Arts Education:
A Resource List

Studies have shown that the arts can play a strong role in enhancing the education of children and the development of communities. In a recent report Foundation Funding for Arts Education, the Foundation Center identified more than 500 foundations nationwide that provide grants of $10,000 or more in this subject area. As more educators and administrators recognize the value of the arts, the demand for examples, best practices, and sources of funding continues to grow. This resource list, which contains citations to selected works from the Foundation Center's bibliographic database Catalog of Nonprofit Literature, will explore arts education in areas such as planning, collaboration, evaluation, and resource development. For a complete bibliography, search Catalog of Nonprofit Literature, using "Arts education" in the Subject field (click here).

• Guides
• Reports
• Funding Directories
• Government Funding Links
• Internet Resources
• Video

Guides

Dreeszen, Craig (ed.) Fundamentals of Arts Management. 4th ed. Amherst, MA: University of Massachusetts-Amherst, 2003. xxx, 400 p. ISBN: 0-945464-12-6. Call Number: 202 DRE

Contains a full chapter on developing and implementing an arts education program, as well as a chapter on fundraising for arts organizations. Appendix includes worksheets, bibliographic references, and a list of useful Web sites.

Fineberg, Carol (ed.) Planning an Arts-Centered School: A Handbook. New York, NY: Dana Foundation, 2002. 164 p. Call Number: 211 FIN PLA

Twenty-two experts contribute essays on establishing arts education programs, and many describe school-based activities. See chapter 17 entitled, "Finding the Money for a School Focused on the Arts."

Lind, Vicki R.; Lindsley, Elizabeth. Creative Collaboration: Teachers and Artists in the Classroom. Pasadena, CA: California Alliance for Arts Education, 2003. 44 p. Subject File Number: 211

The booklet provides a framework for collaborative efforts between teachers and artists, with a particular focus on initiatives in California. Examples of contractual agreements are included, along with a resource list.

MacLaughlin, LaMoine. Ten Steps Toward Starting a Community School of the Arts. New York, NY: National Guild of Community Schools of the Arts, 2003. iv, 28 p. Subject File Number: 211

The book explains the characteristics of community schools of the arts, of which there are more than 800 in the U. S.

Reports

Arts Education: Trends in Public Policy Development and Implementation. Chicago, IL: Illinois Arts Alliance/Foundation, 2004. 63 p. Call Number: 202 ILL EDU

Explains how to effectively advocate for arts education programs, based on interviews with leaders of similar programs in California, Kentucky, Maryland, Minnesota, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Oklahoma, South Carolina, and Wisconsin.

Castaneda, Laura Werber; Rowe, Melissa K. "Partnerships in Arts Education: An Examination of Factors Predicting Schools' Use of Arts Organizations." Journal of Arts Management, Law and Society, vol. 36 (Spring 2006): p. 7-23. Subject File Number: 202

Using the Los Angeles (CA) school district as a study, the authors learned about the nature of arts partnerships. With bibliographical references.

Community Schools of the Arts: An Arts Education Resource for Your Community. Washington, DC: Americans for the Arts, 2003. 12 p. Subject File Number: 211

Provides a status report on community schools of the arts (CSA), a tradition that had its beginnings in the late 19th century. There are several models for CSAs, and five are showcased here.

Critical Evidence: How the Arts Benefit Student Achievement. Washington, DC: National Assembly of State Arts Agencies, 2006. 20 p. Subject File Number: 202

Highlights research data that illustrates how arts education can improve language skills, mathematics skills, motivation to learn, and other areas.

Horowitz, Rob. Summary of Large-Scale Arts Partnership Evaluations. Washington, DC: Arts Education Partnership, 2004. 33 p. Subject File Number: 202

Presents data and findings from evaluations of six arts education collaborations in locales across the country.

Mahler, Karen (ed.) Creative Communities Initiative Summary Report. New York, NY: National Guild of Community Schools of the Arts, 2006. 53 p. Subject File Number: 202

Presents a comprehensive evaluation of the Creative Communities initiative, which brought arts education to underserved children in public housing communities. The program was established in 2001 as a collaboration among the National Guild for Community Schools of the Arts, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, and the National Endowment for the Arts.

Rabkin, Nick (ed.); Redmond, Robin (ed.) Putting the Arts in the Picture: Reframing Education in the 21st Century. Chicago, IL: Columbia College Chicago. Center for Arts Policy, 2004. 166 p. ISBN: 0-929911-11-3. Call Number: 202 RAB

Contents: "Learning and the Arts" by Nick Rabkin; "You Can't Get Much Better Than That" by Dan Weissman; "No One Learns Alone" by Madeleine Grumet; "A Short Look at a Long Past" by Michael Wakeford; "Making a Way: Youth Arts and Learning in International Perspective" by Shirley Brice Heath and Sir Ken Robinson; and "Putting the Arts in the Picture: Reframing Education in the 21st Century" by Nick Rabkin and Robin Redmond.

