FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
CONTACT: Betty Gonzales: Arts Every Day
Phone: 410-685-1172
Email: betty@artseveryday.org
Website URL: www.artseveryday.org
Baltimore City, MD—National Endowment for the Arts acting chairman Mary Anne Carter has approved more than $80 million in grants as part of the Arts Endowment’s second major funding announcement for fiscal year 2019. Included in this announcement is an Art Works grant of $100,000 to Arts Every Day and Baltimore City Public Schools to support the implementation of the Baltimore City Fine Arts Strategic Plan. Art Works is the Arts Endowment’s principal grantmaking program. The agency received 1,592 Art Works applications for this round of grantmaking, and will award 977 grants in this category.
“These awards, reaching every corner of the United States, are a testament to the artistic richness and diversity in our country,” said Mary Anne Carter, acting chairman of the National Endowment for the Arts. “Organizations such as Arts Every Day are giving people in their community the opportunity to learn, create, and be inspired.”
“We can teach our young people so much through the arts, as they dig deeper into all of their subjects and find new ways to express themselves,” said City Schools CEO Sonja Brookins Santelises. “The arts are an important part of a well-rounded curriculum. They motivate students to come to school and keep them interested while they’re there. The fine arts strategic plan makes sure all schools across the district have high-quality arts programs for their students.”
“Access to a high quality arts education isn’t just a feel good issue for those of us who appreciate the arts – it is essential to the future of our City. For many students, the arts are the reason why they come to school everyday. We are thrilled to continue this deeply collaborative work to ensure every Baltimore City student has the opportunity to learn in and through the arts.” said Julia Di Bussolo, Executive Director of Arts Every Day.
The Baltimore Fine Arts Strategic Plan was developed in collaboration with over 100 stakeholders including students, educators, arts partners, and city leaders in 2017. In May 2018, Baltimore City Public Schools adopted the Arts Plan as part of the Blueprint for Success, a districtwide initiative to support student wholeness, literacy, and staff leadership. School year 2022 is the first major benchmark of the Arts Plan with the goals:
- Grades PK-5 enrolled every year in visual art and music classes, dance, and theater units taught within physical education and language arts.
- Grades 6-8 enrolled in 1 or more arts classes every year with option for continuous discipline-specific instruction.
- Grades 9-12 choose from all arts subjects to complete the art graduation requirement. Students can enroll in 1 or more arts discipline each year to specialize and prepare for college/career in the arts. Implementation of this plan began with a major shift in the school year 2019-2020 budget policy requiring principals to meet and maintain certified arts teachers to student enrollment ratios.
The NEA funding will help establish an arts access mapping project with Arts Education Maryland Schools (AEMS) and the Kennedy Center Any Given Child Initiative, new teacher support resources through the Office of Fine Arts in Baltimore City Public Schools, teacher and student centered arts curricular supports created by Arts Every Day and Baltimore City Public Schools, and visual arts advocacy tools for parents and stakeholders.
About Arts Every Day
Arts Every Day (AED) is proud to be a driving force in building and sustaining a Baltimore City that values public education through creativity, art, and culture. A 501(c) 3 founded in 2006 as one in only eight organizations originally funded by the Ford Foundation, AED works to ensure all Baltimore City Public Schools students have access to the arts every day through arts education, arts programming, and arts-integrated instruction. Arts Every Day works toward this goal through the forging of partnerships with schools and the arts and cultural community over the long-term to inspire lasting change. For more information, visit www.artseveryday.org.
About the National Endowment for the Arts
Established by Congress in 1965, the NEA is the independent federal agency whose funding and support gives Americans the opportunity to participate in the arts, exercise their imaginations, and develop their creative capacities. Through partnerships with state arts agencies, local leaders, other federal agencies, and the philanthropic sector, the NEA supports arts learning, affirms and celebrates America’s rich and diverse cultural heritage, and extends its work to promote equal access to the arts in every community across America. For more information, visit www.arts.gov.
For more information on this National Endowment for the Arts grant announcement, visit arts.gov/news.
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