Arts Orange County Questionnaire

By Celia Jaffe

Responses to questions from Arts Orange County and the California Alliance for Arts Education regarding the place of arts education in Huntington Beach schools

My family was very interested in the arts, and during my childhood I was taken to lots of theater performances, as well as a smattering of classical concerts, opera, and ballet. Any major family trip included art museums also. As for schooling, I took required sixth grade music, was in choir 7-9th grade, and took a required 9th grade art class. (This was in Minnesota.) The most memorable encounter with the arts I can recall from my childhood was seeing a first-run production of Godspell in San Francisco when I was around eleven years old. I was in tears at the end and wouldn't leave my seat when the lights came up. The love of theater certainly stayed with me, and I continue to seek it out.

2. What role do you think the arts can play in supporting key education priorities such as closing the achievement gap, reducing the dropout rate and preparing more students for college eligibility and the 21st century workforce?

Arts education has been shown to improve student achievement in other areas. Additionally, we all know of instances where involvement in the arts has been the motivating factor keeping students in school. And the job markets place a high premium on creativity, and that will likely increase over time as technology and outsourcing remove some segments of the job market. For these reasons, arts education is an important practical component of curriculum, as well as feeding the soul.

3. A standards-based arts curriculum is one of the five core subjects in NCLB and critical for developing job skills vital in the creative economy and the 21st century workforce. Yet, most often only "what is tested is taught" in our schools. How do you envision bringing balance back for a comprehensive education and ensuring that all students have access to a quality, standards-based arts education curriculum?

I'm pleased that in Huntington Beach City School District, we have worked to become an Arts Advantage school and participated in the county arts opportunities that provides. The current financial crisis and "flexibility" of the arts block grant funding have made it tough to set aside resources for arts education. Our use of teacher-facilitators, early retirees, and volunteers has stretched our resources to maximum effect. It will certainly take much more to achieve the comprehensive arts education envisioned in the standards. So advocacy at the state level for full education funding is crucial. My 18-year involvement with PTA has in large part been devoted to advocating for support of education funding. PTA's Bring Back the Arts campaign has been a key player in keeping the arts "on the radar" for our state.

4. If elected, how will you engage classroom teachers, arts teachers, parents and community arts organizations to shape your agenda for arts education or implement your district's strategic arts plan?

I will continue to support the implementation of Huntington Beach City School District's Arts Advantage plan. It is proving effective in providing classroom teachers the techniques and ideas to implement and integrate arts instruction into the classroom.