Kids who have access to the arts in school get better grades, score better on tests, perform more community service, watch less TV, and are less likely to drop out of school. Pretty good markers of success, right?
Those findings come from the National Educational Longitudinal study, a long-term study begun in 1988 by the National Center for Education Statistics. In a 2004 letter to the nation's school superintendents, Secretary of Education Rod Paige emphasized that the same results held true for children at all points along the socioeconomic spectrum.
The problem? A lack of funding often keeps low-income students from having the chance to study the arts - and reap the benefits.
In 2000, musician and artist Newell Hill founded the Newell Hill Music Foundation and the afterschool arts program Muse to help change that. The arts are, Hill says, “an incredible tool to inspire children and help them to believe in themselves.”
The goal of Muse is to bring the arts to inner-city schools and children who might not otherwise have an opportunity to study them. Collaborating with the YMCA and the Boys & Girls Club, Muse gives kids at Minneapolis's Lincoln Elementary School the chance to explore visual art, music, and dance.
Currently, the foundation is only able to work at one site. At Lincoln Elementary, Muse helps 30 third-graders discover the power of music and the arts. Newell is working with the YMCA to expand his program, hoping to have 10 schools working with Muse in the next five years. Another long-term goal is to bring together kids from these sites to form an orchestra.
To find out more about the Newell Hill Music Foundation and Muse, visit NewellMusic.org.
