Advocating for the arts. (Arts Awareness and Advocacy).

"Arts Awareness and Advocacy" is the new name for the national Community Outreach and Education Committee. Part of the committee's job is keeping MTNA members informed or aware of what is happening; the other job is providing advocacy tools. In the August/September issue of AMT, we listed websites that can be tools in the arts advocacy process. This issue continues with more websites and information supporting the arts and music/arts education for children.

Some strong evidence for the arts is found on the Americans for the Arts website, www.americansforthearts.org. Executive Director Robert Lynch spoke at the 2001 MTNA National Conference in Washington, D.C. Here are some facts from the study "Arts & Economic Prosperity: The Economic Impact of Nonprofit Arts Organizations and Their Audiences" (including MTNA, of course), released June 10, 2002:

1) $134 billion a year is generated by the American nonprofit arts industry; and $24.4 billion are tax revenues (local, state, federal).

2) $53.2 billion currently is spent by arts organizations, higher than the 1992 Americans for the Arts study of $36.8 billion.

3) $80.8 billion of the above total is spent by audiences of arts events on restaurants, parking, souvenirs, refreshments, hotels and other related costs.

Don't you agree these figures indicate the significant economic impact of the arts? You can read more about this study at www.americansforthearts.org/EconomicImpact.

Also on this website is the very informative "Art: Ask for More" section (www.americansforthearts.org/ public_awareness). The following are speaking points from www.americansforthearts.org/common/ contenta.asp?id=210 to use when addressing local school boards, civic clubs, community leaders and legislators:

1) Community leaders turn to the arts more and more to find solutions to violent crime in youth and gangs, unemployment, racial and ethnic relations, family instability and the quality of education.

2) Arts programs can help build and strengthen communities in lots of ways. Arts districts attract business investment, reinvigorate struggling neighborhoods and reverse urban decay.

3) The undeniable fact is that arts programs work: to develop children's self-esteem and self-confidence, to help troubled youth develop improved attitudes as they learn to replace drug use with healthy lifestyles, and to replace delinquent behavior with productive and creative alternatives.

4) Arts study improves academic performance, as evidenced by arts students' SAT scores being higher in math and verbal skills.

5) Arts programs open children's minds to new worlds of experience and build skills they will need for the future.

6) An impressive 89 percent of Americans believe arts education is important enough to be taught in schools, but the sad truth is that kids spend more time at their lockers than in arts classes. Read the facts on how arts education helps kids do better. (There is a link to "the facts" at www.americansforthearts.org/ public_awareness/facts.)

A second website is from the National Endowment for the Arts, www.arts.endow.gov. Two valuable studies are found at this site. For those speaking to business leaders, the first report, from May 2002, can be found in the Endowment News section at http://arts.endow.gov/ endownews/news02/NGA.html. Titled, "Governors Association Recognizes Arts Education as Significant in Creating the 21st Century Workforce" is most compelling, since it is issued by the National Governor's Association and addresses a key issue of "... the importance of human capital to an areas economic vitality." The report has innovative ideas and good examples of excellence in state governments that use the arts to meet their state's educational goals. It provides examples from states already using the arts in education and in after-school programs and gives cost-effective ways of producing successful students and productive employees for tomorrow's economy. Vital policy actions for governors are recommended in this report and also on the National Governors Association website, www.nga.org.

The second valuable Endowment News report is titled "Arts Education Partnership Releases Report Demonstrating the Arts' Critical Link to Student Development." It tells about a study, also released in May 2002, giving indisputable evidence supporting arts education. U.S. Senator Thad Cochran from Massachusetts says, "While many of us have known arts education enhances academic instruction, Critical Links is the first report of the hard evidence that supports this conclusion. This will assist school boards, teachers, and administrators as they make choices about the curriculum and other opportunities our students should have." The full report is found on the Arts Education Partnership home page, www.aep-arts.org, and hardcopies can be ordered from CCSSO (Council of Chief State School Officers) at [phone].

You might ask, "How is all this relevant to MTNA members?" Well, here is the deal. Now that you know about these new reports being issued by some very significant national entities concerning the importance of music and other arts to our children's education, the connection with MTNA is blindly evident. Music is our life.... Music is what we do.... Education is what we are all about. We are the best spokespersons to advocate for arts education. The connection is clear, and action is necessary. Make use of the tools provided for you in AMT articles and other MTNA publications; visit all the websites for further hard evidence; order "Learning to Play" brochures, and distribute them to your students' parents and to all community policy makers and purse-string holders. MTNA has a limited supply available. For more details contact MTNA at [phone]. Stand up for what you believe and make a difference!

--Gayla Foster, NCTM
Stillwater, Oklahoma
She is the director of programs for the
Oklahoma Arts Institute and an
independent music teacher.