of state aid that school districts in the
lowest quintile based on wealth received is 60.8
percent, while school districts in the highest
quintile based on wealth received on average 28.6
percent of funding from the state.
According to a map showing the amount of state
aid a school district received as a share of
total district revenue, most of the school
districts receiving over 57.86 percent of their
revenue from state aid are located in the
southern counties of Ohio.
The per-pupil cost of education also varies in
Ohio's districts from a low of $7,000 to a high
of $21,000 per pupil. Compared to other states
Ohio ranks 25th in adjusted expenditure per pupil
at $11,382.
Part 2 of Mr. DeMaria's presentation on Ohio's
system of funding schools included information
about school district expenditures, teacher
salary levels, teacher experience, and more.
According to the presentation, about 77 percent
of school district budgets support salaries and
fringe benefits when examined by object. When
the budget is examined by function, then about 55
percent of a school's budget goes toward
instructional costs that include personnel; 18.7
percent to building operations, 12.3 percent
supports administrative costs; and 9.9 percent
for pupil support. The average teacher salary in
Ohio in FY10 was $55,958. Ohio ranked 14th in
average teacher salary compared to other states.
In response to questions about increasing student
achievement, Mr. DeMaria said that researchers
have had a hard time showing a strong
correlations between per pupil state spending and
increased student academic achievement.
Part 3 of the presentation focused on the
components of a state school funding formula,
which Mr. DeMaria described as the "assured
available amount" minus the local contribution,
with adjustments for guarantees, caps, and
protection mechanisms.
The "assured available amount" is also based on
components, such as a base amount, which has been
determined in Ohio in several ways, plus factors
such as the number of pupils enrolled and
categorical funding to meet the needs of
students, including special, gifted, career
technical, English Language learners, and
students from poverty backgrounds.
If you are interested in receiving copies of the
presentations, please email
jplatz@chemistry.ohio-state.edu">jplatz@chemistry.ohio-state.edu. A web site is
being created to make available copies of the
presentations and research.
5) How Should Principals Be Evaluated? The
American Institutes for Research (AIR) released
on May 1, 2012 a new report entitled "The Ripple
Effect" by Matt Clifford. The report finds that
principals and other school-based leaders are
being left out of discussions about education
reform and that principal evaluation systems
should be based on the quality of school-level
leadership and performance, rather than student
assessment results.
The report notes that principals have an indirect
influence on student learning, and so principal
evaluations should be based on measuring outcomes
that principals directly influence, such as work
quality, school climate, and instructional
quality. Work quality includes time management,
modeling ethical and professional behaviors,
showing initiative and persistence, engaging in
ongoing reflection and learning, using data to
inform strategies, allocating human and financial
resources, and ensuring compliance with district,
state, and federal policies.
The report also describes how the work of
principals has changed and that the new demands
include more emphasis on instructional leadership
and monitoring student achievement, rather than
the management of the school.
The report is available at
http://www.air.org/news/index.cfm?fa=viewContent&;content_id=1879.
6) What do Charter Schools Spend? The National
Education Policy Center released on May 5, 2012 a
policy brief entitled "Spending by the Major
Charter Management Organizations: Comparing
Charter School and Local Public District
Financial Resources in New York, Ohio, and
Texas," by Bruce D. Baker, Ken Libby, and Kathryn
Wiley. The brief examines the claim that charter
schools deliver higher student performance at a
lower cost, by evaluating the per-pupil spending
of charter schools operated by major charter
management organizations (CMOs) in New York City,
Texas, and Ohio (2008-2010), and comparing
charter school expenditures to the expenditures
of district schools of similar size, serving the
same grade levels, and serving similar student
populations.
The researchers found that spending varies
greatly in charter schools and in traditional
schools, and comparative spending is mixed. Many
high profile charter networks outspend similar
district schools in New York City and Texas, but
in Ohio some network schools are spending less
than similar district schools.
