On Thursday, February 14, the Department of Education will host a live webinar titled “Strengthening Arts Education Through i3 and Promise Neighborhoods Programs.” Presenters are Elson Nash of Promise Neighborhoods and Kelly Terpak of Investing in Innovation (i3), as well as Doug Herbert from the Department of Education's Office of Innovation & Improvement who will be moderating.
Arts Education
Grantmakers in the Arts holds arts education as one of its core funding focus areas. GIA is committed to invigorate funding and support for arts education within federal policy and defend that every resident has access to the arts as part of a well-rounded, life-long education. In 2012, GIA formed the Arts Education Funders Coalition (AEFC), an interest group within GIA, to address identified needs in comprehensive arts education and to strengthen communication and networking among arts education funders. Advised by a committee of Coalition members, GIA engaged the services of Washington, DC-based Penn Hill Group, a firm with education policy expertise and experience working with diverse education groups to research, develop, and promote educational policy strategies.
Most recently, GIA worked with Representative Suzanne Bonamici (D-OR) on the development of the Arts Education for All Act, the broadest arts education policy bill ever introduced in Congress.
In Spring 2021, GIA influenced the U.S. Department of Education to highlight the importance of equitable access to arts and culture to the process of reopening schools and to make explicit how racialized this access was prior to the pandemic and that addressing this inequity is essential to effective reopening.
Grantmakers in the Arts is delighted that in 2020 Congress passed the Supporting Older Americans Act, including our recommendations that the Administration on Aging include the arts in the issues to be identified and addressed and be included among supportive services for older Americans.
GIA has successfully lobbied to include arts-related provisions in the Child Care for Working Families Act, which proposes to better help low-income families pay for childcare and expand high-quality state preschool options.
GIA is extremely proud of our work over the past several years on raising the visibility of the arts in the Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA) in its legislative form. GIA and Penn Hill Group continue these advocacy efforts around the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA), guiding GIA members and their grantees in advocating for new or expanded arts programs at their local schools and districts.
January 29, 2013 by Steve
From Alyson Klein at Education Week:
Harkin, who was a key author of the education portions of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, is a big fan of special education. (In fact, his late brother was a special education student.) He's also a major champion of federal funding for school facilities and told reporters that he was "not a happy camper" when money for school construction was taken out of the stimulus law.
So what does this mean for education legislation—including No Child Left Behind reauthorization? Well, this session of Congress will be Harkin's last chance ever to put his stamp on a rewrite of the law, something he's listed as a priority. Harkin has already made a start, working with Sen. Michael B. Enzi, then the Senate education committee's top Republican on a bipartisan revamp of the law back in 2011. The legislation got the support of three of the panel's GOP members, but never made it to the floor of the Senate. Presumably, having started that work, it seems Harkin would want to try and finish the job, especially since his home state of Iowa didn't get a waiver to get out from under the mandates of the current NCLB law.
January 14, 2013 by Steve
AEFC responds to US Department of Education call for comments on their proposed priorities, requirements, definitions and selection criteria for the Investing in Innovation Fund (i3).
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View the document (155 Kb)
January 11, 2013 by Steve
Download:
Summary of "What's Next for School Systems" (263 Kb)
Much discussion about the Common Core State Standards has emphasized the desirability of the enterprise or the minutiae of “implementation.” At this AEI event, held on January 10, 2013, prominent superintendents and leading thinkers instead focus more broadly on what it will take for school systems to adopt the Common Core effectively.
January 3, 2013 by Steve
This memorandum provides an overview of the deal reached on the so called “fiscal cliff” issues. The legislation passed by Congress and expected to be signed by the President delays the sequester for two months, extends expiring tax cuts for a large majority of taxpayers and for certain education-related purposes, permanently prevents the Alternative Minimum Tax from applying to additional taxpayers, and provides a one-year delay in lower fees for Medicare providers (the so-called doc-fix). This legislation did not extend the existing Federal debt limit.
November 21, 2012 by Steve
The Arts Education Funders Coalitions requests consideration regarding arts education from Secretary Duncan and the Office of Management and Budget in preparing the 2014 department of education budget.
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Letter to Secretary Arne Duncan and Director Jeffrey Zeints (154 Kb)
September 25, 2012 by Steve
You can view the K-12 Education Policy Agenda here or download the .pdf.
November 16, 2012 by Steve
In the election on November 6th, 2012, Portland, Oregon residents approved ballot measure #26-146 with 62% voting to approve. The success of the measure means a new income tax of $35 per income-earning resident will generate an estimated $12.5 million every year, starting in 2013 to be dispersed to Portland schools and to the Regional Arts & Culture Council (RACC) to fund the arts and music and art education.