2006-2007 AAAE/ASA Awards for Outstanding Support of Arts Education

Each year the Arizona Alliance for Arts Education and the Arizona School Administrators Association awards an Administrator and a Superintendent who have shown significant support for arts education.

This year, Arizona Alliance for Arts Education and Arizona School Administrators' Association jointly presented the 2007 Superintendent Award for Outstanding Support in Arts Education to Dr. Denise Birdwell, Assistant Superintendent of Higley Schools. Denise was nominated for her dedication to the arts in the Dysart School District. In her nomination, it was noted, Denise is a complete advocate for arts education in the schools as she understands the importance of the arts in developing the whole student as well as the learning benefits associated with a comprehensive arts education. Her outstanding leadership in arts education was recognized at the Arizona Superintendent's Conference in Prescott.

The Kennedy Center/National Symphony Orchestra annually sponsors the Summer Music Institute for talented young musicians. The Arizona Alliance will submit the state's top five nominees to the Kennedy Center panel. One musician from most states will be selected to participate on scholarship for the 4-week 2007 Summer Music Institute program. This program is designed for serious music students, and includes round-trip air transportation to and from Washington, D. C., housing, local transportation, and meals.

James Rappaport, a cello student from Tucson, was the Arizona student chosen for the second year in a row to receive the National Trustees fellowship last summer. James attended the Summer Music Institute, which is an extension of the National Symphony Orchestra this summer. He is a college freshman who graduated from Catalina Foothills High School, and was nominated by his instructor, Mary Beth Tyndal. James told AAAE that this was the best musical experience of his life! This is from James&..

NSO/SMI was and is unequivocally the most remarkable musical experience I have yet had in my life. It was stimulating not only on a musical level, but also on an intellectual and emotional level as well. Nothing compares to being surrounded by some of the finest musicians in the country under the leadership of one of the most brilliant conductors I have hitherto had the privilege of serving under. However, it is not strictly the instrumental experience that makes me want to return. I have recently taken to conducting, which truly is an experience unparalleled in intellectual and emotional stimulation in the realm of music. Last summer, I had the honor of being instructed on the podium by Elizabeth Schulze, the brilliant and bold Music Director of the NSO/SMI orchestra, and am absolutely thrilled to learn more this summer! I have started studying conducting here at USC and intend to continue pursuing it whilst continuing improving myself as a cellist. - James Rappaport.

STUDENT ESSAY CONTEST

CREATIVE TICKET AWARDS

State Level: Creative Ticket Award

The Creative Ticket School Awards Program provides an important outlet for expanding recognition of the role individual schools play in providing a creative learning environment for outstanding student achievement. This awards program provides a platform for the Kennedy Center Alliance for Arts Education Network and the Arizona Alliance for Arts Education to highlight schools that have developed exemplary arts education programs.

National Level: Creative Ticket- National Schools of Distinction Award This Award honors up to five schools each year from across the nation that provide teaching programs in the four basic art forms (music, visual arts, dance and theatre). Each State Alliance is eligible to nominate up to five schools for consideration for the national-level award. In addition, the KCAAEN collaborates with the National Association of Elementary School Principals (NAESP) to recognize the K-8 Principals of the Creative Ticket National Schools of Distinction Award-Winning Schools.

The five Arizona schools that were recognized with Creative Ticket Awards and nominated for the National Level Schools of Distinction Award in 2007 were:

Explorer Middle School, Paradise Valley Unified School District
Arcadia High School, Scottsdale Unified School District
Arizona School for the Arts, Phoenix
Montebello School, Alhambra Elementary School District
Tri-City College Prep High School, Prescott

Congratulations to all of the winning schools!
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Art Facts
Student Advocacy Statements

The Arts are exercise for the brain. Scientific studies prove that 30 minutes a day with a creative activity builds dendrites, the brain's connecters. The arts make us smarter.

The Arts helps us to become better at sports, spelling & math by being able to recognize subtle differences.The Arts makes us more careful observers.

Art helps us to understand the history of the world. Artists left visual images before there were cameras.

The Arts develop imagination.

The Arts makes different cultures unique and gives us a greater understanding of others.

Ask students to tell their parents about a particular concept they are studying in art or music. Reward the ones who do. This will begin a dialogue about the arts at home.
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Adult Advocacy Statements

Did you know that young people who participate in the arts for at least three hours on three days each week through at least one full year are:

4 times more likely to be recognized for academic achievement
3 times more likely to be elected to class office within their schools
4 times more likely to participate in a math and science fair
3 times more likely to win an award for school attendance
4 times more likely to win an award for writing an essay or poem

More Facts About Arts Education:

Americans for the Arts: http://www.artsusa.org/
Arts Education Partnership: http://www.aep-arts.org

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