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The AEI Note: March 27, 2013
Arts and Education News from The Education Policy and Leadership Center
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In This Issue
Pennsylvania Arts Education Network Updates
- Network Sets Policy Agenda
- Arts Education Advocacy Day: March 19
- In Search of Governor's School for the Arts Alumni
- Individuals and Organizations to Join Network
- Statewide Network Conference Calls - 3rd Thursdays
- Network Communication
AEI and EPLC News
- Mark Your Calendars! Third Annual Arts and Education Symposium Scheduled for October 30, 2013
- EPLC a Grassroots Partner of Arts Advocacy Day 2013
- EPLC Now Hosting Education Issues Program on PCN
- Interested in Other Education Policy News?
Public Policy News
- Arts & Culture Caucus News
- 2013-2014 State Budget Process Ongoing
Opportunities for Arts Education Professionals
- Americans for the Arts Convention in Pittsburgh!
- Registration Still Open for AEP's April D.C. Forum
- Capital Region Young Artist Symposium & College Fair
- PMEA Annual Conference and All-State Festival
- Register Today for the PA Museums Conference
- Community Arts Education Leadership Institute
- Save the Date! PA Arts & Culture Legislative Visit Day
Arts and Education News
- PMEA's Music Education Advocacy Day
- ARTSblog Blog Salon on Early Childhood Arts Ed
- Arts Education Navigator
- Arts, Culture & Economic Prosperity Report Unveiled
- The Grammy's to Honor Music Educators
- Youth Art Month Art Show on Display at PDE
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Student Art Exhibit Held at State Museum
- Perry County Youth Art Day
Please share the Arts and Education Initiative Note with your friends and colleagues!
Do you have something to contribute to next month's AEI Note?
Email Erin at gough@eplc.org to be included!
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Pennsylvania Arts Education Network Updates
Network Sets Policy Agenda
The Pennsylvania Arts Education Network Policy Agenda was agreed upon by the Network's Steering Committee on March 13, 2013. It features six key suggestions for policymakers to improve Pennsylvania's students' access to high quality arts education opportunities:
- The Pennsylvania Department of Education should restore at least one full-time Fine Arts and Humanities Advisor.
- State policymakers should reinstate the Governor's School for the Arts, which was canceled as a result of state budget cuts in 2009.
- The Pennsylvania Department of Education should inform all school districts that they may use Title I and Title II funds for arts education.
- All school districts should require at least one high school credit in the arts as a graduation requirement.
- The Pennsylvania Department of Education should develop endorsements to be added to other teaching certificates for teachers of dance and theatre.
- The General Assembly must begin in the 2013-2014 state budget to restore the nearly $900 million dollars of state funding to school districts that was cut during the past two years, and develop a multi-year plan and commitment to restore all of the cuts and assure a system of equitable, adequate, accountable, and predictable funding to support all of Pennsylvania's students.
Now policymakers need to hear from you and other constituents. You can make a difference by taking action yourself and encouraging family members, friends, and colleagues to do the same.
Read and share the Network's Policy Agenda, here.
Arts Education Advocacy Day: March 19
On Tuesday, March 19, arts education supporters across the state celebrated Arts Education Advocacy Day. There is still plenty you can do to support the Network's efforts. Learn more, here.
March 19 featured a press conference in the Capitol Media Center with speakers from the new Legislative Arts and Culture Caucus: Senators Jay Costa and Pat Browne, and Representatives Mark Cohen, Stan Saylor, and Tim Briggs; representatives from The Education Policy and Leadership Center; Jenny Hershour, Managing Director of Citizens for the Arts in Pennsylvania, and her daughter Martha, a graduate of the Governor's School for the Arts, and several steering committee members of the Pennsylvania Arts Education Network representing the Pennsylvania Music Educators Association, Pennsylvania Art Education Association, the Pennsylvania State Association for Health, Physical Education, Recreation, and Dance, and the American Alliance for Theatre and Education.
The full video of the press conference is posted below and can be found here as well.
 | | Arts Education Advocacy Day - March 19, 2013 |
Resolutions were introduced in the Senate by Sen. Jay Costa, and in the House of Representatives, by Rep. Stan Saylor, declaring March 19 Arts Education Advocacy Day in Pennsylvania as "a time to recognize arts education as integral and essential every year to the education of all Pre-K, elementary, and secondary students, and to express appreciation to arts educators throughout the Commonwealth." (House Resolution 146, Senate Resolution 55).
Following the press conference, representatives of the Pennsylvania Arts Education Network distributed to all 253 State Legislators information about the Pennsylvania Arts Education Network, our new Policy Agenda, the Legislative Arts & Culture Caucus and how they can join, and general information about Arts Education Advocacy Day.
Network Members should continue to support these efforts by sharing the information available here with their Senators and Representatives. The Network's actions will carry more weight when legislators hear from their own constituents.
