Thanks Devan for sharing this article:
Next mayor needs arts agenda
I agree- our next mayor (seems like the election has already been won...but that's another discussion) needs to ensure that Chicago is a viable and thriving center for the arts- it's in everyone's interest.
However...
I have a difficult time reading articles like this- ones that laud Daley as being an "unparalleled booster for arts and culture", while at the same time, arts education (for our future arts and culture producers) is cut from our schools.
I turn your attention to this article from a past issue of the Reader (with a great quote from our own Therese Quinn): Those Can't Do
Daley runs CPS. As it stands now, our next mayor will also control our public schools. The article points out that CPS "puts only one half-time art teacher in each school with 750 or fewer students, and only one full-time art teacher in each bigger school, failing to provide even one art class a week for most students—and educators are the villains? "
Here's hoping our next mayor understands that to become the center of culture we want to be, we need to begin in the schools, valuing our arts education (provided by arts educators...) as much as we value achievement on standardized tests.
good points, jess. i would say let's take it even a step further. we don't need to begin just in the schools. we need to begin at the very start of school, ensuring the arts are in place at the elementary level. when kids are really still excited about the arts is when we'll be able to make a real impact. that;s not to say you can do bring kids the arts in high school and middle school, but it's so much tougher by the time they've gotten to that point in the system.
ReplyDeletei had a bit of hard time with this article as well.
ReplyDeletei was so caught up in the article that i did not even consider the impact on schools. thank you for reminding us that we need to evaluate and reassess the art education structure in CPS.
Well put.
ReplyDeleteThanks for the Reader article; I vaguely remember it and it's great to revisit it with some of the program under our belts. And if I'm being perfectly honest, it's pretty validating too :)
This is a good article that covers both Daley's views and the reality of the situation (thumbs up!). But I do agree with Ray: if we can keep the momentum of the arts through early schooling into junior level, the arts will have a chance to stay longer in schools and assist students that they really can become the artists they've always wanted to be.
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