For example, in New York City, KIPP, Achievement
First, and Uncommon Schools spend "substantially
more" ($2000 to $4300 per pupil) than similar
district schools. (Average per pupil spending is
$12,000-14,000). In Ohio charter schools spend
less than district schools in the same city.
The researchers suggest that charter schools such
as KIPP, Achievement First, and Uncommon Schools,
are using strategies that increase their marginal
costs, including such strategies as after school
tutoring, lower class size, wrap-around services,
etc.
The researchers also noted, however, that they
are not sure that all expenditures for charter
schools are accounted for, even in New York City,
where the annual financial reports of charter
schools matched the best with the Internal
Revenue Service (IRS) non-profit financial
filings (IRS 990) used by researchers to gather
the expenditure data. In Ohio the researchers
found that the IRS estimates on expenditures were
"strikingly different" than the expenditure data
reported by the state.
The report is available at
http://nepc.colorado.edu/publication/spending-major-charter.
7) Strengthening Public Education? Education
Week's "Transforming Education Blog" published on
May 3, 2012, included an article entitled "Ten
Steps in the Right Direction: How the Feds Can
Strengthen Public Education" by Dan Domenech,
Executive Director of the American Association of
School Administrators (AASA). The article
includes the following recommendations that the
federal government could make to invigorate
schools and create an environment for positive
change:
*Provide regulatory relief from No Child Left Behind.
The waiver process that the administration has
implemented is no more than an exchange of old
regulations for new ones. It replaces the
depleted stimulus dollars with regulatory relief
as the means to get states and districts to
implement the administration's policy. We
certainly support accountability and the
continued disaggregation of data for sub-groups
of students, one of the few positive
contributions of NCLB. We strongly support
improving the lowest achieving schools, but at
the same time we believe we must acknowledge the
accomplishments of the vast majority of schools
in America.
*Allocate funds via formulas based on percentage of poverty.
We continue to object to the use of ESEA dollars
for competitive grants. The intent of ESEA is to
level the playing field relative to poverty.
Since the beginning of the current recession,
school systems have seen dramatic increases in
the number of children eligible for free and
reduced lunches. All eligible children should
benefit from all available funds, not just those
in "winner" states and districts.
*Set goals, hold districts accountable for them,
but allow the localities the freedom to determine
how to implement them.
We are concerned about the growing intrusion of
the federal government into state and local
education issues. Any reduction in federal funds
should be accompanied by a similar reduction in
federal mandates. School systems should not be
required to spend local and state funds to
implement federal mandates. Accountability for
effectiveness is a state and local
responsibility, as are compensation decisions.
The required use of the very standardized tests
that have been labeled as not valid and reliable
by the administration in order to evaluate
teachers and principals is creating chaos in
states and school systems throughout the country.
Yes, student performance must be a key factor in
the evaluation of teachers and administrators,
but it must be left up to the states and
localities to determine how, not forced upon them
as a requirement for obtaining competitive
federal dollars.
*Fully fund and reauthorize the Rural Education
Achievement Program Reauthorization Act (REAP) to
maintain direct-to-district funding.
AASA played a pivotal role in the original
adoption of this program. The needs of our rural
schools are often overlooked and, due to a lack
of capacity and staffing, they tend to fair
poorly in a competitive grant environment. REAP
is a dedicated source of funds that they sorely
need.
*Continue to support the Common Core and state-developed standards.
In a globally competitive world we cannot go
against countries that have a set of national
standards while we have a set of fifty standards.
It is also difficult to assess our progress as a
nation with fifty sets of tests whose results do
not align well with the closest instrument we
have to a national test, the National Assessment
for Educational Progress.
*Separate assessment for purposes of
accountability from assessment for the purpose of
informing instruction.
A random sample of the nation, a la NAEP, would
do for purposes of accountability with reduced
costs and less intrusion on instruction and the
number of children and subjects tested.
*State interventions should concentrate on
building capacity and focus on a broad range of
evidence and practice- based turn-around models.
