In Spring 2005, the DC Collaborative launched the Arts Education Initiative (AEI), a multifaceted project to establish a District-wide Arts Education Plan that includes arts experiences, arts learning, and arts integration. The DC Commission on the Arts and Humanities and the Ford Foundation provided generous funding and are our project partners in this endeavor. Through a comprehensive partnership with the DC public and chartered public schools, over the next three years (2005-2008) we will develop, pilot, refine, and adopt a model process for collaboration in DC public and chartered schools to effect school change and enhance student learning. AEI will enable collaborators, classroom teachers, school arts specialists, teaching artists, and cultural organizations' to plan, lead, and evaluate schools' arts education programming more effectively. As a result, all schools will have access to equitable, high-quality arts education opportunities that support curriculum objectives. To achieve these goals, the DC Collaborative is focusing on three major areas:
Communications: For the AEI to succeed, the public must recognize the value of arts education. Community roundtables and advocacy efforts will help us raise awareness of arts activities and garner support for an arts curriculum in the DC public and chartered schools.
Arts and Humanities Sector Group: In 2004, DC Public Schools administration tasked the DC Collaborative with developing a comprehensive Arts Education Plan for the District school system. We submitted a preliminary report in January 2005 that includes a timeline and objectives. The final plan will span the arts education continuum: arts experiences, arts learning, and arts integration.
To submit public comment, please email Beverley Wheeler or call (202) 741-0884.
StandardsWork, the contractor responsible for managing the development and submission of the arts standards is also working to bring together collective groups of arts educators, teachers, and experts in the field.If you are interested in participating in any of these collective discussions, or in providing specific input regarding the draft standards, please email the DC Collaborative at
The timeline for completion of the Standards is very tight, so please do not hesitate to respond and actively participate in this final stage of the process.The establishment of new standards in the arts could represent a quantum leap forward for public education in Washington, DC.The DC Collaborative encourages you to get involved, so that we can all ensure that the standards adopted by the Nation's Capitol represent best practice and knowledge in the field.
School Partnerships: During the 2007-2008 school year, the DC Collaborative continues to test-drive a model for school reform using arts integration, increasing students' opportunities for arts experiences and creative learning.
