CALIFORNIA ALLIANCE FOR ARTS EDUCATION
85 South Grand Avenue, Pasadena, CA 91105 www.artsed411.org

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Organizations Filed Purposes: The Alliance's mission is to advocate for high quality arts education for all students by providing policy expertise and by mobilizing a statewide network of advocates and allied partners.The California Alliance for Arts Education (Alliance) is in its fifth decade of working to build a brighter future for our state by making the arts a core part of every child's quality education. A statewide leader and convener, the Alliance galvanizes California's abundance of arts and culture experts to advocate for quality arts education for all students. By collaborating effectively with the state's leading education and parent engagement agencies, and providing an anchor for policy expertise at the state and local levels, the Alliance is the leader in promoting the arts in schools and enriching the lives of children, families, and communities.

To promote, support, and advocate for visual and performing arts education in California.

The California Alliance for Arts Education is pleased to present a report on our major program accomplishments and highlights. During fiscal year 2019, the Alliance continued its Arts Now Campaign and Student Voices Campaign, supported our Arts Now Communities, empowered California school districts across the state to increase arts education through Local Control Funding Formula (LCFF) advocacy and the Arts Now Planning Initiative, and continued to strengthen the Title I policy pathway. We also worked with legislators and the Policy Council to advance arts education policy.Arts Now CampaignThe Alliance has made great strides in further developing the Arts Now Campaign. The Campaign supports the development of district and county arts plans through the Arts Now Planning Initiative, provides education about how districts can use arts strategies to improve outcomes for students through LCFF and the Title I program, empowers community members to advocate for arts education through Arts Now Communities, and promotes student voices in school decision-making and arts education advocacy.On March 6, 2019, the Alliance hosted the Arts Now Riverside County Summit at the Palm Springs Art Museum. Approximately 170 attendees experienced how creative learning is preparing Riverside students to work, live and thrive in the 21st century. This countywide event featured exciting progress being made to nurture creativity, innovation and critical thinking in Riverside schools. Attendees engaged in meaningful discussions and workshops, heard local success stories and gained access to local and statewide strategies and resources. The Alliance partnered with Moreno Valley Unified School District, Palm Springs Art Museum and Riverside County Office of Education to host this event.Arts Now CommunitiesThroughout the 2018-2019 academic year, we provided technical support, professional development and advocacy best practices to members of the Arts Now Communities. This training happens one-on-one between the Arts Now Coordinator and local leader, as well as during group training sessions hosted by Alliance staff. In addition to working individually with their assigned coach, leaders attended the 2019 Arts Now Leadership Institute held September 18 to 19 in Goleta, California. At this event, the Alliance trained advocates to use resources developed by the Alliance and our partners. In order to measure the impact of our work on the access to and quality of arts education, the Alliance uses a tool called the State of Arts Ed Survey. We use the State of Arts Ed Survey to collect data from all program participants about their district's ability to offer arts education based on seven capacities: Curriculum, Assessment, and Professional Development; Resources and Facilities; Partnership and Collaboration; Teaching Personnel; Funding; Leadership and Planning; Advocacy and Communication. Using data from a third survey completed June 2019, we completed ayear-over-year analysis that shows growth in all areas.All follow-up survey scores increased, indicating that in the past program year, the Arts Now Campaign successfully increased districts' capacity to deliver arts education to students. At baseline, groups with a Visual and Performing Arts (VAPA) coordinator scored higher on every criterion, with statistically significant differences for Funding and Leadership & Planning. Districts with an approved Strategic Arts Plan had higher average ratings across all areas at baseline and follow-up. These two findings support our continued coaching of Arts Now Community leaders to advocate for the hiring of a VAPA coordinator and for the creation of a Strategic Arts Plan. The data demonstrates that having a Strategic Arts Plan and a VAPA coordinator are two factors that significantly increase access to and quality of arts education in school districts.Arts Now Planning InitiativeThrough our Arts Now Planning Initiative, we provided strategic assistance, high caliber facilitation, and financial support