University of Southern California Dissertations and Theses

Sustaining the arts: a case study of an urban public high school of choice

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Sustaining the arts: a case study of an urban public high school of choice

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Content Running Head: SUSTAINING THE ARTS 1

SUSTAINING THE ARTS:
A CASE STUDY OF AN URBAN PUBLIC HIGH SCHOOL OF CHOICE

by

Carla G. Foronda

A Dissertation Presented to the
FACTULY OF THE USC ROSSIER SCHOOL OF EDUCATION
UNIVERSITY OF SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA
In Partial Fulfillment of the
Requirements for the Degree
DOCTOR OF EDUCATION

December 2014

Copyright 2014 Carla G. Foronda
SUSTAINING THE ARTS 2

Acknowledgements
It took a village to get me through what was arguably the most challenging hurdle of my
academic life, the pursuit of my doctoral degree. I am truly grateful to that village made up of
valued family members, supportive friends, and knowledgeable mentors, especially--
My father Nemesio and my mother Aurora who have instilled in me the importance of
quality education, hard work, and persistence in the face of adversity.
My sisters Jocelyn, Juvi, Jasmine, Jay and my brothers Jake, Jerry, and Joey who have
encouraged my academic and professional undertakings.
My colleague and good friend Flor Viray and her daughters Janelle and Julie who helped
me juggle school, work, and family responsibilities.
My classmate and sounding board Jeanette Archambault whose kindness and reassurance
has never failed to lift my spirits.
My dissertation committee chair Dr. Stuart Gothold and committee members Dr. Dennis
Hocevar and Dr. Michael Escalante whose wealth of expertise in the field of education and
research have given me the confidence to take on the demands of the dissertation process.
And my son Karlos, who accompanied me in this journey and remains my source of
strength and inspiration.

SUSTAINING THE ARTS 3

Table of Contents
List of Tables 5
List of Figures 6
Abstract 7
Chapter One: Introduction to the Study 8
Background of the Problem 9
Statement of the Problem 10
Purpose of the Study 11
Importance of the Study 11
Limitations of the Study 11
Delimitations of the Study 12
Definitions of Terms 12
Organization of the Study 14
Chapter Two: Review of Literature 16
Background 16
The Case for the Arts 24
Promising Practices 32
Summary 37
Chapter Three: Methodology 38
Sample and Population 39
Instrumentation 41
Data Collection 45
Data Analysis 46
Summary 47
Chapter Four: Results 48
Results for Research Question 1 48
Music 55
Dance 56
Theater 57
Musical Theater 58
Visual Arts 59
Cinematic Arts 60
Results for Research Question 2 64
Results for Research Question 3 72
Chapter Five: Analysis and Discussion 77
Conclusion 77
Sound Pedagogical Practices 78
Student Support Structures 79
Shared Dynamic Leadership 81
Multi-Stakeholder Partnerships in the Arts 82
Recommendations and Implications for Practice 83
References 87

SUSTAINING THE ARTS 4

Appendixes
A. Observation Protocols 94
B. Reflection Tool 97
C. Survey Questionnaire 98
D. Interview Instrument 104
E. Review Documents 105
F. Recruitment Announcement and Consent Form 106
G. Institutional Review Board Information Fact Sheet 107

SUSTAINING THE ARTS 5

List of Tables
Table 1: Research Design and Instrumentation Alignment 44
Table 2: Pedagogy in the Arts Programs 62
Table 3: Student Learning in the Arts Programs 64
Table 4: Leadership of the Arts Programs 71
Table 5: Resource Allocation in the Arts Programs 77

SUSTAINING THE ARTS 6

List of Figures
Figure A: Conceptual Model 41

SUSTAINING THE ARTS 7

Abstract
This case study explores the factors that sustain the arts in an urban Southern California
public high school of choice. In light of shifting priorities and accountability demands, this
school has been successful in maintaining a quality arts and college-preparatory program. The
study looks into three main factors: (1) the arts programs within the school, (2) leadership
support of the arts programs within the schools, and (3) resource allocation in relation to the arts
programs at the school. The data collection process involved a review of school documents,
interviews and shared stories by members of the school community, a survey of school faculty
and staff, and observations of various school events and activities. Research findings and
discussion was presented around the themes of sound pedagogical practices, strong student
support structures, shared dynamic leadership, and multi-stakeholder partnerships in the arts.
Recommendations and implications for practice were likewise offered to guide policy makers,
district level personnel, school leaders, and various education stakeholders in establishing
schools of choice that are grounded in the arts and in sustaining successful arts programs in
public schools.

SUSTAINING THE ARTS 8

CHAPTER ONE: INTRODUCTION TO THE STUDY
The arts are essential to education and in shaping an educated person. A balanced
curriculum that embraces the arts is crucial in nurturing students’ creativity and imagination,
skills needed in the 21
st
century global workplace. As such, every effort must be made to ensure
the provision and equitable access to high-quality arts education in American K-12 public
schools.
In response to the National Academies’ 2007 report Rising Above the Gathering Storm
which called for the strengthening of education in the science, technology, engineering, and
mathematics disciplines, the American Academy of Arts and Sciences published The Heart of
the Matter (2013) report which put forth that individuals educated in the broadest possible sense
will lead the nation into a bright future. This requires an adaptable and creative workforce who
can engage with the world.
The Heart of the Matter identified three overarching goals: 1) to educate Americans in
the knowledge, skills, and understanding they will need to thrive in a twenty-first-century
democracy; 2) to foster a society that is innovative, competitive, and strong; and 3) to equip the
nation for leadership in an interconnected world. The American Academy of Arts and Sciences
recognized that these goals cannot be achieved by science alone.
Ready to Innovate, a 2008 joint report by the Association of American School
Administrators, Americans for the Arts, and The Conference Board, acknowledged that
creativity is among the top applied skills sought by employers. Seventy-two percent of business
leaders say creativity is of primary concern when hiring yet 85% of these employers are unable
to find the creative applicants they seek. The report concludes that the arts—music, creative
writing, drawing, and dance—provide skills required by employers of the third millennium.
SUSTAINING THE ARTS 9

A 2012 Adobe systems survey of business professionals, Creativity and Education: Why
it Matters, shed light on the role of creativity in career success and the growing belief that
creativity is a learned skill. The survey found that 89% believe unlocking creativity is essential
to economic growth, and 88% believe it belongs in education curricula. Eighty-five percent of
the professionals surveyed agreed that creative thinking is critical for problem solving in their
career. Nearly three-quarters (71%) say creative thinking should be taught as a class like math or
science. Classroom study of the arts and music ranked as the two most important subject areas
that build creative thinking skills.
The National Task Force on the Arts in Education, in its 2009 College Board report, Arts
at the Core: Recommendations for Advancing the State of Arts Education in the 21
st
Century,
described the arts as powerful way to both understand and shape the world. It pointed to the
escalating crisis facing arts education in K-12 schools, colleges, and universities, which if not
dealt with soon, will deepen in both intensity and gravity. According to the task force, the crisis
will continue to directly, and adversely, affect the quality of education available to students and,
more importantly, the well-being of the nation.
Background of the Problem
A recent U.S. Department of Education study (2012) painted a bleak picture of the state
of arts education in American public schools. Survey results were compared with results from a
similar survey conducted a decade ago. There was virtually no change from the survey results
ten years ago. Uneven educational opportunities in the arts continue to persist across the nation’s
elementary and secondary schools. More than 1.3 million elementary school students and about
800,000 secondary school students have no access to music instruction. Nearly four million
SUSTAINING THE ARTS 10

elementary students do not get any visual instruction at school. Notably, schools with a higher
concentration of students in poverty were less likely to offer arts education.
Secretary of Education Arne Duncan referred to this gap in education as “an equity issue”
(Parsad & Spiegelman, 2012). In a 2010 speech at the Arts Education Partnership (AEP)
National Forum, Secretary Duncan expressed his belief that “education is the civil rights issue of
our generation—and why arts education remains so critical to leveling the playing field of
opportunity”. He pointed out that arts education can help build the case for the importance of a
well-rounded, content-rich, and engaging curriculum for all students including those from
socioeconomically disadvantaged backgrounds, English language learners, and special needs
students.
In his AEP National Forum (2010) remarks, the Secretary of Education noted that the arts
significantly boost student achievement, reduce discipline problems, and increase the chances of
students going on to graduate from college. “Arts education is essential to stimulating the
creativity and innovation critical to young Americans competing in a global economy. The arts
are valuable for their own sake, and they empower students to create and appreciate aesthetic
works.”
Statement of the Problem
Despite the preponderance of evidence pointing to the arts as essential in education,
American public schools have seen a decrease of arts education programs resulting from fiscal
pressures and accountability measures. Many school leaders have had to reduce their arts
programs as a result of shifting priorities and accountability demands. However, some school
leaders continue to maintain viable arts programs. For the purpose of this study, the focus would
SUSTAINING THE ARTS 11

be on leadership that has been able to maintain both exemplar arts programs and high academic
achievement. What factors are key to sustaining arts programs?
Purpose of the Study
The purpose of this study is to determine key factors that enable public schools to
demonstrate high achievement while sustaining quality arts programs over a period of time.
The results of this study will contribute to the body of knowledge on arts education. Schools
considering the arts as a way to undertake educational reform will benefit from this study’s
answers to the following research questions:
1. What are the arts programs that exist at XYZ School?
2. How does leadership at XYZ School support the arts programs?
3. How are resources allocated at XYZ School?
Importance of the Study
This qualitative case study richly provides a description of the process involved in
sustaining viable arts program in light of accountability demands and budgetary constraints. By
looking into the programs, leadership, and resources of XYZ School, the academic community
will gain an understanding of the processes, methods, and policies that enable schools to retain
successful arts programs. This research undertaking will contribute to the existing knowledge
base on effective educational programs that equip students with the necessary skills to compete
in the 21
st
century global economy. The study will address issues of quality, equity, and access
in arts education.
Limitations of the Study
The findings of a case study are limited to a single case. Based on research criteria set
for the study, there was a small sample of schools to select a research site from. The case study
SUSTAINING THE ARTS 12

is representative of the particular period of time in which the study was conducted. As such the
generalizability of the study results across a wider scope and span of time is limited.
Delimitations of the Study
The intent of this case study is to capture thick and rich description of the factors that
sustain viable school arts programs. The findings of the study may be useful to urban public
schools seeking to undertake reform through the recognition of the arts as essential in a balanced
curriculum. As such, the school in this study was selected purposefully based on a criteria set
that would yield the most possible results. The study results will contribute to the existing body
of knowledge on the topic. The research instruments were likewise designed to remain within
the study’s theoretical framework by providing relevant information on the arts programs,
leadership, and resources of the selected school site.
Definition of Terms
The following terms are used frequently in this study and are defined accordingly:
Academic Performance Index (API). The annual measure of the academic performance
and progress of schools within California. It is measured on a scale from 200 to 1,000. This
score reflects the school, district, or a student group’s performance level, based on statewide
testing. The state has set an API score of 800 as a target statewide.
Accountability. Educationally accountable for reaching prescribed markers set by federal
and state governments for schools under the federal No Child Left Behind (NCLB) guidelines
and the California State API.
Arts-Based Schools. Public schools of choice focusing on the arts. Seek to promote
academic and artistic excellence while also preparing students for post school success in their
selected artistic and academic field.
SUSTAINING THE ARTS 13

