[CharterSchools] Jazz & Heritage | Arts In Education Community Forum

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New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival and Foundation, Inc. February 13, 2015













Arts in Education Community Forum: Feb. 24
Do you care about arts in New Orleans public schools? 
Do you share our passion for making sure every one of our children has meaningful arts instruction in school? Do you want a voice in developing a master plan for - and implementing - expanded arts education in New Orleans? Then you won't want to miss a community forum on Tuesday, Feb. 24, from 6 p.m. to 9 p.m. at the new George and Joyce Wein Jazz & Heritage Center (map). See below for details. Free admission; RSVP to attend here.

Arts In Education Community Forum
Tuesday, Feb. 24
6 p.m. - 9 p.m.
1225 N. Rampart Street, New Orleans (map)
Free Admission - RSVP here
It's no secret that arts education in our schools isn't what it used to be. And New Orleans is hardly alone in wishing that our children had more and better access to quality arts instruction in school.
Cities across the country want to get back to the days before budget cuts put arts education on the chopping block, when music and art instruction were understood - in the community and in the classroom - to have their own essential value.
It's easy to see why. Far from being a mere "feel good issue," arts instruction is crucial. Mountains of research shows that quality arts education leads students to better outcomes in many areas: attendance, grades, standardized test scores, high school graduation, college enrollment - all of these are improved for students who have access to the arts.
Arts instruction helps students to think creatively, to work in teams and to develop resiliency ("If at first you don't succeed...") - all crucial skills in an economy where entrepreneurial thinking is the key to a successful career.
That's why the Jazz & Heritage Foundation partnered last year with the City of New Orleans, KID smART, the New Orleans Center for the Creative Arts (NOCCA) and Tulane's Cowen Institute for Public Education Initiatives to develop a plan for achieving a difficult task: to put arts back into the schools.
The unusually decentralized nature of New Orleans' school system makes the job extra challenging. 
We submitted an application to the Kennedy Center in Washington, DC, whose program, Ensuring the Arts for Any Given Child, helps cities across the country tackle this issue. Last September, New Orleans was selected as Any Given Child's 16th city in which to develop a strategic plan and implement expanded arts instruction for every K-8 student.
Since then, a large "community arts team" has met monthly with facilitators from the Kennedy Center to begin developing a strategic plan for arts in the schools.
One of the first steps in this process was conducting a large survey to gather data on precisely what arts instruction is being offered - and what isn't - in New Orleans schools. We also collected information on attitudes: What do school administrators, teachers and artists want to see in our classrooms?
At the Feb. 24 community forum, we will present:
    * Background on the arts-in-schools initiative to date
    * An overview of the Kennedy Center's Ensuring the Arts for Any Given Child program
    * Preliminary results of the New Orleans surveys
We also will hear from one of the cities that has been through Any Given Child - Austin, TX - to learn what "success" in this effort has meant for them.
Finally, we want to hear from you. We'll gather input on several of aspects of this effort, including:
    * Public awareness of arts-in-education as a major issue, politically, culturally and economically
    * Policy and government
    * Allocation of resources and budget priorities
    * Curriculum
    * School and arts organization partnerships
    * Data collection
We also will enjoy a performance by the KIPP McDonogh 15 Middle School Brass Band.
If arts in education is important to you, please join us for what is sure to be a thought-provoking and exciting evening.
Admission to this event is free. Please RSVP here.
The New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Foundation is the nonprofit that owns the New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival presented by Shell. The Foundation uses the proceeds from Jazz Fest, and other raised funds, for year-round programs in education, economic development and cultural enrichment. For more on what we do, please visit www.jazzandheritage.org.


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The New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival and Foundation, Inc.
1205 N. Rampart St. New Orleans LA 70116 • Phone 504.558.6100









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