Arts in Crisis Symposium

Last June there was the excellent LA Arts Town Hall Meeting that brought together artists, art educators, and the foundations who fund the arts in the region and state. The people on the panels and keynote speakers were great, even if the topic under discussion was extremely sober.

Now another opportunity for the arts community to come together has been announced. Arts in Crisis: A Kennedy Center Initiative 50 State Tour will make its southern CA stop at the African American Museum on October 8 from 9:00 - 10:30 a.m. Registration must be received by October 6. Follow this link to register. www.artsforla.org/news/artsincrisis.

One aspect this event will address is the emergency fundraising challenges art non-profits are facing.

Co-sponsors for this event include: Native Voices at the Autry National Center, East West Players, California African American Museum, KUSC, Lula Washington Dance Theatre, LA Stage Alliance, California Arts Advocates, Emerging Arts Leaders/LA and Santa Cecilia Orchestra.

L.A. Town Hall Meeting About the Arts

Friday, June 12th, art educators, artists, and arts organization leaders will be streaming into downtown LA for a town hall meeting at the Japanese American Cultural Center. The sorry state of arts funding is sure to be on everyone's mind. This all-day event will be exploring arts advocacy. The roster of speakers certainly have years of experience to share.

Even if you can't attend, check out www.artsforla.org/townhallsessions to see what's happening. There have been events, petitions, rallies, and protests around the state -- and even at school board meetings. Since artists are used to problem-solving in all aspects of creating and teaching, you have to believe that this dire situation we find ourselves mired in can be turned around -- creatively!

One of the cool things experienced when working through the creative process is watching chaos begin to form into order. And then discovering how all the pieces come together once the solution becomes evident. Surely, the same is true for our present crisis. The solutions may not be evident now, but the creative process sets about working on them even when we're not fully aware of doing so. The "right brain" techniques used by artists a great deal of their time can't be made to produce on a specific time table -- it's not like a "left brain" function such as adding two numbers together to get the same predictable answer every time, anytime. Ah, that's a major reason why citizens need to be taught through the arts: they need to know how to problem-solve -- especially in situations where there is no one right answer to be found!

The Power of One

A New Year's resolution for all of you art education supporters would be to do something tangible to save or support our favorite topic at this blog. Now! You can make a financial donation to your favorite arts organization, even sign a petition of outrage over LAUSD's freezing of art funds and art teacher salaries in December until our governor signs a budget (which a month later has still not happened!). Or you can do as Spike Dolomite Ward has done, and go out and secure grant money and give it back to your school to maintain any shred of an art program it has left.

I first heard of Spike in a chance comment made by one of my favorite local NPR commentators, Sandra Tsing Loh. She happened to mention that Spike was busy trying to save art in San Fernando Valley public schools. Whoa! I wanted to meet this woman, and through a variety of twists and turns found her in a closet-sized office in Canoga Park distributing funds she'd raised herself to a couple hundred schools!!!

Spike started off like a lot of moms of little kids entering LA public schools -- she was totally shocked to discover that her kindergarteners' school did not have an art program. And this in the most creative city anywhere, where there are great-paying jobs for those trained in the arts. Being an artist, Spike volunteered in her son's classroom...which spilled over to other classrooms. You know how volunteers are when they're passionate about something. They give!

After a couple of years, Spike found herself making a promise to the school principal -- she'd fund an art program the next year. Spike had been paying for her own supplies when she taught her own classes. Now she'd really put herself on the line. What a daunting prospect: where was she going to get the money for every class, and an art teacher?? She needed at least $14,000 she figured, and it wasn't coming from her grocery money.

Operating out of her garage at first, she did it! In fact, after nine years, she's secured support from something like 30 organizations and foundations. And you have to realize, she's doing this for other peoples' kids. She gives the money for cultural field trips, music lessons, and art supplies free to 200 schools. She funds full-time programs at five elementary schools for students who would not have access to any of it. We're talking about an individual school program that costs around $100,000 a year. All given free!

Don't you think your PTA could at least do that for the children of your own school?

There are another 195 elementary schools in the San Fernando Valley waiting for an art program.

If Spike Dolomite Ward thinks it can be done, then why not join her? A contribution to her arts organization would be an outstanding New Year's art resolution, don't you think? "Arts In Education Aid Council" says it all. I promise the money goes to a good cause. I should know, I now teach in one of the schools Spike supports. You could supply paint and paper and tangibly touch a child's soul.

Here's your New Year's good deed: read all about www.aieac.org and make a donation.

And if you want to help urge the Los Angeles school board to rescue what little is left of the arts programs in LAUSD schools, here's that link. Sign the petition right now. http://www.thepetitionsite.com/2/restore-funding-for-lausds-arts-partners