Arts Education. Education in the various forms of art. The arts have been included in
the curriculum for as long as there have been public schools in the United States. Arts education
is rarely valued for its own sake and is always vulnerable to exclusion and relegation to
extracurricular activity.
Arts Programs. Music, drama/theater, dance, and visual arts.
Arts-Included Curriculum. The arts are taught alongside traditional important, core, or
basic subjects and are considered on an equal par as the core subjects.
Arts Integration. The incorporation of the arts into the non-arts curriculum by combining
it with one or more other content area in consideration of a selected topic or question.
Art Specialist. A trained and professionally certified K-12 art educator who works in
schools.
Creativity. Innovation and originality. The source of boundary-breaking inventions or
ideas.
Imagination. Ability to envision artistic products, invent stories and worlds in one’s
mind, and conceive of alternatives to perceived realities. Associated with the creative process
and human inspiration.
Leadership. A process of social influence in which one person can enlist the aid
and support of others in the accomplishment of a common task. Leadership requires multiframe
thinking (Bolman & Deal, 2008).
No Child Left Behind. Standards-based education reform, based on the concept of setting
standards and goals to improve education. Federal legislation that renewed the Elementary and
Secondary Education Act (ESEA) with new provisions that require schools to demonstrate
SUSTAINING THE ARTS 14

proficiency in English Language Arts and Mathematics. Schools undertake annual testing to
demonstrate proficiency. Penalties are enforced for schools that do not meet the requirements.
Resource Allocation. Refers to funding sources and allotments to arts programs.
School Climate. Quality and character of school life. It may be based on patterns of
student, parent, and school personnel experiences within the school and reflects norms, goals,
values, interpersonal relationships, teaching and learning practices, and organizational structures.
School Culture. Values, shared beliefs, and behavior of all the various stakeholders
within the school community and reflects the school’s social norms.
Viable. A quality arts program that is sustained over a period of time despite changes in
leadership.
Visual Arts. The rendering of an artistic statement in visual form (two or three
dimensions). Associated with traditional arts such as drawing, painting, engraving, sculpture,
and architecture. Currently includes photography, video, and filmmaking.
Organization of the Study
Chapter 1 of the study presents an overview of the study including the Background of the
Study, Statement of the Problem, Purpose of the Study, Significance of the Study, Limitations of
the Study, Delimitations of the Study, Definition of Terms, and Organization of the Study.
Chapter 2 of the study offers a review of relevant literature with a Background on Arts
Education (including the history, current climate, and constraints faced by schools), Case for the
Arts (including outcomes for students, teachers and schools), and Promising Practices (including
leadership, partnerships and collaborations, and sources of funding).
Chapter 3 of the study explains the methodology utilized in the research including
information on Sampling and Population, Instrumentation, Data Collection, and Data Analysis.
SUSTAINING THE ARTS 15

Chapter 4 of the study reports the significant Findings of the Research.
Chapter 5 of the study presents the Analysis and Discussion of findings, Implications for
Practice and Further Research, and Conclusions and Recommendations.

SUSTAINING THE ARTS 16

CHAPTER TWO: LITERATURE REVIEW
As a result of shifting priorities and accountability demands, many school leaders have
reduced their arts programs. However, some school leaders continue to maintain viable arts
programs. What factors are key to sustaining arts programs? The purpose of this study is to
determine key factors in sustaining arts programs at XYZ School.
This chapter will present a review of the literature on the background of arts education,
the case for the arts, and promising practices in schools. In providing the background of arts
programs, the history, current climate, and constraints faced by schools will be discussed. In
arguing the case for the arts, student, teacher and school outcomes will be explored. In
describing promising practices in the field, school leadership, collaborative partnerships, funding
and resources will be examined. A summary and critique will conclude this chapter.
Background
Western art education was influenced by Greek attitudes towards the arts and their place
in education. In ancient Greece, the arts were valued as an important part of culture but were not
considered an integral part of education. Plato and Aristotle considered the arts as effective
carriers of cultural meaning and suitable in fostering an individual’s sense of identity with his
culture. The arts were judged to be culturally worthy, and many Greek citizens were collectors
of art, yet the profession of artist was deemed unworthy for the children of aristocrats to pursue
(Efland, 1987).
This attitude towards arts persisted through the Middle Ages when the study of art was
regulated by guilds. Lowly apprentices were taught the skills of the studio. This knowledge was
passed on with much secrecy. During the Renaissance, however, wealthy patrons commissioned
works of art and sponsored academies of art. These academies raised the status of artist from
SUSTAINING THE ARTS 17

that of a craftsman. Pesvner (1973) noted that it was common to find collectors and patrons
attending exhibits, discussions, and demonstrations of art at these academies. Throughout the
Baroque era, knowledge and cultivation of the arts became important in the education of the
aristocracy.
In 1749, Benjamin Franklin advocated for arts education in his work Proposed Hints for
an Academy (Smyth, 1905). He recommended drawing as a subject to be taught. At the close of
the 17
th
century, John Locke discussed the merits of drawing and music in the education of
gentlemen. Although he saw value in teaching the skill of drawing to gentlemen, he
distinguished between subjects that were useful and others that were merely ornamental (Axtell,
1968). Locke’s writings had a strong impact on educational practices through the 18
th
century
when literacy became widespread among the middle classes.
Art instruction was introduced in the US public school curriculum in 1821 (Whitford,
1923). Massachusetts was the first state to include art as part of its general education program.
Philadelphia, Baltimore, and Cleveland were among the first city schools to teach art. By the
end of the century, provision for art instruction throughout the commonwealth was passed into
law.
In Heilig et al.’s (2010) historical narrative of arts education in the US, arts education
was initially introduced as practical training for industrial employment. Arts were taught in the
classrooms emphasizing technical drawing and drafting. By the 1900s, the postindustrial era
ushered in leisure time for an emerging middle class and the arts as cultural enrichment became a
curricular goal in schools.
The study of art appreciation in US schools began with the Picture Study Movement in
the late 19
th
century. Art lessons stressed the elements of beauty in pictures or reproduced images
SUSTAINING THE ARTS 18

of famous masterpieces. The primary intent of these lessons was to improve public morality
through art. During the Great Depression, art appreciation moved away from picture study to
Art in Daily Living. Attention to the aesthetics in classrooms led to public interest in beautifying
the school, home, and community.
In the 1930s, art as creative self-expression became popular. Its purpose was to foster
personal growth through the provision of therapeutic benefits. John Dewey, educational
philosopher and school reformer, believed that arts education was a foundational part of
education because it developed creativity, self-expression, and an appreciation of the expression
of others (Dewey, 1934). According to him, access to arts education opens processes of inquiry
that expand children’s perception of the world and create venues for understanding and action
(Goldblatt, 2006).
After World War II, art education was readily available to more students from the
elementary to post-secondary level. Artist training became the charge of colleges and
universities. Bachelor and Master of Fine Arts were recommended degrees to be a professional
artist. The G.I. Bill of 1944 facilitated the entry of veterans to school, including art schools.
Contemporary art increasingly became an academic and intellectual field.
Enrollment in art classes at the high school elective level peaked in late 1960s and early
1970s with the emphasis on individuals expressing uniqueness. Magnet schools began using the
arts as a core or underlying theme to attract students motivated by personal interest or with the
intention of becoming a professional or commercial artist.
During this period, the federal government increased its role in arts education by
supporting research and curriculum projects in the arts. These projects generated arts education
policy concepts framed the arts as a subject for curriculum-based instruction (Chapman, 2000).
SUSTAINING THE ARTS 19

The National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) emerged as a new federal arts policymaking
agency in 1965. NEA led efforts in integrating the arts as part of core education for all K-12
students. It collaborated in federal, state, and public-private partnerships to solicit and provide
funding and grants for arts education programs.
Despite increased federal presence, arts education remained within the local purview with
commitments of resources by state education agencies in the 1980s. The National Assembly of
State Arts Agencies (1988) claimed that arts education in the US was in triple jeopardy because
the arts were not viewed as serious, knowledge was not viewed as a prime educational objective,
and those who determined school curricula did not agree on the definition of arts education. To
improve education in the arts, NEA called for sequential curricula, comprehensive testing,
improved data gathering, improved teacher quality, the recruitment of outstanding teachers, and
increased educational responsibility.
In 1994, Congress signed Goals the 2000: Educate America Act which stipulated that by
2000 all students will demonstrate competency in challenging subject matter including English,
mathematics, science, foreign languages, civics and government, economics, arts, history and
geography. This act represented the first time that the arts were identified as a part of core
curriculum in federal policy.
This renewed focus on arts education was short-lived as a new paradigm of national
educational policy emerged. High-stakes accountability through testing became the educational
policy model for the nation with the bipartisan reauthorization of the Elementary and Secondary
Act as No Child Left Behind (NCLB) in 2002. This legitimized a culture that sacrifices time and
resources for arts education in the name of standards (McNeil, 2005; Cavanagh, 2006; Center for
Educational Policy, 2006).
SUSTAINING THE ARTS 20

NCLB relies heavily on reading and mathematics test scores to determine whether
schools are making progress in reducing achievement gaps among various subgroups of students
including students from major racial/ethnic groups, economically disadvantaged, special
education, and English Language learners. This results in schools narrowing the curriculum
because they are under pressure to show adequate yearly progress in reading and math (Cawelti,
2006).
The legislation’s effect on public school curriculum was noted in a Phi Delta
Kappa/Gallup poll of the public’s attitudes toward public schools. Rose and Gallup (2006)
found that 78% of a random sample of respondents expressed concern that relying on English
and math only to judge a school’s performance will mean less emphasis on art, music, history,
and other subjects.
Learning less (Farkas Duffet Research Group, 2012), a national survey of 3
rd
to 12
th

grade public school teachers found that 66% of the teachers reported shifting of instructional
time and resources toward math and language arts and away from subjects such as art, music,
foreign language, and social studies. Fifty-one percent of the teachers responded that arts
education received less instructional time and resources over the past 10 years while 48% percent
responded that music education received less instructional time and resources in the last 10
years.
Educators in Sabol’s (2010) study on the effects of NCLB on art education found
negative effects on scheduling, workloads and funding for art education programs. Limited
negative effects were likewise found in the areas of staffing, teaching loads, and enrollments.
Respondents in the study reported that NCLB’s focus on assessment had unintended secondary
SUSTAINING THE ARTS 21

consequences on student learning, including the narrowing of students’ interests in learning and
exploring a broad range of content.
A report by the President’s Committee on the Arts and Humanities (PCAH) found the
nation’s public schools on a downward trend in terms of providing students with meaningful
access to the arts. Rabkin and Hedberg (2011) found that fewer than half of adults report having
participated in arts lessons or classes in schools. This is a decline from about 65% participation
in the 1980s and following steady increases in participation between the 1930s and the 1980s
(Rabkin & Hedberg, 2011).
Budgetary woes in education have placed great stress on school arts programs. School
boards have to decide whether they can afford to preserve arts offerings much less expand what
they have traditionally provided (PCAH, 2011). The Center on Education Policy found a
decrease in arts education instruction time in 30% of school districts with at least one
underperforming school (McMurrer, 2007).
Beveridge (2010) noted similar problems in funding and scheduling of arts education in
schools. According to her, NCLB gives schools a reason for not funding arts programs. The
act’s overemphasis on test scores and schools’ inability to assess data for arts education content
or performance standards puts the focus and funding on programs that can be assessed through
standardized testing. Beveridge points out scheduling issues where schools use art classes, the
fun classes, to bribe students to do well in the testable subjects. Students are pulled from art
class until they achieve satisfactory status in subjects that are tested (Beveridge, 2010).
A recent report by the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) that compared
changes in arts education in public schools from 1999-2000 to 2009-2010 showed that since the
start of NCLB, public schools have seen a reduction in arts education offered to students (Parsad
SUSTAINING THE ARTS 22

