Arizona Citizens for the Arts held a virtual arts education town hall over Zoom on November 17, giving voice to arts advocates across the state.
Moderated by KellyAnn Bonell, the town hall consisted of presentations by various arts organizations across the state, a panel discussion between Anna Backstrom and Helen Buck-Pavlick, and a group discussion about the strengths and weaknesses of arts education across Arizona.
Here’s what to know about the meeting.
Reauthorizing the Arizona Commission on the Arts
Arizona Citizens for the Arts is spearheading a project to reauthorize the 51-year-old state agency Arizona Commission on the Arts, according to Lorna Romero, a board member of Arizona Citizens for the Arts.
To be reauthorized, a bill in support of reauthorization must be introduced to legislation and then signed by the governor. Every state agency, including the commission, must be reauthorized every ten years. Reconsideration is expected to commence in January 2022.
To uplift and support youth and youth voices, the commission is working on three projects, according to Elisa Radcliffe, arts learning manager for the Arizona Commission on the Arts. As part of the commission’s work, it is piloting a new grant program to help close the opportunity gap for low-income students interested in the arts. Unlike previous grant programs, this grant increases the amount of money available to applicants, providing between $5,000 to $10,000.
In its interest of expanding arts opportunities for young people, the Arizona Commission on the Arts also has an Arizona Youth Arts Council, which first started 3 years ago. Fifteen young Arizonans between the ages of 14-19 advise the commission about decisions that impact youth, such as the grant programs, and receive a stipend for their time.
In conjunction with the other projects, the commission also has a Youth Development Investment Cohort. This program combines both learning and project development for youth and adult partners to share resources and knowledge about the arts.
Arts education limited despite some funding increases
Funding for arts education across the state has significantly increased in the Esser Commissionary Funds and funding under Title 4a, according to representatives from the Arizona Department of Education. $200,000,000 has been funneled under Title 1 and will last until October of 2024, according to representatives who presented for the department.
The education department is also working on connecting emotional and social learning with arts education.
The Arizona Department of Education Director of Arts Education & Title IV-A Dustin Loehr presented on the Arts Education Data Project concerning student access and enrollment in art education courses. The project is in collaboration with the Arizona Citizens for the Arts and the Arizona Commission on the Arts, and it has been ongoing since 2010.
The project releases an annual report about enrollment in arts education. For example, the data project for the 2019-2020 school year found that only 79% of elementary school students and 63% of middle school students were enrolled in arts courses, despite the state mandate of two art courses being available to every student each year, according to Loehr.
The project recently started comparing data from another resource named October 1 counts and the next iteration will include more specific demographic data about students enrolled in arts courses across Arizona.
Arts education in Arizona schools during the COVID-19 pandemic
In many cases, arts education took a backseat during the COVID-19 pandemic as districts shifted their efforts to online learning.
But as schools and arts organizations have returned to in person, the arts are a lifeline to students.
“Students are coming back to life again because of the arts,” said Anna Backstrom, Deer Valley Unified School District’s fine arts and health curriculum, instruction and assessment specialist. She said that students are so excited to be back in the classroom doing arts after virtual learning due to COVID-19.
During the town hall, Helen Buck-Pavlick, the Title IV-A arts education specialist at the Arizona Department of Education, mentioned how inspiring it was seeing the creativity and innovations of art teachers and their students in and outside of the classroom. Even though the pandemic changed the way that schools taught, she said that, “The world was turned upside down and that didn’t stop anyone.”
Despite these efforts, both mentioned that arts education in Arizona had room for improvement.
Some arts educators felt left out of school policy decisions regarding reopening schools during a pandemic. In some cases, educators also struggled to bring in art “visitors” to teach students about their area of expertise. Many administrators are hesitant to bring in outside resources due to outbreaks within the school, as was brought up during the town hall.
Some teachers in DVUSD district work for multiple campuses because the schools could only afford to employ band directors part time, according to Backstrom. Some band teachers were pulled to teach special education courses, of which they did not feel qualified to teach, according to Backstrom.
Yet in spite all of the challenges, arts advocates, administrators and educators are hopeful for the future.
Contact the reporter at kbippus@asu.edu.
