Minnesota schools are doing much better than schools in some other states when it comes to arts education. We have arts courses in 99 percent of our schools, but less than half of the high schools and middle schools and only 28 percent of elementary schools provide the state-required variety of arts areas. Student assessments are inconsistent and at the elementary school level, the per-pupil arts expenditure is only two cents a day.
These are just a few of the findings from a statewide arts education study launched during the 2010–2011 school year by Perpich Center for Arts Education, a state agency in Golden Valley serving all schools and students in Minnesota. The report provides a never-before-available picture of arts education in the state and establishes a baseline for tracking and measuring future progress. The Minnesota State Legislature funded the study through its Arts and Cultural Heritage Fund.