& Spiegelman, 2012). In school year 2009-2010, dance and drama/theater were less commonly
taught in elementary schools and show a decrease of availability in public schools from 20% in
1999-2000. Dance was incorporated into other subjects or curriculum areas in 61% of public
elementary schools while drama/theater was incorporated into other subjects or curriculum areas
in 53% of schools.
State surveys to determine local art offerings yielded similar findings of reduced art
programs. The Arts Education Research Initiative (2009) found that 33% of elementary students
in Washington State receive less than one hour a week on the average of arts instruction and
almost 10% offer no formal arts instruction. Sixty-three percent of principals expressed
dissatisfaction over the amount of arts education in their schools. The Ohio Alliance for Arts
Education (2006) reported an increase in the percent of districts where students receive less than
an hour per week of visual arts and music instruction.
The Kentucky Arts Council (2005) survey on the condition of arts education in Kentucky
school districts found that one in six districts decreased funding for the arts from 2000-2005. On
average, across grade levels to middle school, the largest amount of time per week spent in
teaching visual arts and music was 30 to 60 minutes. For dance and drama, time spent per week
was 1 to 30 minutes for each subject. In a 2005 survey to assess the status of arts education in
Illinois, principals in rural Illinois regions reported that arts education is the first to be cut when
faced with budgetary constraints (Illinois Arts Alliance Foundation, 2007). A Center for Arts
Education (2009) study of New York high schools comparing arts resources in schools grouped
by graduation rate found that schools in the bottom third in graduation rates (less than 50%
graduation rate) offered the least access to arts education. The report points out that in
SUSTAINING THE ARTS 23

NewYork, the cultural capital of the world, public school students do not enjoy equal access to
an arts education.
An SRI International study of arts education in California from 2005-2009 found this
same pattern of arts program reduction. While the California Education Code call for schools to
offer courses in four art disciplines namely visual arts, music, dance, and theater, almost one-
third of schools offered no courses in any arts discipline. In schools where art programs are
offered, significant differences in program offerings by socioeconomic status were noted in the
various art disciplines. Only 25% of students in high poverty schools had music compared to
45% in low poverty schools. Frequently cited for the lack of art education opportunity was
inadequate funding followed by a focus on improving test scores (Center for Education Policy,
SRI International 2005-2009).
Waldorf and Atwill (2011) in their Arts for All survey to determine quality and access to
arts education in Los Angeles County found that in the school year 2009-2010, 43% of
elementary schools had no budget for arts education outside of externally raised supplemental
funding. Although secondary schools in the survey had some funds for arts education, the
decline in available resources from the school budget, parent support groups, and other
community sources placed additional strain on already underfunded programs. There was
significant variation in the level of student access to quality arts programs between districts.
Students who attended high poverty, Title 1 designated schools had fewer options in accessing a
high-quality education in the arts than other students.
The U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO), in its survey of access to arts
education, likewise found that there was a significant difference among the percent of teachers
reporting decreased time spent on arts education. In schools identified as needing improvement
SUSTAINING THE ARTS 24

and/or with higher percentages of minority students, teachers were more likely to report a
reduction in time spent in arts instruction (GAO, 2009).
In Rabkin and Hedberg’s (2011) survey of arts participation, respondents from some
minority groups (African American and Latino) are only half as likely to report having had arts
lessons or classes in school as others. The decline in childhood arts education since the 1980s for
African Americans is 49% while the decline in arts education for Latinos was 40%.
While the overall picture of arts education appears bleak, President Barack Obama has
consistently called for reinvesting in the American arts education. In October 2008, then Senator
Obama released a powerful Platform in Support of the Arts. He stressed the need to remain
competitive in the global market by reinvigorating the kind of creativity and innovation that has
made the country great. “To do so, we must nourish our children’s creative skills. In addition to
giving our children the science and math skills they need to compete in the new global context,
we should also encourage the ability to think creatively that comes from a meaningful arts
education.”
In his January 2011 State of the Union Address, the President challenged Americans to
win the future by winning the race to educate our children. According to him, the first step in
winning the future is encouraging American innovation. “None of us can predict with certainty
what the next big industry will be or where the new jobs will come from…What we can do−what
America does better than anyone else−is spark the creativity and imagination of our people.”
The Case for the Arts
Over the last few decades, the value of the arts in K-12 public schools has been well-
documented in research literature. Research points to the various outcomes of arts education for
students, teachers, and schools.
SUSTAINING THE ARTS 25

Fiske’s (1999) research synthesis, Champions of Change: The Impact of Arts on
Learning, highlights the benefits of the arts in producing better attendance, fewer discipline
problems, increased graduation rates, and improved test scores. Arts education was likewise
found to be successful in motivating students who were difficult to reach and providing
challenges to more academically successful students.
Research undertaken by Catterall, Chapleau and Iwanaga (1999) examined data from the
National Longitudinal Survey (NELS) about relationships between involvement in the arts and
academic performance. Students with high involvement in the arts performed better in school
and stayed in school longer than students with low involvement. Low-income students involved
in band and orchestra outscored others on the NELS math assessment while low-income students
involved in drama showed greater reading proficiency and more positive self-concept than those
with little or no involvement.
Burton, Horowitz and Abeles’ (1999) study compared low arts and high arts involved
students’ scores in the Torrance Test of Creative Thinking, Self-Description Questionnaire, and
the School Level Environment Questionnaire. Results show that high arts involved students
were strong in their abilities to express thoughts and ideas, as well as in taking risks in learning.
They also performed better on measures of creativity, fluency, originality, elaboration, and
resistance to closure.
Catterall and Waldorf’s (1999) study of the Chicago Arts Partnerships in Education
(CAPE) project demonstrated significant gains for CAPE elementary schools in reading and
math. Nineteen CAPE schools showed consistently higher average scores in the district’s
reading and mathematics assessments over a six year period when compared to all district
SUSTAINING THE ARTS 26

elementary schools. Forty percent of students in CAPE schools were at or above grade level
compared to the average of 28% prior to the introduction of CAPE.
Deasy’s (2002) research compilation, Critical Links: Learning in the Arts and Student
Academic and Social Development, found transfer of skills from visual arts, dance, drama,
music, and multi-arts to learning in other subjects. The research showed positive outcomes such
as habits of mind, self-motivation, and social skills, including tolerance and empathy and
positive peer interactions, from arts engagement.
Studies by Ingram and Reidel (2003) and DeMoss and Morris (2006) have demonstrated
benefits from arts education for English Language learners and low-income students in
Minnesota. Ingram and Reidel noted a significant relationship between arts instruction and
improved student learning in reading and mathematics. DeMoss and Morris found that through
arts study, middle school students improved in their ability to turn barriers into opportunities and
persist in completing challenging tasks.
Research undertaken by Winner et al. (2006) on visual arts learning in Boston arts high
schools identified thinking skills or “studio habits of mind” that may be important in a wide
range of disciplines aside from visual arts. Visual arts studio classes were found to help students
develop habits of mind for sustained focus, imagination, close observation, and articulation of
their decision-making process.
Catterall’s (2009) follow-up study of original cohort of NELS students in their mid-
twenties found persistence of strong connections between arts learning in earlier years and
overall academic achievement. The arts-engaged low income students were more likely than the
non-arts-engaged students to have attended and done well in college and obtained employment
SUSTAINING THE ARTS 27

with a future. These students were found to have performed more like average-higher income
students.
Bransom et al.’s (2010) study of the Big Thought program in Dallas found sustained
student engagement in a fine arts discipline gave high school students a substantial advantage in
reading achievement when compared to students who took fewer arts courses. The researchers
found that all students who participated in clubs or groups that focus on creative activities had an
advantage in reading and math achievement.
Helmrich’s (2010) study of Maryland students found that music instruction in middle
school was positively correlated with algebra achievement. Findings were consistent regardless
of race. Both white students and African American students with music instruction performed
better than their peers of the same race who did not have music instruction. The data also
suggested that formal music instruction affected the achievement of African American students
to a greater degree than it did the achievement of white students.
PCAH’s 2011 report, Reinvesting in Arts Education: Winning America’s Future through
Creative Schools, found that when students participate in the arts they are four times more likely
to be recognized for academic achievement, have higher grade-point average (GPA)/Scholastic
Assessment Test scores, and demonstrate a 56% improvement in spatial-temporal IQ scores.
Students who participate in the arts also show significantly higher levels of mathematics
proficiency by 12
th
grade, are more engage and cooperative with teachers and peer, and are more
self-confident and are better able to express their ideas. These benefits are particularly
pronounced in high-poverty, low-performing schools, and work in tandem with other
pedagogical approaches (PCAH, 2011).
SUSTAINING THE ARTS 28

Catterall (2012) studied findings from four longitudinal studies and found both academic
and civic behavior outcomes of teenagers and young adults of low socioeconomic status who
have engaged deeply in the arts. Academic outcomes included higher test scores in science and
writing, higher overall grade-point average, were more likely to graduate from high school,
aspire to attend college, enroll in competitive four-year colleges, earn mostly A’s in college and
earn a bachelor’s degree. Civic-minded behavior was evidenced in taking an interest in current
affairs by volunteering, voting, and engagement with local or school politics.
Notably, Mason, Steedly, and Thormann (2008) in investigating the relationship of
substantive arts involvement and social, cognitive, and artistic development among students with
disabilities, found that the arts assist special needs student in demonstrating knowledge of
academic content and skills. Three key findings emerged in the themes of voice, choice, and
access. Children used the arts and the process of creating art to communicate information about
themselves and their world, and helped them express emotion in appropriate ways. The arts
exercise children’s critical capacity for decision-making and problem solving, which are
important in preparing children with disabilities to be active and independent citizens. The
inherent flexibility of all art forms allow students multiple ways to access content and provide
teachers with opportunities to meet the unique needs of their students.
Gerber (2011), in her paper Art Education and Special Education: A Promising
Partnership notes how art education and special education can transform lives of people with
special needs. According to her, special needs students often come out of their shells and get
enthusiastic about creating. Research on the relationship between the arts and student
achievement has shown that art in any classroom, but more so for special education classrooms,
motivate students and promote learning in other subject areas (Iwai, 2002).
SUSTAINING THE ARTS 29