In Search of Governor's School for the Arts Alumni
For over 35 years, the Pennsylvania Governor's School for the Arts was a robust summer program that provided over 10,000 students state-wide with extraordinary opportunities to develop their artistic talents, intellects, self-confidence, and leadership. Unfortunately, for budget reasons, state officials ended the program a few years ago. The Education Policy and Leadership Center (EPLC)'s 2012 Arts and Education Policy Report recommended the school be reestablished and the Pennsylvania Arts Education Network is now urging that the Governor's School for the Arts be restored.
To support this effort, we are building a comprehensive list of alumni who attended the School. This list will be an important voice in supporting the reopening of the Governor's School for the Arts, and arts education in Pennsylvania, generally.
If you, or someone you know, taught at or attended the Pennsylvania's Governor's School for the Arts, please complete this form and share with others. We have a list of more than 450 alumni already, and appreciate all of the help from former students and faculty in spreading this message.
Individuals and Organizations to Join Network
All individuals and organizations are encouraged to join the Pennsylvania Arts Education Network to become a member of a growing coalition of Pennsylvania advocates for arts education. Individuals and organizations can join the Network at no cost by visiting ArtsEducationPA.org. This is an important opportunity to build public and policymaker support for arts education. We now have a policy agenda with specific requests for action, but we need the participation of every stakeholder for whom arts education is important.
Statewide Network Conference Calls - 3rd Thursdays
EPLC and the PA Arts Education Network will continue to host Harrisburg Briefing Network Conference Calls on the third Thursday of every month at 4 p.m. These calls typically include updates about the Network, Legislative Arts and Culture Caucus, Pennsylvania Department of Education, and Network partners. Conference calls are open to all Network members and friends. Future monthly Network Conference Calls are scheduled for 4:00 p.m. on these third Thursdays : April 18, May 16, and June 20.
Recordings of past conference calls, including the most recent call held March 21, are available here.
To join the live call each month on the third Thursday at 4 p.m., use the following numbers:
The toll-free call in number: 1-866-843-8301
Conference code: 2352393864
Network Communication
Be the first to know what is going on at Network headquarters by following us on Facebook and Twitter.
Inquiries about the PA Arts Education Network can be directed to Network Coordinator Erin Gough at gough@eplc.org.
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AEI and EPLC News
Mark Your Calendars! Third Annual Arts and Education Symposium Scheduled for October 30, 2013
The Third Annual Arts and Education Symposium is scheduled for Wednesday, October 30, 2013. This all-day event will again be hosted at the State Museum of Pennsylvania in Harrisburg and will feature arts and education leaders from across the state and the nation to discuss the important topics of the day. The agenda, photos, and recordings from the 2012 Symposium are available if you would like more information about our Arts and Education Symposia. The 2013 Symposium agenda and registration will be available later this summer.
EPLC a Grassroots Partner of Arts Advocacy Day 2013
EPLC has joined several cultural, civic, and education organizations to help sponsor the training of arts advocates at the 2013 National Arts Advocacy Day in Washington D.C. on April 8 and 9. The 2012 election has made a dramatic impact on Congress with more than 80 new members of Congress taking office in early January. As the new Congress begins its work, it is imperative that arts advocates work together to craft a policy agenda that supports our nonprofit arts sector and arts education. Register today to participate.
EPLC Now Hosting Education Issues Program on PCN
EPLC and PA Cable Network (PCN) have partnered for a new program focusing on education issues in Pennsylvania. View the March episode of EPLC's "Focus on Education" series online. In this episode, EPLC President Ron Cowell and PCN Host Corinna Vecsey Wilson are joined by Kristen Lewald, PVAAS Statewide Project Director with Lancaster-Lebanon IU13, and Stinson Stroup, Education Services Manager with the Pennsylvania State Education Association, to discuss student testing and assessment.
The monthly show produced by EPLC and PCN will be broadcast on PCN at 9:00 p.m. on the 2nd Wednesday of every month, now through June, and then again this fall in September through December. PCN typically repeats the broadcast several times each month. To learn more, click here. Information about sponsorships available for the show which is aired statewide can be obtained by contacting Ron Cowell at 717-260-9900 or cowell@eplc.org.
Interested in Other Education Policy News? As an arts community, it is important to be aware of broader education issues, including the advocacy and legislation that ultimately affects teachers, students, artists, and community members. To keep your finger on the pulse of the General Assembly, State Board of Education, and Department of Education, and receive information about new education reports, announcements, and important events, sign-up to receive EPLC's free online publications here. Current and past editions of the EPLC Education Notebook are also available by visiting the EPLC website. |
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Public Policy News
Arts & Culture Caucus News
The members of the bipartisan, bicameral Arts and Culture Caucus in the Pennsylvania General Assembly held their first working meeting on February 13, 2013. The next meeting has not been scheduled, yet, but several members were in attendance for the Arts Education Advocacy Activities on March 19 and they have been very supportive of the Network's Policy Agenda. For a full list of members and information about the caucus, please visit, here.