to help school districts and counties complete an arts plan. The Alliance completed five arts plans in collaboration with leadership in the following counties and districts: Beaumont Unified School District, San Mateo County Office of Education, Madera Unified School District, Palm Springs Unified School District and Sonoma County.On April 12, 2019, the Alliance co-hosted the full-day workshop "Insider's Guide to Arts Education Planning" with CCSESA (California County Superintendents Educational Services Association) and Create CA at the Yolo County Office of Education. This professional learning opportunity for school administrators teaches facilitation skills on how to develop a Strategic Arts Plan for a school district and/or county office of education using the 3rd edition of the Insider's Guide to Arts Education Planning. Participants take away leadership strategies that can be applied in multiple settings and join a professional community that is committed to building capacity for arts education in California.Student Voices CampaignThe 2019 Student Voices Campaign had an exciting and successful year of student advocacy with over 200 participants from 15 schools across California. Students participated in two Summits during April, in Sacramento and Los Angeles, were highlighted at a school board meeting in Windsor, and recognized at the Young Artist Showcase Celebration, which took place in Santa Clara.Title I InitiativeIn January 2019, the Alliance released a new advocacy tool: "On the Path to Title I Arts: From Policy to Practice," a policy paper that is the culmination of our seven-year Title I Initiative. The policy paper represents the distillation of what the Alliance has learned over the years, including a history of the Initiative, case studies from schools and districts where the work is being done, models and templates from the title1arts.org website, and lessons and recommendations for ongoing work in California and beyond.LegislationDuring the 2018 legislative season, the Alliance sponsored legislation known as the "Arts for Every Student Incentive Grant Program" (SB 933 Allen), which was intended to close gaps in arts access by creating a statewide grants program to address the needs of underserved districts. The bill gained bipartisan support, the grant program became a reality in the state budget, and $26.5 million dollars were directed towards Visual and Performing Arts initiatives throughout the state. The grantees reflected the diversity of communities and specific needs being faced by a broad spectrum of districts and county offices of education--from the fire ravaged districts of Butte County to the Special Education programs in Orange County--where students were not receiving equitable access to the benefits of arts education.On August 27, 2019, the Alliance convened recipients of the Student Support and Academic Enrichment (SSAE) Grants in the Arts in Sacramento. The cohort of grantees spent the day with colleagues from around the state, sharing what they learned from the investment of SSAE funding in arts education in their district or county. Grantees also shared the impact the SSAE grant had on their districts and counties. Examples included building partnerships, teacher training, purchase of equipment and materials, and creation of strategic plans.Policy CouncilSince 2010, the Policy Council has successfully grown into its role as a critical center for statewide policy conversations. We have approximately 40 organizations on the Council and we host two meetings per year rotating between Northern and Southern California which provide a diverse and engaging forum for leaders from education, business, arts, and parent organizations. Our first meeting of 2019 was held in Sacramento on January 31 and the second on June 20 in Los Angeles.Something is Happening in Chula VistaIn September 2019, the Alliance released "Something is Happening in Chula Vista," a film that provides a window into the impact of arts education on aspects of students' lives that go beyond test scores--where they are learning the skills they will need in order to be successful in school and in life. Located in San Diego County along California's border with Mexico, Chula Vista Elementary School District is the largest elementary school district in California, with nearly 30,000 students. The film traces research conducted by the California Alliance for Arts Education, studying the impact of arts education on students' creativity, social emotional learning and overall student engagement in and out of school.

The Alliance acts as the fiscal sponsor for CreateCA, an unincorporated nonprofit association and coalition of five organizations: the Alliance, the California Department of Education, the California Arts Council, the California PTA, and the California County Superintendents Educational Services Association. CreateCA's mission is to ensure that all students are able to reach their full potential by advancing an education model that promotes creativity and the arts for the 21st century workforce.

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