CALL FOR ACTION TO SUPPORT SB 916 - The Theatre and Dance Act
Greetings!
  
Arts Orange County supports SB 916, a bill introduced by State Senator Ben Allen of Santa Monica that addresses a serious inequity in our State's teacher credentialing in the subjects of Theater and Dance.
  
We are collaborating with the California Alliance for Arts Education (CAAE), California Arts Advocates and Arts for LA in communicating with you today about the importance of this legislation.
  
Below, I am pleased to share with you a letter from CAAE Executive Director Joe Landon, which describes the bill and explains its importance.
  
We hope you will join with us in expressing your support for this bill now to Senator Allen, as directed in Joe's letter.
  
Thank you so much for your time and attention.
  
Richard Stein
Executive Director
Arts Orange County

Dear Arts Education Advocate,

The campaign for SB 916 - the Theatre and Dance Act - is ON! Authored by Senator Ben Allen, the legislation would create teaching credentials in the subjects of Theatre and Dance. Read a statement of support the Alliance has created in partnership with other advocacy organizations.

The success of this campaign depends on you and other advocates for arts education raising your voices to communicate to our elected officials and influential organizations that SB 916 matters to all of us. Read what the bill says.

SB 916 will be heard first in the Senate Education Committee on March 9th. If it passes, it will move on to the Senate Appropriations Committee and from there to the Senate floor. If the Senate approves the bill, it will move on to the Assembly where the same process will be repeated. If the bill passes in the Assembly, it will be sent to the Governor for his signature. And then, hopefully, it will become the law!

We've all got a lot of work to do between now and then. Here's what you can do:

If you represent an organization, you can send a letter of support to Senator Allen's office . Be sure to include your organization's logo and a signature so the endorsement can be listed.

If you're speaking on behalf of yourself, we will contact you when the legislation is heard by a senator or assemblymember who represents your district in a committee. (Not everyone will be contacted, since only certain members belong to those committees and members pay attention to letters sent by their constituents.) Everyone will be contacted when the bill comes to the Senate or Assembly floor, and if/when it is sent to the Governor.

If you're looking for a good sound byte to impress your friends, share this clip of actress Annette Bening speaking in support of the bill:
If you're a teacher and want to communicate your support to your union representative or leadership, that would be particularly powerful testimony. You can do that on your own or attend a webinar the Alliance will be hosting with California Dance Education Association (CDEA) and California Educational Theatre Association (CETA) on March 24, 2016 at 5:30 PM. More details to come!

Senator Allen and SB 916 need our support. That's how the system works. It's time for all of us to do our part. Let's get this thing done!
 
Regards,
Joe Landon
Executive Director