Arts+Music Education in LAUSD: WINNING THE FUTURE – LOSING THE PRESENT
BY RUBI FREGOSO, ASSOCIATE PRODUCER, EDUCATION & OUTREACH AT KCET | DEPARTURES/YOUTH VOICES | HTTP://BIT.LY/KJMY65
DEPARTURES YOUTH VOICES IS A DIGITAL LITERACY PROGRAM THAT ENGAGES YOUTH TO USE MULTIMEDIA THEORY AND APPLICATION TO CONNECT WITH THEIR COMMUNITY AND BECOME STUDENT PRODUCERS FOR THE DEPARTURES PROJECT.
Franklin High School
May 17, 2011 4:05 PM - Last week I was caught up reading the President's Committee on the Arts and the Humanities (PCAH) report advocating for the preservation and expansion of arts curriculum in elementary and secondary schools. The report entitled "Reinvesting in Arts Education: Winning America's Future Through Creative Schools" (available on 4LAKids at http://bit.ly/iec1v4) offers model arts programs for local school districts to reference and highlights studies that indicate how arts education helps students succeed in other academic subjects. I was struck by two things as I read the report. The first was the similarities between the Departures Youth Voices program and the recommendations and models offered by the report. The second was the stark contrast between the reports findings and the reality of the severe budget cuts taking place in the Los Angeles Unified School District (LAUSD).
To characterize this dichotomy, On May 11th, the LA Times quoted the United Teachers of Los Angeles representative as saying, "the adopted district budget calls for slashing the arts instruction staff from 1,065 to 722 full- and part-time positions, a 32% reduction." Elementary school students would lose the most arts instructors at