Arts education has various professional outcomes or for teachers. Research in this area
identifies linkages between arts experience and important dimensions of successful teaching
including increased use of alternative assessment tools, increased instructional capacity,
professional collaboration and learning, and engagement and retention.
Through the arts, teachers gain knowledge of alternate forms of assessment to gauge
students’ understanding. Morris (2001) in studying the use of drama in a middle school social
studies class found that teachers gained knowledge of authentic assessment to measure students’
knowledge, skills, and abilities. Teachers used performance assessments, portfolios, and other
assessments that directly measure students’ understanding. Burnaford’s (2009) study of
elementary school teachers who engaged in process documentation or the collection of lesson
plans, students’ artworks, and observation of lessons became more reflective about
understanding both their students’ learning and the effectiveness of their own teaching.
Research indicates that arts education helps increase teacher capacity to use differentiated
instruction, the modification of instruction, materials, content, projects, and assessments, to meet
the educational needs of varied learners. In Oreck’s (2004) study of teachers’ attitudes toward
and use of arts in teaching found that teachers developed an awareness of student diversity and
saw the arts as a tool to increase student motivation. Mason et al.’s (2008) study to investigate
the relationship between arts involvement and social, cognitive, and artistic development among
students with disabilities found that teachers from early childhood through middle school
developed an understanding that the arts provide multiple points of access for special needs
learners.
Art teachers/specialists who receive professional development in arts education help
build curriculum, collaboration, and leadership in schools (Burnaford, 2009). Arts teachers who
SUSTAINING THE ARTS 30

provide arts-based professional development for their peers become recognized and valued for
their leadership role in schools. Non-arts teachers become open and willing to engage in
interdisciplinary collaboration. Bellisario and Donovan (2012) found that arts education nourish
teachers personally and professionally, help them move toward “highly qualified” criteria, and
become effective and innovative teaching professionals.
Through professional development and classroom experiences in arts education, teachers
re-engage in the teaching profession. Teachers on the verge of burnout found that arts education
revitalized their passion for teaching and renewed their commitment to teaching (Bellisario &
Donovan, 2012). Barry (2010) also noted that when the arts were infused in the whole school,
increased engagement led to decreased absenteeism among teachers.
Arts education benefits schools by creating schools that are exciting places for learning
and discovery, improving equity and access among diverse learners, closing the achievement
gap, and turning around low performing schools.
The school outcomes of art education are evident in a study (Noblit, Corbett, Wilson, &
McKinney, 2009) of A+ Schools which serve higher percentages of minority and economically
disadvantaged students. A+ schools North Carolina undertook whole school comprehensive arts-
infused reform to create schools that work for students, teachers, administrators, and the
community. The reform model was based on using arts-integrated instruction that incorporates
Gardner’s theory of multiple intelligences, brain research, and dance, drama, music, visual arts,
and creative writing. The following school benefits were found: organizational capacity
enhanced, better inter and intra-communication, and arts legitimized and brought to the center of
the curriculum, and establishing identity as an A+ school.
SUSTAINING THE ARTS 31

Another evaluation (Barry, 2010) of A+ schools in Oklahoma underscored the school-
wide value of arts education. The study found significant differences in students’ attitudes in
schools where the A+ model was embedded in school policy and instruction compared to schools
where arts education was treated as an add on. Students in the A+ schools were more likely to
find school challenging, interesting, and enjoyable than their peers in other schools. The state’s
Academic Performance Index (API) shows statistically significant advantages for A+ students
compared to state and district averages.
A Maryland study (Real Visions, 2007) comparing arts integration-focused schools
(AIMS) to control schools found that the AIMS schools substantially reduced the achievement
gap between high-poverty minority students and other students. The AIMS school with the
highest percentage of minority and low-income students reduced the reading gap by 14
percentage points and the math gap by 26 percentage points. In the comparison schools, the
number of proficient students decreased by 4.5%. In AIMS schools with the lowest number of
proficient students in reading and mathematics at the outset of the study experienced a 23%
increase in the number of students scoring proficient.
Corbett, Wilson, and Morse’s (2002) study of the Whole Schools Initiative (WSI) in
Mississippi which incorporated the arts into regular classroom instruction showed that students
in the participating WSI schools had similar or greater literacy proficiency than the state average
and matched comparison schools. The researchers likewise found that most high-implementing
WSI schools met the state standard for growth in student literacy proficiency compared to less
than half of the lower-implementing schools. The high-implementing WIS schools likewise
outperformed their matched comparison schools.
SUSTAINING THE ARTS 32

With its 2012 launch of the Turnaround Arts initiative, the PCAH recognized the value of
arts education in helping turn around low performing schools. The Turnaround Arts initiative is
a public-private partnership designed to narrow the achievement gap and increase student
engagement through the arts in some of the nation’s lowest performing elementary and middle
schools. The initiative is currently providing training and resources to selected schools from
across the nation showing a diversity of student demographics, are in urban and rural settings,
and receive School Improvement Grants through the U.S. Department of Education. The schools
have a demonstrated need and opportunity for arts education impact, strong school leadership
and district support, and evidence of a commitment to arts education as a pillar of the school’s
turnaround strategy.
U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan expressed confidence that the Turnaround Arts
initiative will prove that the arts are an effective strategy for improving student engagement and
achievement while turning around schools. In the foreword of Reinvesting in Arts Education
(PCAH, 2011), Secretary Duncan stressed that education in the arts is more important than ever
and that in the global economy, creativity is essential. “To succeed today and in the future,
America’s children will need to be inventive, resourceful, and imaginative. The best way to
foster creativity is through arts education.”
Promising Practices
School leadership, community partnership and collaboration, and funding and resource
allocation are central in ensuring that the arts remain part of a balanced curriculum despite
budget constraints and shifting priorities.
At the school site level, principals are responsible for making decisions that impact arts
education. The AEP reported about a principal of a Mississippi elementary school that had more
SUSTAINING THE ARTS 33

children of low socioeconomic status and children qualifying for special education than any
other school in her district, who made the decision to continue the school’s existing program
linking the arts to all curricular areas at all grade levels (Deasy, 2003). The principal based her
decision on the program’s ability to meet the needs of all children and its positive impact on test
scores. As a result, students with lower language levels than their peers in other district schools
were able to close that gap to match and even surpass achievement levels of other schools by the
4
th
grade. According to the principal, the school regularly had some of the highest scores within
her district. She pointed to other effects of the arts-centered curriculum including greater
motivation by successful teachers, decreased absenteeism by students and staff, and increased
parent involvement.
In a 2012 Los Angeles Unified School District (LAUSD) Journal article, school
leadership at the Los Angeles High School for the Arts (LAHSA) was credited for the school’s
artistic approach to learning that engages students and provides them with the standards-based
skills and knowledge to achieve academic proficiency. The district provided the school principal
with expanded control over budget, curriculum, governance, calendar, and staff selection.
In staff selection, the principal reported including students in the selection process.
Teachers who were hired had an elect to work agreement, agreed to go through training and
coaching activities, as well as committed to full engagement in school events. The principal
reported that the school creates their own curriculum with teachers turning in unit maps to
explain what their students will be learning. Teaching is personalized and student-centered.
Students learn through project-based learning which may involve different classes to compete
tasks. The principal gave an example of project-based learning where the 9
th
graders wrote
stories about a personal hero, created an accompanying scroll using what they learned in cultural
SUSTAINING THE ARTS 34

geography about China to design their scrolls. The students told the story of their hero in acting
class and created an ensemble piece representing their projects. In all, five subjects were
included in this project: English, acting, math, cultural geography, and theater design. Having
autonomy over the curriculum and calendar, the principal said that she allows teachers to plan
college trips to help emphasize the school’s emphasis on college and career readiness. The
principal reported that teachers at LAHSA are energized about teaching students in a different
way and are encouraged by their students’ success.
LAUSD recognized LAHSA as a “School on the Move” because of the efforts of its
principal and staff in creating a learning environment for students that provides a challenging
curriculum, meaningful integration across subjects, and authentic and engaging, creative projects
to deepen and expand students’ understanding. LAHSA’s innovative approach to learning
engages students and supports increased learning and achievement.
The strategies employed by these principals are aligned with the actions and strategies
recommended by the Arts Education Partnership (AEP) and PCAH (2011) in its guide for school
leaders to increase arts education in schools. These include establishing a school-wide
commitment to arts learning, creating an arts-rich learning environment, and rethinking the use
of time and resources. According to AEP and PCAH, the effects of these actions and strategies
when taken together as part of an overall approach, are cumulative, mutually reinforcing, and
more sustainable over time.
Freedman (2011) in her article Leadership in Art Education Taking Action in Schools and
Communities stressed that creative leadership in art education can encourage school and
community program transformation, promoting growth in the field and new learning
opportunities for students. According to her, the critical components for successful leadership in
SUSTAINING THE ARTS 35

art education are: understanding the difference between advocacy and leadership, leading as a
form of social action, forming and working in groups, responding to policy mandates,
maintaining a critical attitude, keeping hopes and dreams alive, staying in touch with the field,
making data-based decisions, employing the power of expert opinion, and acting as a role model.
Partnerships and collaboration in the community paints a bright future for arts education
(Hughes, 2011). In 2010, the Dallas Independent School District in collaboration with the
nonprofit organization Big Thought began a new arts-rich summer school program that brought
together schools and cultural organizations to restore high-quality arts instruction to classrooms.
The refashioned summer school, “Thriving Minds Summer Camp” operated a full day schedule
and offered more than 7,000 students a new arts-filled curriculum with a special theme for
Kindergarten through 5
th
grade. Intense professional development on project-based learning was
provided to 8000 classroom teachers, fine arts instructors, teaching artists, and school principals,
among others.
Among the recognized partnerships in art education is the collaboration between the
Chicago public schools and CAPE as well as South Carolina’s Arts in Basic Education (ABC)
Project with various school districts. The Chicago Public School District’s partnership with
CAPE developed an arts-integrated curriculum that resulted in significant student improvement
in high-poverty schools. South Carolina’s Arts in Basic Education (ABC) Project promoted the
disciplines of dance, music, theater, visual arts, and creative writing as basic to the education of
all students through collaboration among professional organizations, state agencies, state
departments of education, higher education institutions, and school districts.
Colley (2008) in her study of partnerships between cultural institutions and K-12 schools
found that leadership and vision, effective planning, broad-based community representation,
SUSTAINING THE ARTS 36

teacher, artist, and school leadership participation, public awareness and communication, shared
resources and funding, ongoing assessment, and commitment to sustained programs are among
the factors identified as connected with partnership’s success.
The Los Angeles Fund (L.A. Fund) for Public Education and its support of the Arts
Matter program as well as PCAH’s and the Turnaround Arts initiative are successful examples of
providing funding and resources for arts education.
The L.A. Fund was formed by LAUSD Superintendent John Deasy and philanthropist
Megan Chernin with the goal of supporting ideas that can make a dramatic, direct, and sustained
impact on children’s lives. The L.A. Fund recognizes the importance of art education by
providing multi-year school grants raised through Arts Matter for innovative arts integration
program. The grants reinforce LAUSD’s strategic plan of aligning curriculum with the new
Common Core Standards. The alignment of arts education with national standards is expected to
enhance college preparedness for LAUSD students.
The PCAH Turnaround Art Initiative is run by the AEP, National Assembly of State Arts
Agencies, National Endowment for the Arts, and the U.S. Department of Education. It provides
training and resources to address low-performing schools’ needs. Among the resources provided
are a summer leadership program, in-school professional development, partnerships with
community arts education and cultural organizations, additional art supplies and musical
instruments, and community engagement events. Presidential appointed artists on the PCAH
will adopt schools, working with them and their communities and highlighting their successes.
These new programs have assisted schools interested in making the arts a vital part of
public education. In a time of shrinking budgets and shifting priorities, schools need to able to
access funding and resources that will increase and sustain arts education.
SUSTAINING THE ARTS 37

In its guide for school leaders to increase arts education, AEP (2011) calls for rethinking
the use of school time and resources as a strategy to help students enjoy a richer, deeper, and
more meaningful education. Its recommendations include reallocating resources, tapping Title I
and II funds, adjusting schedules and repurposing space, using after-school time, and building
community resources.
Through this research undertaking of an arts-based school of choice that seeks to promote
academic and artistic excellence while also preparing students for post-school success in their
selected artistic and academic field, it is envisioned that knowledge about its arts programs,
leadership support, and resource allocation will help in the efforts to sustain arts education in
public schools.
Summary
The history of arts education is replete with periods when the arts were believed to be
basic to education as well as periods when the arts were regarded as a low priority or expendable.
Research outcomes for students, teachers, and schools have pointed to the value of arts in public
education. Yet, the arts have often taken a backseat in the educational curricula. Never has this
been more the case with the current NCLB era of high-stakes testing and accountability which
has resulted in the narrowing of the curriculum to emphasize reading and math instruction.
Despite the current climate of budget concerns and shifting priorities, there are promising
practices in the field of education resulting from leadership, partnership, and resource factors.
Schools across the nation have continued to press on to save the arts in public education. They
recognize that winning the race to educate America’s children most certainly includes the arts.

