Americans for the Arts is pleased to announce its newest tool in the arts education field: The 12 Core Competencies of an Arts Education Leader. This landmark research offers the field direction in fostering new ways to envision professional development for arts education leaders.

Through March 11, 2019, Americans for the Arts is accepting nominations of community arts leaders for one of seven 2019 Annual Leadership Awards. These awards recognize the achievements of individuals, organizations, or programs committed to enriching their communities through the arts.

Vans and Americans for the Arts envision a country where every child has access to—and takes part in—high quality learning experiences in the arts, both in school and in the community. As such, the two organizations partnered to create the Custom Culture Grant to promote awareness and support arts education in public schools at a time when budget cuts threaten arts education programs across the country.

Americans for the Arts president and CEO Robert L. Lynch issued a statement in response to Elisabeth P. “Betsy” DeVos’s confirmation as U.S. Secretary of Education. 

Americans for the Arts wants our members to elect art professionals from the field to serve on one of four network advisory councils: Arts Education, Emerging Leaders, Private Sector, and Public Art. Voting closes November 16, 2018 at 5:00 pm (ET).

Americans for the Arts reported that more than 800 celebrations were held in communities across the nation for the 8th annual National Arts in Education Week, September 9-15 – a significant uptick compared with 428 in 2017. The celebrations ranged from block parties to city hall meetings to online visibility campaigns. 

Americans for the Arts invites arts professionals from across the country to submit nominations for incoming advisory council members to advise on programs and services in the fields of Arts Education, Emerging Leadership, the Private Sector and Public Art. Nominations close Friday, Oct. 5, 2018.

The U.S. Department of Education’s Student Art Exhibit Program, which has been in operation since 2004, regularly features a rotating collection of visual art created by both American and international students. On May 4, the program debuted an exhibit called “Total Tolerance.” The exhibit includes various photos, paintings, and poetry by winners of the 2018 YoungArts’ National Arts Competition, a yearly competition for young artists ages 15-18.

Americans for the Arts announced today the recipients of the 2018 Americans for the Arts Leadership Awards. Given annually, these awards recognize the achievements of individuals and organizations committed to enriching their communities through the arts.

The U.S. Department of Education announced a new round of grants for the newly-named “Assistance for Arts Education Development & Dissemination” grant program. In total, about $14 million will be awarded to 20-25 grantees, each receiving about $575,000 per year during their 4 year project cycle. 

Called "Tennessee: State of the Arts," the program is an unprecedented public-private partnership to provide school districts statewide the opportunity to apply for funding to improve or develop their music education programs for the 2018-19 school year. 

Abreu, the founder of El Sistema, was a professional musician, economist, and one-time cabinet minister, but his life’s mission was to democratize and universalize music education.

The Blueprint builds on the 2014 Collective Action for Youth Agenda by prioritizing three strategic areas—Visibility and Impact, Funding, and Field-Building—and identifying specific actions for cross-sector advancement of the field. 

More than 28 states have adopted new arts education standards since 2014. The NCCAS report includes a comprehensive list of states that have revised their arts standards and an up-to-date status of other states that are currently working on standards revision.