The U.S. Department of Education

The primary mission of the U.S. Department of Education is to ensure equal access to education and to promote educational excellence for all Americans. The Department encourages schools to consider including the arts as a core academic subject and as an important component of school improvement strategies. After-school activities are permissible among a variety of ED programs such as Title I of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act and the Safe and Drug-Free Schools and Communities program. Arts education activities are also permissible under many programs.

An important initiative of the Department is the Partnership for Family Involvement in Education (PFIE). PFIE is based on 30 years of research that finds that children learn better and are more successful in school when their families and communities are involved in their education. Composed of more than 6,100 partners—schools, businesses, community groups and faith-based organizations—PFIE addresses issues, provides information, expands professional development and offers opportunities for sharing and networking. Based at the Department, the PFIE staff organize regional and national forums and conferences on current, family-friendly policies and exemplary practices; provide the partners with comprehensive management and assessment tools; and use resources and research from a variety of sources to mobilize interest, energy and expertise through publications, a Web site, and extended technical assistance.

Since 1997, the Department has supported the 21st Century Community Learning Centers program as a key component of the administration’s efforts to keep children safe outside of regular school hours; to provide academic and other enrichment opportunities for children; and to provide life-long learning opportunities for communities.

National Endowment for the Arts

The National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) is committed to advancing arts learning in this country. It works with agencies and organizations that are involved with pre-kindergarten through grade 12 and youth arts at the national and state levels. For decades, the NEA has implemented partnerships with state arts agencies in the area of arts learning.

Within the school setting, the Endowment recommends a sequential education in the arts for all children that is linked to content standards, taught by qualified teachers, regularly engages artists, and brings students into contact with works of art. In addition, the NEA supports the arts beyond the classroom through visual arts workshops in community centers, creative writing programs in YMCAs, student-created exhibitions on local history, summer dance camps, "behind the scenes" opera programs, folk arts classes, a young professional conductors program, museum volunteer training programs for senior citizens and young students, and collaborative cross-generational events including workshops, performances, exhibits and oral history projects.