Current requirements take judgment out of the
hands of local administrators and force them to
engage in the whole-scale removal of teachers and
principals. We must stop the negative rhetoric
that blankets all public schools and focus on the
schools that need fixing.
*Provide full funding of IDEA.
AASA continues to advocate for full funding at
the forty percent of the national average
per-pupil expenditure and for allowing school
districts to reduce local effort by up to one
hundred percent of federal funding decreases.
*Provide federal funding to address non-school barriers to student achievement.
Wrap around programs continue to be essential to
the education of the total child, and we support
high quality childcare programs and tax
incentives for employers to provide support for
child care and after-school care. The Children's
Health Insurance Program (CHIP) should be
continued and schools should be permitted to
claim reimbursement from Medicaid.
*The funding cap for E-Rate should be raised to meet demand.
The author also noted that AASA opposes vouchers
and federal funding for non-public schools, and
that AASA will continue to be strong advocates
for our public schools. AASA will continue to
work with both houses of Congress to reauthorize
the Elementary and Secondary Education Act, and
supports much of what is contained in the
reauthorization bills that have emerged in the
House and Senate.
The article is available at
http://blogs.edweek.org/edweek/transforming_learning/
8) Bills Introduced
SB339 (Schaffer) Fiscal Accountability
Requirements: Establishes education programs and
continuing education requirements for the fiscal
officers of townships and municipal corporation,
establishes procedures for removing those fiscal
officers, county treasurers, and county auditors
from office, and creates fiscal accountability
requirements for public schools, counties,
municipal corporations, and townships.
SCR30 (Widener) Central State University:
Designates Central State University as Ohio's
1890 land grant university and requests that the
United States Congress pass legislation and the
United States Department of Agriculture take
steps to recognize that designation and provide
the institution with all of the benefits of the
designation.
FYI ARTS
1) Schools in PA Losing Arts and Music: An
article published on April 30, 2012 in the
Philadelphia Inquirer reports that many
Pennsylvania elementary schools are eliminating
instruction in art and music as school district
budgets tighten. ("Music and art may soon join
languages on the endangered list at Pennsylvania
elementary schools" by Dan Hardy, April 30, 2012)
Some districts report that "pressure to allocate
more money and more classroom time to core
academic subjects could trigger the elimination
of elementary school music and art classes,
physical-education teachers, and librarians this
fall."
In a survey conducted last summer 44 percent of
school districts reported that they had reduced
course offerings not required for graduation,
including foreign languages, arts, music,
physical education, and some electives. Some
districts reported that they had cut every thing,
and were "running out of options". They are now
forced to cut the arts and music programs in
their schools. Some plan to integrate the arts
in other classes, or provide enrichment on
Saturdays at a minimum cost for parents.
Some advocates for the arts are using Facebook to
mount a campaign to urge citizens to contact
members of the boards of education of their
school districts, to urge them to maintain the
arts, while other advocates are focusing on the
state legislature.
The article is available at
http://articles.philly.com/2012-04-30/news/31498586_1_music-classes-art-and-music-elementary-schools.
2) Governors Look to the Arts to Boost Economic
Growth: The National Governor's Association (NGA)
released on April 30, 2012 a report that
describes how governors are focusing on the role
that the arts, culture, and design can play to
create jobs in an innovation-based economy. ("New
Engines of Growth: Five Roles for Arts, Culture,
and Design," prepared by Erin Sparks and Mary Jo
Waits in collaboration with Bill Fulton of
Solomar Research Group. National Governor's
Association, April 2012.)
Because state/national economies are so fragile,
governors are examining all approaches to support
economic development, and some are working with
their state arts agency to advance strategies
that support high-growth industries, innovation,
entrepreneurial activity, building human capital,
and reviving distressed areas.
The report suggests that the arts, culture, and
design can boost economic growth because they can:
*Provide a fast-growth, dynamic industry cluster.
