Great news out of the Bay Area. According to a recent article in the San Francisco Chronicle, the city’s public schools will receive $50 million exclusively for the arts thru 2014. Prior to the new plan, “The school district provided no funding for art supplies and materials,” and art classes and exercises were ad hoc at best.
Chronicle writer Nanette Asimov desribes the planning and funding of the comprehensive strategy. Here is a taste,
“With city money available at last, the new plan is intended to transform the district’s spotty arts offerings into a creative program available to every student in every school.
‘This is life and death — the difference between hope and no hope,’ said the district’s artistic director, Susan Stauter, who helped develop the plan. ‘It’s about equity. Every child — no matter which school they attend, which neighborhood they live in, or how active their parents are — needs their creative voice nurtured and developed.’
The Master Plan makes San Francisco a rarity among California school districts, few of which have comprehensive arts programs for their students.”
Congratulations to the students, citizens, and leaders of San Francisco and also to the economy of region as it will benefit from the creativity the new Master Plan unleashes.
(posted by Rod)