If your legislators have joined the caucus, please thank them for supporting the arts in Pennsylvania by sending this letter.
If either your State Senator or State Representative has not yet joined, please ask them to do so by sending this letter.
2013-2014 State Budget Process Ongoing
It is now almost two months since Governor Tom Corbett delivered his February 5 state budget address to a joint session of the State Legislature. Since then, the House and Senate Appropriations Committees completed weeks of hearings on budget details. Now it is up to the Legislature to develop and act on a specific spending plan for the 2013-2014 fiscal year that begins on July 1.
Remember that while there is no line-item in the budget labeled "arts education," the budget impacts on arts education in various ways.
School districts continue to struggle with the results of a nearly $900 million cut in state appropriations for basic education that was first imposed in 2011. This huge reduction in state support has resulted in cuts in art and music programs across the state.
Funding for the Pennsylvania Council for the Arts is used in part to support arts education programs. And the state budget once supported the Governor's School for the Arts.
The annual state budget is probably the most important policy legislation considered by the General Assembly every year. It does indeed represent priorities as well as policy. Be sure that lawmakers hear from you that arts education should be a priority!
Below is a brief summary of items in the Governor's proposed budget related to the arts and arts education.
Pennsylvania Council on the Arts
PCA's administrative budget would receive a 3.7% increase from $866,000 to $919,000. Grants to the Arts would be held level at $8,179,000.
Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission
Funding to PHMC would be increased by 3.8%, going from $17,800,000 to $18,474,000.
Libraries
Library funding would be held level. This means $53,507,000 for the public library subsidy, $2,567,000 for library services for the visually impaired and disabled, $2,821,000 towards library access, and $1,946,000 for the state library line item.
PK-12 Public Education
The Governor has proposed a Basic Education Subsidy of $5.493 billion, an increase of $90 million or approximately 1.7%. The increase, while a step forward, does not restore much of the nearly $900 million cut to school districts during the past two years.
Special education would be funded at the same level as each of the past five years - $1.026 billion.
The Accountability Block Grant would be funded at the same level as the current year - $100 million.
For an in-depth assessment of what the Governor's proposal means for public education in Pennsylvania, visit EPLC's website.
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Opportunities for
Arts Education Professionals
Americans for the Arts Convention in Pittsburgh!
Registration for the 2013 Americans for the Arts Annual Convention is now open. The 2013 Americans for the Arts (AFTA) Annual Convention and three pre-conferences will bring 1,000+ arts leaders from around the country to the David Lawrence Convention Center and arts and cultural venues throughout Pittsburgh to discuss issues affecting artists, arts-based community development, arts organizations, and creative industries. This is an incredible opportunity for the Pennsylvania arts community - read details on how you can be involved, here.
Registration Still Open for AEP's April D.C. Forum
Capital Region Young Artist Symposium & College Fair
Junior high and high school art students, parents and art teachers are invited to attend the 2013 Capital Region Young Artist Symposium & College Fair, at The State Museum of Pennsylvania. This event is being held in conjunction with the Scholastic Art Awards exhibit, and Course and Discourse: An Exhibition of Professor and Student Artwork, hosted by the Susquehanna Art Museum and The State Museum of Pennsylvania. This exciting event will include brief informational sessions on: Creative Learning, Building a Portfolio, and Career Outlook for Artists.
Teachers can get up to four Act 48 professional development hours for attending the event. Contact Wendy Sweigart, Director of Outreach Education at wsweigart@sqart.org for details.
PMEA Annual Conference and All-State Festival The Pennsylvania Music Educators Association (PMEA) is holding their annual conference in Erie from April 17-20 at the Bayfront Convention Center. The conference will feature performances from 25 outstanding elementary, middle school, high school, collegiate, and community instrumental and choral ensembles, as well as a keynote speech by motivational and leadership guru Scott Lang. Educational sessions will encompass the topics of advocacy, assessment, teacher evaluation, special learners, multicultural, instrumental techniques, and technology. For more information, visit here.
Register Today for the PA Museums Conference
Pennsylvania's museum community will join together for PA Museum's 2013 Annual Statewide Museum Conference, April 7-9, in Doylestown, PA. Sessions and programs will be held in a campus environment at The Michener Museum of Art and The Mercer Museum. Visit the PA Museum's website for a full schedule and to register today!
Community Arts Education Leadership Institute
The Community Arts Education Leadership Institute (CAELI), hosted by the National Guild for Community Arts Education, provides an intensive, transformative experience through which current and aspiring leaders advance their skills by engaging with top leadership trainers and nationally known practitioners. It is ideally suited for those in executive positions or preparing to move into such positions. The seven-month program includes a five-day seminar at Bryn Mawr College (Philadelphia, PA), advanced assignments, a 360-degree feedback process, and follow-up coaching. The deadline to apply is April 11, 2013. For more information, visit the National Guild for Community Arts Education website.