-Examining the economic importance of the
creative industry cluster within the state by
looking at the geographic proximity of creative
enterprises, creative occupations, and associated
institutions;
-Finding that the creative cluster is a vital
source of jobs and income, as well as a way to
distinguish the state in the highly competitive
21st-century economy;
-Crafting strategies to promote the growth and
profitability of creative enterprises, as part of
the state's economic development strategy;
-Including state arts councils and similar
organizations as part of the state's economic
development infrastructure; and
-Reviewing the business incentives, financing
programs, and entrepreneurial assistance
available in the state and refining guidelines to
make them more available to the state's artists
and creative businesses.
*Help mature industries become more competitive
-Exploring the links between the creative talent
in the state-artists, designers, new media
entrepreneurs-and other important clusters to
deepen those connections and improve the
competitiveness of traditional industries, such
as manufacturing;
-Creating dedicated units and expertise within
community colleges, manufacturing extension
centers, and agricultural extension services that
focus on design; that is, they are adding design
capabilities in firm assessments and providing
access to technical assistance in the design of
products, packaging, and branding; and
-Boosting tourism by leveraging and marketing the
unique culture and food of regions.
*Provide the critical ingredients for innovative places
-Considering their universities and medical
research institutions ("eds and meds") and the
spaces around them as places that can be designed
to offer the ingredients for innovation-smart
people, research institutions, professional
networks, favorable intellectual property
agreements, and other conditions that can help
companies spur innovation;
-Finding that cities, through their zoning and
land use authority and their vibrant arts and
cultural organizations, can catalyze or rein-
force high-quality places as a competitive
advantage for states in a global economy;
-Using tax credits and other kinds of incentives
to encourage cities and developers to create
cultural districts, creative corridors,
innovation hubs, and other places that will
attract a critical mass of creative talent and
facilitate co-location, or geographic clustering,
of complementary businesses; and
-Starting to measure the effectiveness and
communicate the progress of these zones and
districts by tracking change in population,
employment, property tax base, and taxable sales.
*Catalyze community revitalization
-Supporting the use of arts and design-combined
with historic preservation efforts-to turn around
distressed neighborhoods;
-Using tax incentives and grants to encourage
private rehabilitation of historic buildings and
the creation of arts districts where creative
people and enterprises are encouraged to live,
work, and collaborate; and
-Using public art programs to activate public
locations in a way that engages all people in the
creative process.
*Deliver a better-prepared workforce.
To boost economic growth, states areŠ
-Maintaining the inclusion of arts in state curriculum requirements
-Integrating arts and design into technical and
business programs in community colleges and
universities
-Mapping career paths in creative enterprises and occupations
-Creating centers of excellence in higher
education to recruit recognized faculty who can
attract talented students and link the arts to
technology to inspire innovation.
The report provides examples from communities
across the country about how the arts have been
used to reinvent, transform, revitalize
communities, thus improving the economic
conditions of states and communities.
The report is available at
http://www.nga.org/cms/home/news-room/news-releases/page_2012/col2-content/governors-look-to-arts-culture-a.html
3) Impact Creativity to Support Theatre
Education: The National Corporate Theatre Fund
(NCTF) announced on May 2, 2012 a new campaign
called "Impact Creativity" to benefit theatre
education programs. The campaign starts with a
$200,000 gift from Ernst & Young LLP and its
Partner Group, and will seek up to $5 million to
support theatre education programs in 19 American
cities.
Impact Creativity will raise corporate,
foundation, and individual funds to preserve and
sustain theater programs for students. According
to the Impact Creativity web site, "Government
and arts education groups, as well as the
theatres themselves, have documented a nationwide
decline in arts education programs of 15-25
percent over the last ten years; in minority
communities, the decline approaches 40 percent."
Corporate America recognizes that an education in
theater and the arts provides students with
opportunities to learn skills valued by
employers, such as communication,
problem-solving, and creativity. James S. Turley,
chairman and CEO of the global Ernst & Young
organization, recently said that "Tomorrow's
workforce must act confidently, communicate
effectively and think creatively - all qualities
that can be enhanced through arts and theatre
education."
For more information please visit http://impactcreativity.org.