SUSTAINING THE ARTS 38

CHAPTER THREE: METHODOLOGY
This study examines how viable school programs in the arts are sustained despite shifting
educational priorities, accountability demands, and budgetary constraints. The purpose of the
study was to determine the key factors that enabled XYZ School to maintain its successful arts
programs. The study addressed the following research questions:
1. What are the arts programs that exist at XYZ School?
2. How does leadership at XYZ School support the arts program?
3. How are resources allocated at XYZ School?
This case study was one of eight in a thematic dissertation group. The group, composed
of teachers and school administrators from various California school districts, met from October
2012 to May 2013 to collaboratively examine how K-12 public schools in Southern California
manage to sustain viable arts programs. During monthly meetings, academic literature and
current information on the topic were shared and reviewed to determine the problem, purpose,
and questions of the research undertaking. The group agreed on the sampling criteria and
developed the research instruments that were utilized to collect data at each researcher’s selected
school site. Each of the case studies stands alone as an individual study of a unique school site.
Taken together, these case studies shed light on evidence that answer the study questions and
fulfill the purpose of the research.
A qualitative research methodology was utilized in this study. The major characteristics
of qualitative research noted by Merriam (2009) including the focus on process, understanding,
and meaning; the researcher as the primary instrument of data collection and analysis; the
inductive process; and richly descriptive product lend themselves for use in this case study. The
special features of qualitative case studies including its particularistic, descriptive, and heuristic
SUSTAINING THE ARTS 39

features likewise make for an in-depth approach to investigating a contemporary phenomenon
within a real-life context where the boundaries between phenomenon and context are not clearly
evident (Yin, 2008; Merriam, 2009).
Purposeful sampling was used in the selection of the study sites. According to Merriam
(2009), in purposeful sampling the investigator wants to discover, understand, and gain insight
and therefore must select a sample from which the most can be learned. The strength of
purposeful sampling lies in selecting information-rich cases that fit an established set of criteria.
The criteria set for purposeful sampling directly reflects the purpose of the study and guide in the
identification of information-rich cases.
This case study relied on research triangulation, a process where researchers utilize
multiple data-collection methods, data sources, analysis, and theories to check the validity of
case findings (Gall, Gall & Borg, 2003). This process eliminates bias that could arise from
exclusively relying on a single data collection method, source, analysis, or theory. Data was
derived from four research instruments (Appendix A, B, C, D) designed to provide triangulation
of data including document review, survey, observation, and interview (Merriam, 2009).
Sample and Population
For this study, a research criteria list for participant schools was created that covered
various indicators of high achievement and viability of arts programs. School sites were chosen
because they fit any three of the following criteria: evidence of a sustained arts program, high
achievement of 800 in the Academic Performance Index (API), school stability with the arts
program and leadership in place for at least three years, recognition as an exemplary school
through awards (e.g. California Distinguished School for Academic Excellence, Bravo Award of
SUSTAINING THE ARTS 40

Excellence in Arts Education, Distinguished School of the Arts Award, etc.) and grants, as well
as the accomplishment of its graduates, and documented master planning that includes the arts.
For this study, XYZ School was nominated as a possible research site. The school
satisfied five attributes in the criteria list for participant schools because:
1. The school was founded over two decades ago. It continues to offer training in the
visual and performing arts along with college-preparatory academic instruction. It
has been led by its current principal since 2008.
2. The school demonstrated high achievement by scoring 800+ in the California
Academic Performance Index (API). The school has received the following academic
and arts achievement recognition: California Distinguished School for Academic
Excellence, Bravo Awards for Excellence in Arts Education, Golden Bell Award,
distinguished Great Schools Rating of 9 out of 10, and Grammy Signature School.
3. The school has notable alumni who are well-known artists in music, dance, theater,
film, and visual arts.
4. The school continues to receive numerous donations and grants from individuals and
foundations. It has a strong parent council that supports fund-raising efforts and
volunteer programs.
5. The school demonstrates evidence of master planning through its conservatory-style
program. It has six departments including dance, music, theater, visual arts, musical
theater, and cinematic arts. Acceptance into the school is based on an audition and
portfolio process for a limited number of slots.
Permission to conduct the study was requested from the principal of XYZ School through
electronic mail correspondence. A preliminary proposal for the research was submitted. The
SUSTAINING THE ARTS 41

principal reviewed the proposed research and granted the researcher permission to undertake the
study at the school site.
Instrumentation
The conceptual model of the study was derived from Easton’s conceptual framework
(Easton, 1965). In the Easton model, stresses and inputs yield to demands and supports and
ultimately lead to an overall output. A diagram of the adapted conceptual model for this study is
presented in Figure 1: Conceptual Framework. Using this conceptual framework, the research
design limits the case study school to two components that make the arts programs in XYZ
School viable—leadership and resources. Data gathered not related to these two components do
not answer the study’s research questions and will not be utilized for this study. However, future
studies may arise from these unrelated data.
Figure 1: Conceptual Framework

SUSTAINING THE ARTS 42

From the existing body of literature on arts programs, it was evident that the inputs
represented school constraints and accountability measures imposed as a result of the
implementation of the NCLB legislation and budgetary concerns faced by national, state, and
local economies (PCAH, 2011; McNeil, 2005; Cavanagh, 2006; Center for Educational Policy,
2006). These elements were the overarching framework within which the school site in this case
study must operate. School leadership creates the climate and culture of the school which
impacts the school’s decision-making regarding school site educational programs (Sarros,
Cooper, & Santora, 2008). The leadership characteristics and qualities of school leaders
(Northouse, 2010) as well as the leadership process involved (Bolman and Deal, 2008) explain
how organizations undertake and sustain change. Equally important in the implementation and
maintenance of successful arts programs is effective resource allocation aligned with school
priorities (Art Education Partnership, 2011). The structure of the school and the focus of
curriculum and instruction likewise make for viable and sustainable arts programs (Waldorf &
Atwill, 2011; Noblit et al., 2009).
The thematic dissertation group collaborated to construct or adapt research instruments
that correspond to the research questions of the study. In order to achieve triangulation, items
developed in the research instruments were designed to provide responses to each of the study’s
research questions. Review of documents allowed the researchers to examine available
information on the school’s arts programs and resource allocation for the arts. Merriam (2009)
points out that documents help researchers uncover meaning, develop understanding, and
discover insights that are relevant to the research problem.
The survey instrument was adapted from the 2010 Los Angeles County Arts for All
School Arts Survey, the first large-scale instrument designed to track the equity of student access
SUSTAINING THE ARTS 43

to arts education and measure the quality of available arts instruction in five school districts
encompassing 100 schools in Los Angeles County. The adapted survey was designed to align
with the problem and research questions of the study. It was condensed and shortened to respect
the time of school site respondents and to avoid any disruption in the school’s instructional
program. Survey information was derived from a 4-point category scale describing the features
of the school’s arts programs in terms of pedagogy, student learning, environment, and
community. A 4-point scale was utilized because it is a forced-choice method that effectively
diverts respondents from taking the path of least resistance by choosing the middle, neutral
category or claiming uncertainty (Maxwell (2013). The survey questionnaires were completed
by school faculty who provided information about their thoughts, beliefs, and knowledge (Fink,
2013) about the school’s arts programs.
The interview protocol developed was a semi-structured instrument that was piloted at
school sites that partially met the criteria list of the research study. The pilot of the instrument
determined whether interview items were valid and effective in eliciting responses from the
interviewees. The semi-structured instrument served as an interview guide including a mix of
more and less structured interview questions used flexibly to gather specific data from all
respondents (Merriam, 2009). Administrators, teachers, and parents were interviewed as they
offered a wealth of information that addressed the study’s problem and research questions.
The observation protocol was constructed taking into account Merriam’s (2009) six
observation areas namely: physical space, participants, activities/interactions, conversation,
subtle factors, and observer behavior. The observation protocol required detailed field notes that
were analyzed for commonalities and differences. A Likert scale reflection tool was likewise
designed to shed light on observations about the culture and climate as well as decision-making
SUSTAINING THE ARTS 44

of the school organization based on the Bolman and Deal’s (2004) four-frame model including
the structural, human resource, political, and symbolic frames.
Table 1: Research Design and Instrumentation Alignment

The triangulation of data collected from these research instruments strengthened the
validity and reliability of the study. Merriam (2009) points out that information derived from an
interview may be validated or checked against a survey questionnaire, on site observation and
reflection, and document review regarding a phenomenon of interest. In addition, the review of
literature that shed light on the background, outcomes, and promising arts education programs in
public K-12 schools helped in the attainment of research credibility. Peer evaluation, field
testing, and guided revision of the research instruments further ensured the reliability of data
gathered. The congruence of emerging findings and interpretations was achieved through peer
discussions, reviews and examinations. To further safeguard the reliability of the study, the
Research Questions Data Needs Instrumentation
1. What are the arts
programs that exist
at XYZ School?

• Types of Arts Programs
• School Structure
• Curriculum and Instruction
• Types of Staffing

• Document Review
• Observation
• Survey

2. How does
leadership at XYZ
School support the
arts programs?

• Leadership Source
• Climate and Culture of the
school in relation to arts
• Decision-Making Process

• Interviews
• Observation
• Survey

3. How are resources
allocated at XYZ
School?

• Funding Allocation
• Time and Instructional
Minutes
• Facility and Equipment
Allocations
• Partnerships and
Collaborations
• Staffing Allotment

• Document Review
• Interviews
• Survey
SUSTAINING THE ARTS 45

researchers likewise reflected on their assumptions, world view, biases, theoretical orientation,
and relationship to the study (Merriam, 2009) that may affect the conduct of the research.
Data Collection
The process of data collection relied on document review, surveys, interviews and shared
stories, and observations. In spring 2013, the researcher began collecting data through a review
of the school’s electronic and hard-copy materials particularly the school website, accountability
report card, single plan for student achievement (SPSA), student handbook, master schedule and
calendar, syllabi, available/designated facilities, equipment inventory. The review of these
documents yielded information on programs that exist at XYZ School including curriculum and
instruction, structure of the organization, and staffing for the programs. In order to provide a
rich description of leadership at XYZ School, the following documents also were reviewed:
budget, SPSA, professional development calendar and agenda, bell schedule, and facility use
calendar. This review of documents generated information on the school climate and culture,
leadership structure, decision-making process, characteristics, and traits of school personnel. To
adequately describe the allocation of resources for the arts programs at XYZ School, the budget,
PTA meeting minutes, master schedule and calendar, 501(c)3 foundations, school grants and
donations were reviewed. These documents provided information on the school’s allocation of
time, money, people, and facilities for arts education programs. The review of documents also
underscored the importance of partnerships and collaborations in the arts.
Data collection resumed in summer 2013, when the school principal was interviewed and
a tour of the new school building facility provided by the assistant principal. Upon the
recommendation of the school principal, the survey questionnaire was revised to better capture
data from the school’s conservatory-style program. He also suggested the use of Google docs in
SUSTAINING THE ARTS 46

order for faculty and staff to access and fill out the survey form online. In the fall of 2013, while
the principal, faculty members, students and parent chaperones went on trip to China, the google
Google form was created for the principal’s review and approval.
In winter 2013, school performances, classroom instruction, school meetings, and
outreach activities were observed. Interviews were likewise conducted with representatives of
the school community. Survey questionnaires were distributed during a faculty meeting for
faculty and staff who did not fill out the Google survey form online. The questionnaires were
collected and analyzed for emergent themes. The collection of data through interviews and
observations was conducted during seven visits to XYZ School from summer 2013 and
culminating in winter 2013.
During data collection for this case study, it became evident that what was learned from
collected data was used to determine subsequent data collection activities. Gall, Gall, and Borg
(2003) notes that a case study researcher needs to spend time analyzing data informally while
data collection is in progress. Informal analysis led to the identification of research areas that
were in need of additional data. Decisions were made to adjust the research process accordingly.
Findings from the document review and the faculty/staff survey highlighted areas of focus for the
interviews and observations.
Data Analysis
The researcher utilized interpretational and reflective methods of analysis to make sense
of the case study data. Interpretational analysis is a process of examining case study data to find
constructs, themes, and patterns that describe and explain the phenomenon being studied while
reflective analysis is a process in wherein a researcher relies on intuition and judgment to portray
or evaluate the phenomenon being studied (Gall, Gall, & Borg, 2003).
SUSTAINING THE ARTS 47

