EdTA Advocacy Update
May 21, 2019
The Advocacy Update is where you can find current national and state news concerning arts advocacy and arts education.
EdTA NEWS
Director and Choreographer Appointed to EdTA Board
The Board of Directors of the Educational Theatre Association (EdTA) has appointed Jeff Whiting to a term on the Board from July, 2019 through June, 2023.
2019 International Thespian Festival Opening Show Celebrating Favorite Musicals
The 2019 International Thespian Festival (ITF), the nation’s leading high school theatre festival, will kick off with a high-energy show featuring favorite musical numbers from throughout the years at ITF and will feature a closing tribute number written especially for Thespians by legendary playwright, composer, and Thespian alum, Andrew Lippa.
NEWS BY NATION
Australia: Labor Pledges Indigenous Theatre Company and New Arts Era (Sydney Morning Herald)
UK: Change Education Policy to Save Arts in Schools, Say MPs (Arts Professional)
USA: House Proposes Increase in Funding for National Endowment for the Arts (National Assembly of State Arts Agencies)
More Than $80 Million in Arts Funding Awarded Across the Nation (National Endowment for the Arts)
Trump Wants to Defund the Arts, Will Republicans Defy Him for a Third Time? (Roll Call)
STATE/PROVINCE NEWS
Got state or province theatre and other arts education news you want to share? Send it to Katie: kferchen@schooltheatre.org
Arkansas: Second Arts in Education Project to Open at SAAC This Week (El Dorado News)
California: Daveed Diggs Comes Home to Rap with Kids at His Adopted West Oakland School (Datebook)
Josh Groban Hosts Fourth Annual Find Your Light Gala to Raise Money for Arts Education (Broadway World)
Lompoc High’s Bree Jansen Chosen as County’s Performing Arts Teacher of the Year (Lompoc Record)
Florida: Arts Funding Gets a Boost in Florida Budget (Herald Tribune)
Illinois: ‘Hamilton’ Sets Its Closing Date in Chicago (Chicago Tribune)
Nebraska: Bryan Community School Theater Program Tackles Real-Life Issues Students Face (Lincoln Journal Star)
New Jersey: An Arts Advocacy Journey (Art Pride New Jersey)
New Mexico: ‘Some of the Most Incredible Kids’: High School Class Brings Theater to Newcomb (Farmington Daily Times)
Ontario: Program Gives Those on Autism Spectrum Access to Arts (Whig Standard)
Oregon: ‘Unprecedented Cut’: Proposed Budget Cuts Hits Arts and Culture the Hardest (Daily Emerald)
Pennsylvania: In Bethlehem, Any Given Child Paints Picture of Future Arts Education (Morning Call)
Tennessee: Tipping Point: Making Arts Education Essential (Daily Memphian)
Wisconsin: Parkside Students Present Ideas on Helping Promote the Arts (Kenosha News)
Washington, D.C.: #RightToBearArts Gala Brings Out Celebrity Advocates in Support of the Arts (USA Today)
WORTH READING
Arts Education Can Provide Creative Counter Narratives Against Hate Speech
Hate, as an emotion, is not an efficient response to ideological hate speech. Instead, using tools that hate speakers cannot use may undermine hate speakers' credibility. The arts have the potential to provide a more positive means of communication. (Phys Org)
“Changing Attitudes.” A New Tool Links the Arts to Measurable Social Impacts
The Wallace Foundation has allocated tens of millions to study arts engagement, particularly as it applies to the millennial demographic. (Inside Philanthropy)
Inside the Oscar Hammerstein Museum & Theater Education Center
The Friends of Oscar Hammerstein, the county-wide, community-led initiative launched this summer, is pleased to announce that it has negotiated an extension with both Doylestown Township and the developer with an interest in the property and now has more time to continue raising the funds needed to save Oscar Hammerstein's Highland Farm from the dreaded subdivision. (Broadway World)