Arts Education

Action Alerts:

4/11/07: Circulating NEA and Arts Education Letters
President Bush has asked for a $4 million increase for the NEA and zero funding for the Arts in Education programs at the US Department of Education. With no additional funding, inflation will cut into the NEA's ability to make grants to performing arts organizations and the Department of Education will be unable to make a second round of Arts in Education grants. The Congressional Arts Caucus is circulating two Dear Colleague letters in support of increased funding for the National Endowment for the Arts and increased funding for the Arts in Education programs at the U.S. Department of Education.
ACTION: Please take a moment to write to your Representative and ask him or herto sign theArts Caucus Dear Colleague letters. Click here to see the American Arts Alliance webpage, the Action Alert on this issue, and to access a sample letter encouraging your Representative to sign the letters.
Click here to see the power of your support since this cause was posted.

6/08/06: Commission on No Child Left Behind
The U.S. Department of Arts in Education program provides federal support to performing arts organizations for the development, evaluation and dissemination of model programs that integrate arts instruction into other subject areas. The 2001 No Child Left Behind Act recognizes the arts as a "core academic subject," making them eligible for inclusion in broad categories such as teacher training, school reform and technology. However, a 2005 report from the Center on Education Policy concludes that, since the enactment of NCLB, instructional time for art and music has been reduced by 22%. Congress has begun the multi-year process leading up to the reauthorization of the law which governs the federal role in education.
ACTION: Please write to your Members of Congress and make sure that they are aware of the importance of arts education to the performing arts community! Click here to see the American Arts Alliance webpage, the AAA Brief, and to access a sample letter to your Member of Congress

2/10/06: Tell Congress to Support New Funding for the NEA and Arts in Education
President Bush released the Administration’s budget request for FY 2007 this week, and once again he has requested no new funding for the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA), eliminated all funding for the Department of Education’s Arts in Education Programs and cut $53.5 million from the Corporation for Public Broadcasting (CPB). An NEA budget of $124.4 million leaves the agency seriously under-funded and unable to fund the thousands of qualified grant applications it receives. Without additional funds, the NEA will be unable to adequately fund the discipline programs which are so important to the theatre community.
ACTION: Please write to your Members of Congress, and ask them to support an NEA budget of $170 million in the FY07 Interior Appropriations bill and an Arts in Education budget of $53 million for FY07. Click here to see the American Arts Alliance webpage, the Action Alert on this issue, and to access a sample letter to your Member of Congress.