Ms. Janet M. Starke

Legislative Sessions Open, Now What? Advocate!

Posted by Ms. Janet M. Starke, Jan 27, 2016 0 comments


Ms. Janet M. Starke

With the start of a new year comes the start of a new General Assembly session, at least in my home state of Virginia, and also for three-quarters of our states’ legislatures. And for our state so begins the battle for increased funding for our state arts council—the Virginia Commission for the Arts. This Wednesday, arts leaders and supporters from across our Commonwealth will gather for Arts Advocacy Day when we will meet with our state representatives to plead our case. And just what is that case?

Arts Means Jobs

Well, one of the talking points that resonate well with legislators is JOBS. As an example, in the state of Virginia, the Creative Industries employ 68,554 people through 17,381 arts-related businesses. Those businesses represent 3.7 percent of all businesses in the state, a significant industry that deserves recognition and further public investment. You can find information on your state through Americans for the Arts’ Creative Industries Report, which outlines each state’s data. You can also use this tool to compare your state’s arts funding to others near you or of comparable size.

Arts Means Vibrant Communities

Another important point is that a vibrant arts community nurtures a desired and liveable community—one where people want to live, work and play. And that is appealing to corporations and businesses looking to establish roots in any given community. We’ve seen that to be the case here in Richmond, and legislators are certainly interested in bringing new industries (and jobs) to their constituencies.

Arts Means Educational Achievement

The last point I will make as I meet with legislators (and their aides) this week is about the impact of arts education on our community. This is evidenced through the range of community-based programs and those taking place in schools both during the school day and after school. I will cite specific examples of my organization’s own ELLA (Early Literacy Learning through the Arts), an early childhood arts-integrated program that is serving Pre-K classes in three area school systems. I will share the data from our programmatic evaluation and teacher responses. I will also share examples of the community-based work in which some of my colleagues are engaged. And I will make sure that my local legislators know that the new Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA) recognizes the arts as part of a well-rounded education.

As Americans for the Arts’ Narric Rome and Kate McClanahan blogged in December, the new legislation does away with “core academic subjects” (which many will recall included the arts), and instead calls for support of a “well-rounded education, which is defined, and includes the arts.” Now is the time for arts education practitioners and advocates to help legislators understand the role of the arts in a well-rounded education and in the new ESSA legislation. Through Title I and continued focus in the U.S. Department of Education (vis a vis grants), the new legislation presents the opportunity for more federal dollars to help support and strengthen the good work taking place in their district. Now is the time to help legislators to understand the value of and impact of the arts in this long overdue, new legislation.

Ready, Set, Go!

And so I encourage you, I implore you, to do your part to advocate for the arts and arts education in your state, as your state houses convene. Then, continue the conversation through updates, invitations to program observations and the dissemination of impact data throughout the year. This is a continuous exercise in awareness-building, cultivation and a call to action. Talking points in hand? Ready, set, go!

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