In late July, the U.S. House of Representatives passed a resolution declaring the week following the second Sunday of September as Arts in Education Week.

Although timing prevents the arts education community from truly celebrating and promoting this inaugural celebration, that doesn’t mean we should do nothing. Let’s take the opportunity to draw attention to arts education in all of our schools early, building momentum for the remainder of the school year.  This national movement has the potential to produce impactful results at the local level.

• MAKE A PLEDGE! Help arts education in your community between September and March, and testify in favor of arts education at the end of that period!
• PREPARE yourself to testify on behalf of arts education at school board meetings in March 2011 when Arts Education/Youth Arts Month is celebrated.
  • We also encourage you to find out more information regarding testifying at your local school board meeting on a new website community, Testify for Arts Education. Creativity & Associates’ Joan Weber (also a theater educator) created the site and we will work together between now and March to prepare advocates for their moment in the school board meeting spotlight.
• CELEBRATE! The goal is to collect all of the great projects started or completed during arts education week throughout the year and report back just in time for the 2011 celebration.

Other Ways to Celebrate

• Begin writing a school song and perform it later in the year
• Start projects for a back-to-school-night gallery show
• Invite elected officials to visit some of your arts classes (Arts in Education Week is the last week of the Americans for the Arts 50 States 50 Days initiative)
• Show students inspiring films about the power of the arts
• Hold an arts appreciation assembly

• Spread the word on Facebook, Twitter, etc.
• Submit letters-to-the-editor to your local newspaper
• Work with state and local elected officials to pass resolutions or author proclamations declaring Arts in Education Week in your city or state. The governors of Ohio, Kansas, Colorado, Oregon, and Michigan have already done that.
• The Ohio Alliance for Arts Education not only requested a proclamation from the Governor supporting the week, they are also:
  • providing copies of the Arts in Education Week proclamation, along with a letter about ways to support arts education, to members of  the Ohio House of Representatives and Senate.
  • sending an e-mail blast to principals informing them about Arts in Education Week and requesting that during student announcements the Arts in Education Week proclamation (or some portion of it) be read in honor of the arts students and arts educators in the school.
  • sending an e-mail blast to district superintendents asking them to present the Arts in Education Week proclamation to their school boards and to issue their own media release to honor arts education.
  • working with TV and radio sports anchors to share the proclamation in honor of the marching bands on football Friday night broadcasts (September 10 and 17).
  • asking high school athletic directors and principals to make an announcement about Arts in Education Week during halftime of the football and other sporting events the week of September 12.
  • having localites pass their own Arts in Education Week resolutions.

E-mail Americans for the Arts any other suggestions and photos/videos from the different ways you’re celebrating Arts in Education Week! We will add your suggestions and post pictures/videos on this page!