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Friends of Art Works for Kids Announces Kick-off of Advocacy Campaign Throughout Utah
September 30, 2010
Fast Facts- Friends of Art Works for Kids team travels across Utah this fall to advocate the Beverley Taylor Sorenson Arts Learning Program
- Due to budget shortfalls, integrated arts program will be cut at the end of 2010-2011 school year without Legislature’s approval
SALT LAKE CITY–Friends of Art Works for Kids today announced the kick-off of its 2010 advocacy campaign for the Beverley Taylor Sorenson Arts Learning Program (BTSALP), which provides high-quality, integrated arts education in Utah elementary schools. The campaign was created to foster the ongoing support of the program from the Utah Legislature, as well as to inform parents, teachers, and the community about the importance of the program. Due to budget shortfalls, the program will be cut at the end of the 2010-2011 school year without Legislative approval.
The Friends of Art Works for Kids team, along with Founder Beverley Sorenson, will travel throughout the state to garner community support for the program and to educate Utahns about the benefits of integrated arts learning. The team will visit schools through September, October, and November to show parents and teachers all the ways they can get involved in saving the unique program this upcoming legislative session.
“Arts should never be taken out of elementary schools,” said Sorenson, education innovator and philanthropist for which the program was named. “Integrated arts education not only increases student performance in core subjects, but it contributes to the success and development of a whole, well-rounded child.”
In 2008, the Utah State Legislature voted to fund the BTSALP, which strategically incorporates arts into the core curriculum. Under the direction of the Utah State Office of Education, the program provides quality integrated arts instruction in about 50 elementary schools in 20 districts across Utah. The program serves approximately 30,000 students.
Schools implementing the program have seen extraordinary improvements in student engagement, behavior, and academic performance in every core subject area, including math, science, and language arts.
One example is Iron Springs Elementary, in Cedar City, Utah, where end of level test results in fourth grade science jumped a substantial 22 percent after introducing the program. At Iron Springs arts specialist Alisa Petersen teaches a fourth grade lesson plan using the artistic principals of positive and negative shapes to teach about the formation of fossils.
Belknap Elementary, in Beaver, Utah, has seen similar academic success since implementing the program. The most recent assessment report shows that on average, Belknap has 20 percent more students proficient in mathematics than the average for the state. Amanda Riley, the Belknap arts specialist, uses music to demonstrate mathematical concepts, teaching how the different types of rhythmic notes correlates to fractions.
