Arts Education Funding in the Every Student Succeeds Act - Next Steps
This month, the Nebraska Department of Education submitted its plan for the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA), a federal initiative to give states and local schools more flexibility in implementing strategies to improve student achievement. ESSA replaces the No Child Left Behind Act.
While the state waits for approval of its ESSA application, advocates should start making plans to work at the local and district school level to promote the support for arts education in helping in the well-rounded education of students. Much of the ESSA funds will be passed down to the local level for funding of Title I, Title II, and Title IV programs, as well as special initiatives like STEAM (science, technology, engineering, ARTS, & math).
There is plenty of data to support that arts education fosters deeper learning skills, such as cooperation and perseverance, reduces absenteeism, and improves ACT scores. Over the next few months, we will be disseminating papers with information and strategies to help you engage with local policymakers to encourage a school-wide committment to arts learning and committing training and program funds for an art-enriched learning environment.
