Read all the research, news, and policy in our arts education RECAP for May 2021.
Research
Eight of Our Favorite Asian American Picture Books May is Asian/Pacific American Heritage Month and a great way to celebrate that and diversify your child’s bookshelf is by checking out this list! Greater Good Magazine
Equity
California Moving to Pioneer Free Meals for All Students “The “Free School Meals For All” bill, SB 364, introduced last month by East Bay Sen. Nancy Skinner, D-Berkeley, would establish a statewide Universal Meal Plan starting in the 2022-2023 school year. It would guarantee free breakfast and lunch for all California students and eliminate the application process that proved a barrier to many families.” EdSource
LAUSD Unequal Reopening: Nearly Full Classrooms on Westside, Emptier Elsewhere “Across the district, elementary schools show the highest percentage of students likely to return. In parts of the Westside, about 82% of elementary students are returning. In East Los Angeles, it is 36%. About 77% of parents and caregivers have returned surveys. The district has said that families who do not return the surveys will continue with distance learning.” LA Times
Biden Proposes Free Community College, Pell Expansion “President Biden wants $109 billion for two-year colleges, $80 billion addition for Pell Grants, $62 billion for retention and completion efforts, and $39 billion for two free years at minority-serving institutions for most students.” Inside Higher Ed
Calls-to-Action
Smart Needs Art Support creativity in California’s classrooms by donating to the
Keep Arts in Schools Fund on your state tax return! Keep Arts in Schools
Arts Inspired Youth Justice Movements Teaching Artists Guild (TAG) professional development workshop on May 26 TAG
Advocacy
Arts Education is a Civil Right Inseparable from Freedom “Despite being considered one of the creative capitals of the world, California lags significantly when it comes to providing arts education.” KCET
A Look at Arts Education for the Next Generation of Culture Makers “Reimagining and reinvesting in public education is critical for any society to move forward. I’ve come to believe that we will never achieve the lofty aims of participation, belonging and democracy without reimagining our culture. Arts education, when dedicated to multiplicity and inclusion, can help us learn from the past and imagine who we wish to become.” KCET
Policy
4 Ways Biden’s American Families Plan Would Matter for Schools and Children “The $1.8 trillion proposal, called the American Families Plan, includes at least two dozen new programs or policy shifts. And while the most ambitious elements aren’t directly connected to K-12 education, if it becomes law, the proposal has the potential to substantially alter American students’ educational journey, starting at a very young age and continuing through post-secondary education.” Chalkbeat
LAUSD Board Names Deputy Superintendent As Austin Beutner’s Interim Successor “Megan K. Reilly, who’s been a top financial officer in the Los Angeles Unified School District for 12 of the last 14 years, has been selected to succeed Austin Beutner as superintendent — at least temporarily.” LAist
Relief and Reflection: After Chauvin Guilty Verdict, Teachers and Students Look to the Work Ahead “It’s so important that we don’t just see kids as who they are in the moment, but who they can be and who they will be, and allow them the space to define that for themselves.” Chalkbeat
How California’s Ethnic Studies Curriculum Got Sucked Into the Culture Wars “California officials have touted their 900-page creation as a model for the nation as people across America grapple with the role race and racism plays in our everyday lives. The curriculum is expected to become the backbone of a pending California bill mandating ethnic studies as a high school graduation requirement.” The 74
Thanks for reading our arts education RECAP for May 2021. View all our past RECAPS here.
