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Arts in Emanuel
High School students in Georgia may choose to fulfill their graduation requirements with either one unit of fine arts or one unit of computer technology. Georgia's Superintendent of Schools, Kathy Cox, is recommending the elimination of the fine arts option which includes visual arts, music, drama and dance. This is just part of the pattern of abandoning art education and the arts in Georgia. Funding for the arts has dropped every year since 2002. The Georgia DOE has eliminated the position of state Arts Specialist. New Georgia Performance Standards released last year by the DOE do not include a visual arts curriculum, even though it is listed as a specific core academic subject under the federal No Child Left Behind Act. "The fundamental issue is simply that the arts and arts in the schools are not part of the 'public spending agenda' in Georgia," remarked Joseph R. Bankoff, Woodruff Arts Center President and CEO, during the July 20 Georgia Assembly of Community Arts Agencies meeting. "Thus, the arts are at the bottom of the list for public funding and the top of the list for cuts when budgets get tight." Based on the state's per capita spending on arts, Georgia is 43rd in the nation and last among the southeastern states in supporting the arts, he commented. Mr. Bankoff then went on to point out the important connection between the arts in education and high achievement in standardized tests. He passed along data from The College Board for 2006 showing that students who took four years of arts classes outperformed their peers with one-half year or less of arts on the SAT by 49 points on reading, 38 points on math and 51 points in the writing portion. "The lack of significant public support for the arts- particularly arts education- puts Georgia at a competitive disadvantage in the worldwide competition for talent and the higher paying new jobs and businesses that talent attracts. This is not about supporting a 'hobby' for those who are well-educated and can afford to support their artistic interests. This is NOT about training great artists. It is about building the infrastructure for a job-ready workforce, for advancement in education, and for making it clear that Georgia is truly a collection of creative and energized communities," Mr. Bankoff stated. "It is less about education in the arts- although quality arts education is necessary. It is more about using the arts in education to create a learning environment and to provide incentive to engage in school," he added. Art in school is about much more than sitting done with paint and paper and making pretty pictures. It is about thinking, planning, looking at things in different ways, and actually making the project come together. This can be said of music and drama as well as the visual arts. To learn more about this situation you can visit allga.org. Bobbie Daughtry, EAC director, attended the GACAA conference and shared Mr. Bankoff's remarks with me. She also passed along the Action Alert relating the dismantling of arts education in our schools from Jan Selman, ALL-GA Executive Director. My next column will, I promise, be more positive as I will discuss Emanuel Arts and our children.--Joan Dunn is an artist, member of the Emanuel Arts Council Board of Directors and President of the Emanuel Artists Guild. She is interested in learning about creative arts efforts throughout the area. Contact her at joan-ofart@ nctv.com.
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