Renz, L. and J. Atienza. Foundation Funding for Arts Education: An Overview of Recent Trends. New York: Foundation Center, 2005.

The report prepared by the Foundation Center in cooperation with Grantmakers in the Arts examines the distribution of foundation funding for arts education in 2003 and changes in giving since 1999. Foundation Funding for Arts Education is sponsored by the Wallace Foundation.

Rich, Barbara (ed.); Polin, Jane L. (ed.); Marcus, Stephen J. (ed.) Acts of Achievement: The Role of Performing Arts Centers in Education. New York, NY: Dana Foundation, 2003. 164 p. Call Number: 206 RIC

Provides profiles of performing arts centers in 35 states.

Rose, Dale S.; Phillips, Frances. "Arts for the Schools, by the Schools." Grantmakers in the Arts Reader, vol. 18 (Spring 2007) p. 24-6, 33. Subject File Number: 528

The case study evaluates the Arts Education Funders Collaborative's four-year demonstration-site program at the San Francisco Unified School District that began in 2001.

Funding Directories

Arts Education. Washington, DC: Americans for the Arts. 2006. 19 p. Call Number: 202 AME FED #1

Provides basic profiles of federal funding opportunities to support arts education. Listings include contact information, type of assistance, and information on eligibility. The grant programs fall under the Elementary & Secondary Education Act of 1965, as amended by the No Child Left Behind Act of 2001.

Foundation Center; Santiago, Jose (ed.) National Guide to Funding in Arts and Culture. New York, NY: Foundation Center, 2004.

Directory identifies and profiles more than 9,600 grantmaking foundations, corporate grantmakers, and public charities with a substantial interest in funding nonprofit arts and cultural groups. Arranged alphabetically by state, the grantmaker entries contain grantmaker name, address, and telephone number; financial data; purpose statement; types of support; limitations; informational publications; application information; the names of officers and directors, along with the number of staff; and a listing of recent arts and culture grants, including the name and location of the recipient, the grant amount and year awarded where available.

Foundation Center. Grants for Arts, Culture, and the Humanities. New York, NY: Foundation Center, 2005.

Lists more than 21,000 grants of $10,000 or more made by over 900 foundations for a variety of arts and cultural programs, including the visual and performing arts, arts education, music, art conservation, film and video, radio and television, literature and writing, architecture, historic preservation, museums, and planetariums. Grants are indexed by recipient name, location, and subject.

Foundation Directory Online

Online database that provides detailed information on nearly 80,000 foundations, with links to current foundation 990-PF tax returns. The grants database gives details about more than 500,000 grants, including the purpose, amount, and recipient. Updated weekly.

Government Funding Links

National Endowment for the Arts

U.S. Department of Education

Internet Resources

Americans for the Arts

Americans for the Arts is a nonprofit organization dedicated to advancing the arts nationwide by partnering with "local, state, and national arts organizations; government agencies; business leaders; individual philanthropists; educators; and funders throughout the country." The organization's Web site includes a special area promoting arts education.

ARTSEDGE

A program of the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, ARTSEDGE supports the inclusion of the arts in the core K-12 curriculum and provides free, standards-based materials on its Web site for educators.

Arts Education Partnership

The Arts Education Partnership, administered by the Council of Chief State School Officers and the National Assembly of State Arts Agencies, is a national coalition of arts, education, business, philanthropic, and government organizations that demonstrate and promote the essential role of the arts in the learning and development of every child and in the improvement of America's schools. The Web site has advocacy resources, funding opportunities, publications and resources, task force reports and updates, and arts education links.

Arts for Learning

The Web site developed by Young Audiences, Inc. helps arts educators learn about best practices from programs across the country. Here you can download lesson plans and join online discussions.

National Art Education Association

Founded in 1947, this membership organization supports arts educators at every level.

Video

In the Mix: Arts Education...A+ [video recording]. New York, NY: Public Broadcasting Service, 2003. 30:00 minutes. Call Number: A 050 INT ART

A visit to four innovative arts education programs: Essentially Ellington (New York), WriteGirl (Los Angeles), Summer School of the Arts (Rochester, NY), and Urban Academy (New York). The young program participants talk about the meaning of the arts in their lives.