Collected data was organized with the surveys tabulated, interviews transcribed,
observations recorded, and documents reviewed (Creswell, 2009). Data was categorized and
coded into groups based on themes and patterns. Thick and rich descriptions of the phenomenon
were likewise categorized and coded. These were linked to the research questions in order to
achieve triangulation of the themes, patterns, and descriptions. Analysis of data based on the
formulated categories of this case study including: description of the school arts programs,
leadership support for the arts programs, and resource allocation for the arts at XYZ School.
Summary
A qualitative research methodology was utilized in this case study. The phenomenon of
XYZ School sustaining its viable arts programs was examined and richly described. Purposeful
sampling was used in the selection of XYZ School as a study site as it fit the established research
criteria. Research instruments were designed to address the study problem and respond to the
research questions. Methods of data collection included document review, survey, interviews,
and observation. Interpretative and reflective analyses were employed to analyze collected data
from the four research instruments. This study relied on research triangulation to ensure the
validity and reliability of case findings.

SUSTAINING THE ARTS 48

CHAPTER FOUR: RESULTS
In this Chapter, information gathered and compiled from XYZ School is presented to
gain a greater understanding of the school’s arts program offerings, leadership support, and
resource allocation. It included information from interviews with various members of the school
community including representatives from administration, faculty, and staff. A survey of
teachers was likewise conducted. Observations conducted at the school site and a review of
documents, particularly, XYZ School’s website provided important data. Shared stories through
informal conversations with members of the school community were also used as data. The
researcher looked for key factors and salient themes that contributed to the sustainability of the
school’s arts programs.
The thematic dissertation group identified three questions that guided the case study
namely:
1. What are the arts programs that exist at XYZ School?
2. How does leadership at XYZ School support the arts programs?
3. How are resources allocated at XYZ School?
The data is organized into three key findings including XYZ School’s arts programs,
leadership support, and resource allocation. It is presented by telling the story of the
organization as if one were walking the day to day path of a member of this school community.
Results for Research Question 1
The first research question of this case study asked, “What are the arts programs that exist
at XYZ School?” Document review provided the primary source of data for this query. The
staff survey and observations supported information gathered from school documents and its
comprehensive website.
SUSTAINING THE ARTS 49

Approaching the school in the early morning, one immediately notices that this is not an
ordinary public high school. The modern three-story building has a huge event board
highlighting the school’s arts programs and performances. Students are walking from nearby bus
stops, arriving in carpools arranged by the school’s active Parent Council, or private
transportation provided by families. Entering the school lobby, announcements of various
exhibits, film showings, auditions, call backs, and final casting, are posted prominently together
with class schedules, field trips, academic competitions, and college and university scholarships.
Students mill around these announcements, many carrying musical instruments, cameras, art
portfolios, and backpacks filled with an assortment of textbooks, score sheets, scripts, art
materials, and dance/theater attires.
Over 600 students are enrolled in XYZ School representing the following: Caucasian
(50%), Hispanic (22%), African American (12%), Asian (12%), American Indian (1%), Pacific
Islander (1%), and Multiple Ethnicities (4%). The student population includes students who are
socioeconomically disadvantaged, (13%) English Language learners (2%), and learners with
special needs (1%).
These students come from 80 school districts in the county. Each one of them has chosen
to attend XYZ School’s academic program which is grounded in the arts. Prospective students
undergo an application process that includes juried auditions, portfolio, and academic reviews
commencing in October when applications are accepted and end in March when results are
posted. One hundred fifty spaces are available each year. As many as 1,000 students audition,
attesting to the success of XYZ School as a premier educational and arts institution.
In his School Accountability Report Card (SARC) message, the principal of XYZ School
points out that while admission into the school is a competitive process, formal training in the
SUSTAINING THE ARTS 50

arts in not a requirement but the demanding full-day program is one in which passion, hard work,
and dedication are definitely prerequisite. In interviews with the principal and assistant
principal, both of whom have been immersed in art education for decades, it was revealed that
the audition process does not exclude those with minimal art backgrounds but who demonstrate
great potential and passion for the arts. The principal shared that the audition panel, composed
of the art department faculty and industry professionals, does not know when a student who is
auditioning has an Individualized Education Plan (IEP). This blind audition for students whose
disabilities are not readily apparent ensures acceptance into the school based on ability. For her
part, the assistant principal attests that students of XYZ School are highly-motivated, often
enduring long commutes and a long school day that begins at 8 in the morning to 4 in the
afternoon, and sometimes staying as late as 10 in the evening for practice and performances.
In a 2011 interview with the Cable News Network, the school’s principal shared that
embracing creativity is why more than 95% of XYZ School’s graduates go on to college.
“While we value demonstrated skill, we look for that light behind the eye among students—that
passion.” To further strengthen this passion, the school’s mission for all students of XYZ School
is to provide them with powerful learning experiences, in order for them to embrace and excel in
the arts and academics while working towards their visions of the future. This mission statement
serves as a framework for the school’s expected school wide learning results embodied in the
acronym, ASPIRE, which stands for academic and artistic excellence, social responsibility,
preparation for global citizenship, integrity, rigor, and effective communication (XYZ
Community Handbook, 2013).
To achieve academic and artistic excellence in XYZ School, students are given an
academic foundation that can adequately prepare them for a higher level of education. They are
SUSTAINING THE ARTS 51

expected to become self-sufficient and able to determine realistic and vocational choices. To
cultivate social responsibility, students will develop skills and professionalism in their chosen art
form and an understanding and respect for other areas of art. To prepare students for global
citizenship, they will develop respect and tolerance for diversity as well as demonstrate
appropriate methods of conflict resolution. All students will likewise develop technological
proficiency and an understanding of its application to their academic and artistic endeavors. To
instill integrity among students, they will make informed choices and accept responsibility for
their actions. To bring about effective communication, students will successfully communicate
through traditional means of oral and written expressions and through their art. In order to
establish school wide rigor, students will meet or exceed the statewide standards in their
academic classes.
The impact of ESLR is evident in XYZ School’s 2011-2012 School Accountability
Report Card which indicated an Academic Performance Index (API) of 832 which is above the
State growth API of 788. XYZ School students who scored at the Proficient and Advanced
levels in 2011-2012 was 91% while 82% students scored at the Proficient and Advanced levels
in Mathematics. Its Statewide API rank is a 9. All seniors of the graduating class of 2012 met
the graduation requirements for receiving a high school diploma including passing the California
High School Exit Examination.
XYZ School’s commitment to excellence has earned XYZ School numerous awards and
recognition for academic and artistic distinction including: California Distinguished School for
Academic Excellence, Golden Bell for Outstanding Visual Arts Program, Music Center’s Bravo
Award, Arts Schools Network Exemplary School, Grammy Signature School for its Music
Program, California Business for Education Excellence Honor Roll, New York University’s
SUSTAINING THE ARTS 52

Tisch School of Arts Center for Excellence, among others. Newsweek and the Los Angeles
Magazine have named it one of America’s and Los Angeles’ Best High Schools. In 2013, an
unprecedented 4 Presidential Scholars in the Arts graduated from XYZ School.
XYZ graduates attend the country’s prestigious colleges, universities, and arts
conservatories as well as esteemed arts institutions abroad. In its 2013 Class Senior Survey,
with147 of the 151 seniors responding, 80 seniors indicated that they will be attending out-of-
state schools, 57 seniors stated that they will attending schools in California, and 5 will be
attending universities outside the United States. Their grade point average (GPA) based on the
total GPA for 7 semesters as reported on the students’ transcripts averaged 3.52 ranging from
2.54 to 4.30. The total scholarships and grants offered to XYZ School 2013 seniors was
$3,979,596. Many of them will be attending New York University, University of California Los
Angeles, Cal State Northridge, Pace University, University of California Irvine, Boston
Conservatory, Cal State Fullerton, Rhode Island School of Design, University of California
Berkeley, University of California Santa Cruz, and University of Southern California.
Walking into XYZ School’s administrative office located at the ground level of the
school building, one finds students freely entering the office and leaving some of their
instruments, artwork, and other materials for their art classes at a designated space in the office
waiting area. Others are conversing easily with the principal, assistant principals, or the support
staff updating them on their classes and activities. Teachers likewise gather in the office for
meetings or just to converse with each other about school and non-school matters. The school
support staff conducts school business in a warm and welcoming manner, ready to accommodate
and assist students, parents, community members, and school visitors alike. The hub of school
SUSTAINING THE ARTS 53

activity, the administrative offices exude an atmosphere of professional respect and easy
camaraderie that permeates throughout the school.
This organizational culture is in keeping with XYZ School’s essential guiding question
underscored by the principal in the 2013School Community Handbook—“How do we continue
to nurture and sustain our professional learning culture with a focus on maintaining strong
relationships and engaging instruction?” In his message to the community, the principal assured
the school community that XYZ School will continue to strengthen its communication and
decision-making structures so that all stakeholders feel their voices, concerns, and suggestions
are heard. Its school-wide goals include: collaboratively examining and implementing teaching,
learning, and assessment practices that promote student engagement and are aligned with
Common Core Standards and continuing to build a healthy school culture focusing on
strengthening student support structures and wellness.
Students make their way up or down the staircase to 20 classrooms located on the ground
and second level of the school building. The classrooms resemble artist lofts with a minimalist
design to ensure that academic and arts classes are able to share the space during their allotted
periods of the school day. Academic classes are held from 8:00 to 12:35 Mondays to Thursdays
and from 10:00 to 12:55 on Fridays while arts classes are held from 1:20 to 4:00 Mondays to
Thursdays and from 1:35 to 3:00 on Fridays. Each classroom has a teacher audio visual podium
with a computer, document camera, dvd player, and laptop connections, acoustic walls, ceiling
speakers, wireless microphone for voice support, projector and screen, whiteboards, and
available mobile carts for laptop computers, iPad tablets, and printer stations (Building
Orientation Packet, 2013). Specialized classroom resources include risers for the music
classrooms, mirror walls and video screens in dance and drama classrooms, dressing rooms
SUSTAINING THE ARTS 54

