A national arts education organization has selected Wyoming to be part of a three-year program to strengthen the arts in schools. Americans for the Arts has awarded grants to ten states for pilot programs to improve arts education policies.
The Wyoming Arts Council’s Michael Shay says the first step is a survey to evaluate what resources art educators have and need.
“I think there’s a sense that we’re doing a pretty good job with arts education in our state, but, the people that are on the ground, what is their opinion,” says Shay. “Are the levels of arts education sufficient in all schools, or just some schools, and what sort of arts education resources are available?”
The survey is being conducted by the Wyoming Arts Alliance, the Wyoming Arts Council, the Wyoming After School Alliance, and the Wyoming Department of Education.
“Obviously those other states will be doing the same thing,” says Shay, “and then Americans for the Arts will take the data and crunch the numbers and see what the state of arts education is through this ten state representation in the U.S.”
