By Carter Santini ’15
THE ROUNDUP
Take a moment and imagine the world without artists.
No musicians, painters or poets. No John Lennon or Michelangelo.
It seems like a bleak world. So why do schools continuously cut the budget for the arts?
I consider myself blessed and to have a good idea of why arts are important because Brophy is a place that keeps adding art programs as other schools slash them.
Other schools don’t offer as robust of an art experience so kids sit by as programs are cut and underfunded.
Thirty-five states have cut funding per child in schools, with much of that money coming from the art department, according to the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities.
By no means should states continue to cut from the arts in our schools. By making these cuts, legislatures risk losing school interest from many children.
Opponents of arts funding say that the money could be better spent on teachers, science or technology.
In taking this position, they completely discredit the far reaching benefits that come from music or art education.
Students who pursued art education were met with higher SAT scores, better reading, social, math and thinking skills, according to the National Assembly of State Arts Agencies.
In addition to those skills, schools with large enrollment in the arts also reported a more positive school environment.
Most importantly, and unquantifiable, the arts give students an environment to create and think creatively.
The fast moving world demands people who can think outside the box with the courage to create. Studying the arts in school are a great way to achieve that.
Opponents will also state that studying arts and pursuing it further is unadvisable due to the low demand in the job market for artists.
That is a misinformed myth.
Very soon, job growth in the arts will exceed job growth as a whole, according to a report from the National Endowment for the Arts.
The demand for architects, painters, sculptors, photographers and graphic designers is obviously rising, and educating in arts in school is a great way to meet that demand.
The world does not have to be the bleak place without The Beatles or the Sistine Chapel.
In funding the arts in our public and private schools we can ensure a generation of creative, courageous leaders.