Save the Date! PA Arts & Culture Legislative Visit Day On Tuesday, May 7, 2013, Citizens for the Arts in Pennsylvania is hosting a day of legislative visits to promote issues that will support arts and cultural institutions across the state. Stay tuned to Citizens for the Arts in PA's website to see how you can be involved in Harrisburg and your home districts.
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PMEA's Music Education Advocacy Day
The Pennsylvania Music Educators Association (PMEA) held their second Music Education Advocacy Day in Harrisburg on March 13.
PMEA was joined at a Capitol press conference by Pennsylvania Senators and Representatives, as well as representatives from the Education Policy and Leadership Center, the National Association for Music Education (NAfME), and the National Association of Music Merchants (NAMM). Student performances filled the Main Rotunda and East Wing of the Capitol throughout the day.
Provided to all attendees and distributed to all legislators was PMEA's policy asks and talking points for each ask. Included among their policy asks was a request that Pennsylvania School Districts be allowed to use Title I & II funds for arts education, and a request for the reinstatement of a full-time Pennsylvania Department of Education Fine Arts & Humanities Advisor.
ARTSblog Blog Salon on Early Childhood Arts Ed
The Americans for the Arts ARTSblog held a blog salon on Early Childhood Arts Education throughout the week of March 18. Arts Educators from across the nation discussed the merits of having arts infused early childhood education experiences.
Two Pennsylvania programs were highlighted. Network Coordinator, Erin Gough, wrote about the Erie Art Museum's Old Songs, New Opportunities program where refugee women in Erie are given an opportunity to become accredited early childhood educators while leveraging their own cultural heritage. Read the full post, here.
Judy Whitmer, Curriculum Director at the Hildebrandt Learning Centers (HLC) explained the way HLC uses the Reggio Emilia approach, a learning approach that believes children are competent, capable, curious, and able to actively participate in their learning. The approach also incorporates art as an inquiry-based learning process. Read the full post, here.
Arts Education Navigator
Through a partnership with Vans Custom Culture, Americans for the Arts has designed the Arts Education Navigator, a series of e-books designed to help educators, students, and advocates alike navigate the complex field of arts education.
Each e-book in the Navigator series below will cover a specific topic, ensuring arts education supporters like you are equipped with the knowledge, statistics, and case-making techniques needed to effectively communicate with decision-makers.
Arts, Culture & Economic Prosperity Report Unveiled
The Greater Pittsburgh Arts Council (GPAC) recently unveiled the results of Arts, Culture & Economic Prosperity, the most comprehensive economic impact study of Southwestern Pennsylvania's nonprofit arts industry ever conducted. Results of the study reveal the dramatic number of jobs, household income, and tax revenues the industry generates in the Region. Release events were held in at the Kaufmann Center in Pittsburgh, Butler County Community College, and California University on March 21, 26, and 28, respectively. The full report and other details will be available on the GPAC website in the upcoming weeks.
The Grammy's to Honor Music Educators
The first-ever Music Educator Award will be presented next year at the 2014 Grammy Awards. Music teachers, school administrators, students, parents, or anyone who was heavily impacted by an exceptional music teacher can nominate their favorite teacher from now until April 15, 2013. The first annual Music Educator Award winner will be flown to Los Angeles to accept the award, and will attend the 56th Annual Grammy Awards in 2014. The winner will receive a $10,000 honorarium provided by the Ford Motor Company Fund, the organization that supports the Grammy in the Schools program. This award is also supported by the NAMM Foundation and the National Association for Music Education.
Youth Art Month Art Show on Display at PDE
An exhibition of student artwork has been displayed during March at the Pennsylvania Department of Education (PDE) for the Pennsylvania Art Education Association (PAEA) Youth Art Month Exhibit. March is nationally recognized as the month to celebrate & commend young artists. PDE has hosted a Youth Art Month Exhibit for several years. The exhibit displays artwork from children in Kindergarten through 12th grade.
The full student exhibit can be viewed Monday through Saturday, March 4 to April 5 from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. at the Pennsylvania Department of Education building, 333 Market Street, Harrisburg. PAEA hosted an artists' reception on Saturday, March 23.
Student Art Exhibit Held at State Museum
Perry County Youth Art Day
Each year, over ten percent of Perry County students participate in Youth Art Day. This year's Youth Art Day will be held on Saturday, April 6 from 12 p.m. to 4 p.m. Activities include a student art show (over 700 entries), kids activities and story-time, musical and dance performances, art college fair, career in arts presentations, and portfolio preparation and review sessions. |
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