Americans for the Arts

There's no doubt that these last several months have left many of us with a sense of deep divide—both across the nation and within our local communities. There are many remedies for that and most of them have nothing to do with politics (or presidents). I need to be clear that my writing here is not meant to minimize these deep and abiding concerns, nor should these words be received as an overtly political text. Instead, I simply want to drill down into what I believe art—and specifically in this context, arts education—can teach us in these anxious (for some, though not all) times.

So many terms are tossed around each day in the world of education: personalized learning, student-centered learning, innovation, creativity, proficiency-based learning, 21st century skills, mass-customized learning, competency based education, and on and on. I’ve been thinking more about “innovation in education” lately. It seems that innovation can be a hiccup for many educators. We know that teachers are responsible for so much more today than even five years ago. In this century and the focus on the global economy, innovation is a critical component. Frequently, my thoughts turn to wonderings and questions including: What are we doing in arts education to support and/or teach innovation? Are we providing the opportunity and encouraging learners to create innovative works of art? What is the role and responsibility of arts education and arts educators when it comes to innovation? 

I can remember my first field trip to a music concert at the Symphony Hall when I was in kindergarten. That sole field trip event hardly takes the credit for my entryway into the arts, but trust me, there were many more learning journeys that same year that shaped my appreciation and quest for wanting more of the arts. We were fortunate, when I was in school, to be able to take many field trips to countless arts centers and cultural venues; one: due to our school’s close proximity to downtown Atlanta, and two: field trips were insisted upon decades ago. Not to mention, my arts trajectory was shaped by my mother’s unwavering encouragement. But in so many districts and schools today, arts and cultural field trips are in decline due to the prioritization of math and English-language arts curricula over other subjects. If cultivating (life-long) learners and student achievement is the goal, what field trips provide is a connection to the real world that stimulates the quest for more content knowledge equaling increased student achievement.

During this past school year, Dr. Lauren Neefe with Common Good Atlanta reached out to the High Museum to do a guest lecture experience at Metro Reentry Facility, a state prison reentry program in Atlanta. We came to one class during a series of art and art history lectures at the facility. This blog post features Dr. Neefe’s experience with incorporating art from the High Museum and music in her curriculum.

Last fall, as the volunteer site director for Common Good Atlanta’s education program at Metro Reentry Facility, the newly reopened and “re-missioned” state prison in southeast Atlanta, I was given the opportunity to give a series of lectures on art and art history to the 28 incarcerated students in our college course. My doctoral training is in English literature and poetry, not art history; but I knew I was up to the task of introducing art as a contested category of culture and knowledge. Maybe I could reframe the obligations of punitive discipline as the pleasures of an aesthetic one. Maybe the students and I could write over the indignities of one kind of suffering with the dignity of another, the kind artists and scholars know as passion.

In America, I have the opportunity of expressing myself through the arts, and now my work as an arts leader is rooted in helping students achieve by learning through the arts. As an arts advocate and educator, I have the privilege of contributing to the education of diverse students, many of whom represent a wide array of languages, learning modalities, and backgrounds. I play a part in helping them express themselves through the arts. All of us have an identity, but the arts help students find the special and unique qualities that make them who they are. The arts are essential to education in America. Music, dance, visual arts, theatre, and creative writing courses broaden the educational experiences of students. Such experiences offer opportunities for students to create innovative solutions, to build community, and to foster their sense of self. The arts have a place in the balanced educational experiences of students all across the county.

We’ve had the great fortune of working with multiple programs that have helped shaped the lives of young people through arts education. It’s incredibly fulfilling to see impact happening at that moment ... but what about after? Those of us who work with underserved communities know how critical our work is in leveling the playing field, and are so proud when we see our students finishing school and utilizing those skills to move on to the next phase of their lives. But what about those who can’t make that leap quite as easily? They have all the lessons and skills from what we’ve taught them through the magic of an arts education; they should be able to figure it out, right? Not always. This is an experience any young person could struggle with, regardless of what resources are available to them. What would happen when arts education programs considered it a moral imperative to support our alumni in the transition from childhood to adulthood?