adjacent to the dance, drama, and theater areas, document cameras, televisions, blue-ray players,
film studio and editing room for film classes. There is a music technology computer lab as well
as a combined black box theater/physical education/dance studio with state-of-the-art technology
and a seating capacity of 260.
Students boisterously pass each other in hallways lined with lockers the walls that are
dotted with flyers and announcements of upcoming art events on and off campus, scholarships,
competitions, and other arts opportunities. Teachers and staff are seen busily walking in and out
of the work area/staff lounge in the second floor to quickly run copies, check papers, take a
coffee break, or conduct a brown bag meeting. The principal and administrators often visit the
work area/staff lounge to be accessible to faculty and staff. Five offices are likewise located in
the second level for an assistant principal, department chairs, counselors, and key staff members
which ensure supervision and easy student access to school personnel.
The students receive academic instruction in core academic curriculum (A-G
requirements) from 8:00 a.m. to 12:35 p.m. Mondays through Thursdays. On Fridays, academic
instruction begins at 10:00 a.m., in order to allow time for faculty professional development, and
ends at 1:30 p.m.. Arts instruction is provided after lunch from 1:15 p.m. to 4:00 p.m. on
Mondays to Thursdays and from 1:30 p.m. to 4:00 p.m. on Fridays.
Aligned with the California Visual and Performing Arts Framework, XYZ School’s arts
programs give talented students comprehensive, sequential training and many performance and
exhibition opportunities to develop their artistic potential to the fullest (XYZ School website).
Students receive conservatory-style arts instruction from distinguished professional artists in one
of the following major art courses of study: cinematic arts, dance, music, theater, musical theater,
and visual arts. At different grade levels, students are exposed to various areas of focus or
SUSTAINING THE ARTS 55

emphasis in their chosen majors. They are expected to participate in various school
performances and events throughout the school year.
Music
The school’s highly regarded music program offers students the opportunity to study
classical and jazz music theory training from music fundamentals to advanced harmony, perform
in large and small instrumental and vocal ensembles, and study music technology along with
film scoring (XYZ School Fact Sheet, 2013). Each ensemble performs in public concerts three
times a year, including an annual music gala, which features all ensembles. The Opera Workshop
likewise presents a musical and grand opera each year. The school’s Full Circle Opera prepares
students for the professional arena and to continue mastering their art through college and
university education.
In an interview with a music faculty member who has worked at XYZ School for over
two decades, a spirit of collegiality has enabled the music department to continue to grow and
reap various accolades and awards. The music chair and faculty have been connected with the
school for many years with a combined length of service that exceeds any of the other art
departments. A number of them are proud alumni of XYZ School. The lack of turnover of
faculty ensures the continued success and popularity of the school’s music program.
Observing the students in the music practice rooms, one is amazed at the dedication and
discipline involved in playing instruments in an ensemble. Each practice room is in use, with the
faculty-in-charge overseeing their practice sessions. The conversations among students are filled
with music jargon and terminology, highlighting the fact that students are steeped and well-
versed in their art form. Under the tutelage of world class musicians who comprise the music
program’s faculty, students appear to be thriving and learning to perfect their craft.
SUSTAINING THE ARTS 56

Dance
The dance program of XYZ School is structured on a four-year foundation of ballet and
modern dance classes. It seeks to transform young dancers into powerful and expressive artists
with the skills and versatility to perform in any dance genre (XYZ School website). Taught by a
faculty of professional dancers, every dance class gives students the opportunity to develop keen
kinesthetic awareness and strong movement communication skills. Students learn to appreciate
and care for their bodies though proper conditioning, dance technique, rest, and nutrition. In
studying and performing the works of master choreographers, students likewise learn about the
times and cultures from which those works arose.
Master classes are taught by distinguished visiting artists that have included various
national and international dance companies known for performing particular dance genres.
Students attend professional dance performances and perform in the following venues: Winter
Dance Offerings, Spring Dance Concert, Junior Dance Composition Workshop, Senior
Showcase, and as an official dance squad of a Women’s National Basketball Association team.
Observing the Senior Dance Solo Performance which showcased the talents of 23 dance
program seniors, it was evident through their choreography and dance routines that the dancers
took advantage of years of dance instruction to hone their performance skills. In this
performance, members of the audience were invited to complete evaluation forms to critique the
performers on technique, performance, choreography, and potential for success in a dance
program. Alumni and professional dancers were on hand to provide support to the budding
artists in. According to the dance department chair, the students benefit from going through this
rigorous process in order to prepare them for auditions to dance programs in prestigious colleges
and universities both here and abroad.
SUSTAINING THE ARTS 57

Theater
The theatre program of ZYZ School has a multilevel, continuous curriculum, with a
scope and sequence that offers beginning to advanced techniques in acting, voice, movement,
dance, stagecraft, history, and literature/criticism. The course of study provides a
multidimensional experience that captures the breadth and depth of theatre as an art form and
exposes students to historical, contemporary, social, multicultural, and cutting-edge concepts in
theatre.
The theater program emphasizes individual growth and personal discovery while building
ensemble. Students are actively involved as creators and evaluators of theatre arts. XYZ School
theatre students graduate not only as trained actors with artistic integrity and shared standards of
excellence, but critical thinkers, arts leaders and advocates for the theatre arts (XYZ School Fact
Sheet, 2013).
The faculty consists of working professional artists and designers who share their
expertise, experiences and passion for the art of theatre. Observing a voice, speech, and diction
class, the teacher utilized the International Phonetic Alphabet to instruct students on speech and
dialect work. For the voice work he employed the Linklater/Fitzmaurice based recognition and
relaxation techniques and the Alexander principles of physical and vocal freedom. The students
are adept in transcribing speech sounds into regional varieties of English spoken in Scotland,
Britain, Australia, among others.
An acting class was likewise observed where students rehearsed two-person scenes. The
faculty member teaching the class utilized the Stanislavski approach to acting which emphasizes
the discovery of what the character wants or the character’s objective, what prevents the
character from getting it or the character’s obstacle, and what means or method the character will
SUSTAINING THE ARTS 58

use to achieve this goal. According to the teacher, by analyzing characters, students are able to
create truthful performances, using monologues, dialogues, and improvisations.
Musical Theater
The musical theatre program is interdisciplinary and designed to produce a selected
musical/s integrating the arts areas of dance, music, theatre and visual arts. Production aspects
include training in voice production in speaking and singing, acting, movement and dance,
stressing performance techniques. Participation is by audition. The musical theater department
offers a year-long dual major option, also by audition. Course work culminates in a fully staged
production/s.
The musical theatre program integrates spirited vocals, energized dancing and dramatic
acting. All of these arts coalesce to create a dazzling masterpiece that excites all of the senses.
Students are exposed to professional standards and training by professionals in the industry to
enhance skill building as preparation for further education and careers in the field of musical
theatre performance.
In observing the production of the Spring Awakening, an example of the cutting edge
contemporary works offered to students in XYZ School which include mature themes, strong
language, and sexual content, it was evident that student performers skillfully tackled this
coming of age play which premiered in 1906 but whose themes remain relevant to the youth of
today.
While observing students excitedly gather around final casting notice for two upcoming
school productions, Footloose and Artland, a conversation with the chair of the musical theater
department who had just posted the notice, brought to light the popularity of open casting calls
SUSTAINING THE ARTS 59

among various art majors. The department chair makes sure that he is present when final casting
is posted to personally acknowledge the talent and hard work of all students who auditioned.
Visual Arts
The visual arts program of XYZ School provides students with skills and techniques in
various media while focusing on concepts and ideas. The freshman year focuses on basic skills,
concepts and theory in 2-D and 3-D Art and design. Students advance to a diverse curriculum
that offers classes that include drawing, painting, sculpture, photography, ceramics, new genres,
graphics, illustration, fashion, and animation.
Unique to the high school experience, XYZ School has an esteemed visual arts faculty
comprised of professional artists recognized in their field. Classes are supplemented by visiting
artists, as well as field trips to museums and galleries. Students have exhibit opportunities
throughout the year in professional venues and their work is produced in an annual Visual Arts
Portfolio.
In observing the visual arts program’s exhibit entitled Present Body Future Body at the
Pico House Gallery, visual artists of XYZ School proudly displayed their art in various visual
formats. The opening reception held on a Saturday afternoon at the historic El Pueblo de Los
Angeles was well attended by students’ friends and family and various art enthusiasts. During
the exhibit, a proud parent was observed standing by her daughter’s art piece ready to respond to
inquiries by exhibit attendees.
A fashion design class was likewise observed where students are creating muslin drapes
for transfer to pattern paper that will be used to cut fabric. The students are preparing garments
for a fashion show, the class culminating project. According to the teacher, the students select
the fashion show theme, prepare their sketches, and are responsible for final construction of their
SUSTAINING THE ARTS 60

garments. The teacher provides one on one critique of each student’s or a group of students’
work. She successfully incorporates the students’ original ideas with current design demands
and fashion industry standards.
Cinematic Arts
The cinematic arts program offered at ZYZ School is both a major and a school-wide
elective offered to students. Art majors from different departments may take classes in the
cinematic arts department as a way to expand their artistic knowledge and talents. To major
cinematic arts, students must gain admittance to the school through a portfolio review process (XYZ
School website).
The cinematic arts program offers extensive training and practical hands-on experience to
students interested in the ever-growing film industry. In classes, students use state-of-the-art
camera, lighting, and sound equipment, as well as industry standard post-production computer
software. They are likewise given the opportunity to develop and deepen their filmmaking skills
through the department’s unique vertical and horizontal integration of curriculum. This ensures
that each consecutive year in the program enhances and expands students’ knowledge in film.
Cinematic arts students are not difficult to spot on campus. They are busy shooting films
with recently purchased, sophisticated equipment, including Red Epic cameras as well as Sony’s
F55 digital cinema camera. They are also found in the school’s new film studio and editing
room, transforming footage into meaningful and emotionally evocative images.
In a Southern California Public Radio blog article (June 2013) on the XYZ School’s new
building and facilities, the chair of the school’s cinematic arts department highlighted the need to
introduce top of the line film equipment to young students. He expressed his hope that in the
SUSTAINING THE ARTS 61

near future, alumni will win Academy Awards and talk about how they had attended the XYZ
School.
The results of the survey of 29 faculty and staff of XYZ School yielded information that
supported data gleaned from document review, observations, and interviews on the school’s arts
program. XYZ School has 22 full time academic faculty members, 6 arts department chairs, 2
counselors, 1 resource specialist, 4 office staff, and nearly 100 professional teaching artists.
Majority (48%) of the respondents represented teachers who have worked at XYZ School for
five years or less. Fifty-five percent have worked as educators or artists for over 15 years. The
respondents teach 1 to 3 of the following academic or art subjects: math, English, science, social
studies, foreign language, physical education, special education, music, dance, theater, film,
visual arts, and musical theater.
Responses to the features of the arts program in the area of pedagogy indicate that sound
curricular and instructional practices exist at XYZ School. Table 2 shows that the respondents’
answers to questions on the school’s arts curriculum and instruction, use of learning outcomes
for planning and evaluation, and meeting the needs of diverse learners were favorable.
Majority (62%) of the respondents indicated that the school offers a curriculum of
sequential standards-based instruction in the major arts disciplines. On the question whether the
school has a written arts plan that aligns with the district arts policy and arts education plan, 38%
of the respondents answered Always.
Forty-one percent of the faculty and staff said that they often discuss student artwork,
assessment, and arts instruction at grade level or subject-alike planning meetings. On the
question whether the school’s arts curriculum meets the needs of diverse populations of learners,
38% of the respondents indicated Most of the Time. Thirty-four percent of the respondents
SUSTAINING THE ARTS 62

likewise said that teachers often use arts learning outcomes to evaluate their curriculum and
instructional methods.
Responses to query on whether teachers meet regularly to engage in professional
dialogue about instruction, individual student needs, and learning outcomes in and through the
arts fell within Most of the Time and Always (45%).
Table 2: Pedagogy in the Arts Programs

Pedagogy
1
Never
2
Sometimes
3
Most of
the Time
4
Always
1. Does your school offer a
curriculum of sequential,
standards-based instruction in
the major arts disciplines
(dance, film, music, theatre and
visual arts)?
2 3 2 18
2. How often do teachers at your
school discuss student artwork,
assessment and arts instruction
at grade level/ subject-alike
planning meetings?
2 8 12 4
3. How often do teachers use arts
learning outcomes to evaluate
their curriculum and
instructional methods?
1 7 10 5
4. How often do instructional
leaders review teaching outlines
in the major arts disciplines to
ensure instructional sequencing?
4 7 3 7
5. Do teachers meet regularly to
engage in professional dialogue
about instruction, individual
student needs, and learning
outcomes in and through the
arts?
2 7 7 6
6. Does your school have a written
arts plan that aligns with the
district arts policy and arts
education plan?
1 5 4 11
7. Does your school’s arts
curriculum meet the needs of
diverse populations of learners?
1 3 11 10
SUSTAINING THE ARTS 63

The faculty and staff survey on the features of XYZ School’s arts program indicates
strong support for dynamic student learning in the arts. Table 3 shows that majority of the staff
responses on the use of various instructional strategies to encourage learning, use of learning
outcomes to evaluate instruction, inclusion of real-life applications to prepare students for
postsecondary goals, informing parents on their student’s progress in the arts, and use of report
cards to document student learning in the arts fell within Always and Most of the Time.
Sixty-two percent of the respondents said that they always utilize student art learning
outcomes to evaluate the curriculum and instructional methods. Fifty-five of the teachers
indicated that they always encourage students to draw on their personal background and
experiences to inform their arts learning
Forty-eight percent of the respondents stated that the arts curriculum at XYZ School
included real-life applications that prepare students for postsecondary education, focused
training, and eventual employment. Forty-two percent of the teachers said that their instruction
emphasized cooperation, interactive learning, and team building.
Responses to the query on how often teachers urge students to explore a variety of artistic
traditions from around the world fell within Always and Most of the Time (59%). On the
question of whether teachers provide parents with specifics about their student’s progress in arts
learning programs, majority of the responses were Always and Most of the Time (42%). Thirty-
four percent of the teachers indicated they often document student learning in key arts standards
in report cards.
While many of the respondents in the survey were mostly from XYZ School’s various
academic departments, their responses indicated that they integrated the arts into their instruction
in order to engage students and support their learning in the arts.
SUSTAINING THE ARTS 64

Table 3: Student Learning in the Arts Programs

Student Learning

1
Never
2
Sometimes
3
Most of
the Time
4
Always
1. How often do you encourage
students to draw on their
personal background and
experiences to inform their arts
learning?
0 3 10 16
2. How often do you urge students
to explore a variety of artistic
traditions from around the
world?
0 11 9 8
3. Does your art instruction
emphasize cooperation,
interactive learning, and team
building?
1 2 8 12
4. Do you utilize student art
learning outcomes to evaluate
the curriculum and instructional
methods?
0 2 8 18
5. Do you provide parents with
specifics about their student’s
progress in arts learning
programs?
3 6 4 8
6. Do your periodic report cards
document student learning in key
arts standards?
7 1 10 3
7. Does the arts curriculum include
real-life applications that prepare
students for postsecondary
education, focused training, and
eventual employment?
1 2 5 14

Results for Research Question 2
The second research question of this case study asked, “How does leadership at XYZ
School support the arts programs?” Interviews and observations were a rich source of data for
this query. Information gathered from the survey supported data gleaned from other research
instruments.
SUSTAINING THE ARTS 65

The principal of XYZ School is one of the first to arrive on campus. After checking his
calendar for appointments and meetings and responding to messages left for him, the principal
meets with and welcomes a student teacher starting her assignment in the school’s foreign
language department. He then proceeds to touch base with the assistant principal regarding the
agenda for faculty meeting he will chair shortly.
He is the longest serving principal in the history of XYZ School and brings with him
nearly two decades of leadership in education and the arts. Under his principalship, XYZ School
has further heightened its profile statewide, nationwide, and internationally. He serves as board
director of various organizations involved in the arts. He has likewise been recognized by
educational institutions for his leadership in the arts education field (XYZ School website).
Presiding over the first staff meeting for the year, the principal sets a familial and
collegial tone for the meeting. He starts off by welcoming everyone back from the Winter break
and then joins the social committee in greeting birthday celebrants for the month, offers
congratulations to a staff member on her upcoming nuptials, and expresses support for an
administrator who has come back from a bereavement leave. He introduces and welcomes the
student teacher as well as the researcher conducting a study of the school’s arts programs.
The principal steers the meeting onto the agenda which centers on Common Core
planning and collaboration. With the roll out of the Common Core State Standards in public
schools around the nation, XYZ School is well on its way towards ensuring that all students have
the skills and knowledge necessary to succeed in college, career, and life upon graduation from
high school. The principal demonstrates instructional leadership during the meeting by walking
the staff through the Common Core assessment focus on literary products. He informs the staff
of the upcoming opportunities to observe a partner teacher’s common core instruction and reflect
SUSTAINING THE ARTS 66

on each other’s practice. He then dismisses them to meet with department teams in order to
engage in pedagogical conversations involving Common Core.
He also announce the Student Success Team meetings that will be taking place to assist
students who struggled the most in the first semester and received failing marks in academic or
the arts subjects. Teachers, parents, counselors, and the student’s arts chair will be present
during the meeting. He emphasized that both student and adult commitments will be secured
during these meetings to work towards a common goal of school success.
The principal’s day continues with him attending the orientation meeting for nearly 50
student mentors who interviewed to participate in XYZ School’s outreach music program for
elementary students. He expresses his appreciation for the students’ support and interest in the
program and encourages them to make the most of this experience as music education may be
one of the many fields that they can be successful in. The students look to him as a role model in
the field of music education as he holds degrees in both music and education and has been
successful as an educational leader in various educational institutions with a focus on the arts.
Throughout the day, the principal is in formal and informal meetings with school faculty
and staff, arts chairs, parents, and school visitors. He is on hand to oversee the afterschool music
program for 4
th
grade students from local schools. At the end of the day, he meets with the
Parent Council and updates them on school activities and upcoming events. He responds to their
queries and various concerns. There appears to be good working relationship that exists between
the school and the parents which can be attributed to the principal’s leadership and commitment
to students and their families.
In interviews with school leadership, including the principal and assistant principal, it
was revealed that shared leadership at the school site is what continues to ensure the success of
SUSTAINING THE ARTS 67

the school programs in the arts. This shared leadership is directed by the school principal who
encourages buy-in from all stakeholders of XYZ School.
In his Principal’s Message for the schoolyear 2013-2014 opening, he stated:
It is my privilege and honor to lead one of the most exciting and dynamic schools
anywhere! XYZ School is now entering its next quarter century and we are as committed
as ever to strengthening this world-class school. As we enter this year, we are
determined to continue to strengthen our communication and decision-making structures
so that all stakeholders feel their voices, concerns, and suggestions are heard. As an
educational and arts institution our school-wide focus is simple: to take a great school
from excellence to eminence. We are committed to sustaining XYZ School’s place as a
leader in arts and academics. (XYZ School website, 2013)
The Assistant Principal notes that while the school leadership is the driving force behind
the arts program, the school’s stellar and topnotch faculty help maintain the XYZ School’s
reputation as a leading arts institution. Trained as a dancer and having been a choreographer,
teacher, and artistic director, she recognizes the importance of the arts faculty in enhancing the
school’s image. According to her, the school’s arts department faculty members are highly
recognized practicing artists in their respective fields. The caliber of teaching and teachers’ high
expectations for all students make for student growth and school achievement.
The combination of mentorship and high expectations at XYZ School has translated into
student achievement in academics and the arts. The principal described achievement as
currency:
One of the hallmark features of XYZ School is the recognition that skill is the most
valuable currency prized by our students. This is reflected in the numbers on our Dean’s
SUSTAINING THE ARTS 68

list, for example, or those recognized by the National YoungArts Foundation—more than
any other high school in the nation. Adolescent culture is often punctuated by the allure
of glamour, materialism, and sheer size. These are often the most valuable commodities
in your typical high school where currency is accrued by the beautiful, the wealthy, and
the strong. At XYZ School, our culture could not be more different. Our students aspire
to develop their artistic talents and refine their academic skill, those most practiced and
studied artists-scholars claim top shelf. (XYZ School website, 2012)
Utilizing Bolman and Deal’s (2004) four-frame model of organizations to reflect on XYZ
School’s leadership, it was observed that the interplay among the human resource, symbolic,
structural, and political frames strengthened the organization in pursuit of its mission to be a
leading arts and academic institution. XYZ School leadership likewise demonstrated an ability
to reframe or learn from multiple perspectives.
Bolman and Deal (2008) note that learning from organizational frames, lenses, or
perspectives serve multiple functions. “They are filters for sorting essence from trivia, maps that
aid in navigation, and tools for solving problems and getting things done (p.21).
Bolman and Deal further explain:
Each of the frames is both powerful and coherent. Collectively, they make possible to
reframe, looking at the same thing from multiple lenses or points of view. When the
world seems hopelessly confusing and nothing is working, reframing is a powerful tool
for gaining clarity, regaining balance, generating new options, and finding strategies that
make a difference. (Bolman & Deal, 2008, p. 22)
The human resource frame with its emphasis on skills, needs, and relationships was noted
in school leadership’s focus on recruiting and maintaining outstanding teachers and professional
SUSTAINING THE ARTS 69

artists who enhance the school’s arts and academic programs. Targeted professional
development met the needs of teachers in order for them to provide high quality instruction to
their students. Relationships were enhanced by through various projects undertaken by
stakeholders including the students, alumni, parents, teachers, administrators, public offices,
private organizations, businesses, the arts community, and international partners.
The symbolic frame which emphasizes rituals, ceremonies, and stories was observed in
XYZ School’s various performances that showcase the students’ talents and achievements.
Throughout the year, events to celebrate the arts are well-planned and made possible through the
collaboration between the school and its partners. The school website showcases the various
activities and events that continue draw many supporters of the arts to contribute to the arts
programs of the school.
The structural frame with its emphasis on environment, goals, and policies was observed
in the school’s vision, mission, and action plans as stated in its Community Handbook, Three-
year Term Progress Report to the Accrediting Commission for Schools Western Association of
Schools and Colleges, School Accountability Report Card, School Fact Sheet, and school
website. The school’s new building attests to the continued growth and viability of XYZ School
as it accommodates more facilities, equipment, as well as personnel for students to make the
most of the education they are provided.
The political frame which emphasizes politics, power, and competition was noted in the
XYZ School’s long-standing partnerships as well as collaboration among stakeholders in arts
education. The school leadership, Parent Council, School Foundation, and various community
partners work together in order to ensure that the school’s arts program is robust, thriving, and
well-funded. Having been in existence for decades, XYZ School has weathered various
SUSTAINING THE ARTS 70

economic and political pressures, in order to make sure that young artists have a school that will
cater to their educational needs and allow them to be future practitioners in the arts field.
The survey questionnaire filled out by teachers and staff likewise yielded information on
XYZ School’s leadership and how it effectively supports the arts. The results indicated strong
leadership support for the arts. Table 4 shows that majority of the responses were favorable to
questions on leadership in curriculum and instruction, human resources, budget and planning,
policy and practice.
Seventy-two percent of the school faculty and staff who participated in the survey
indicated that the school leadership, through explicit policies and practices, always makes clear
that arts education is a responsibility of the whole school and is critical to the realization of the
school’s mission and vision.
Sixty-nine percent of the respondents stated that the school always employs highly
qualified teachers in the visual and performing arts and contracts with additional individuals and
groups with expertise in the arts. Sixty-two percent of the respondents indicated that
instructional leaders always review teaching outlines in the major arts disciplines to ensure
instructional sequencing. Fifty-two percent of respondents agreed that administrators always
review the Master class schedule to ensure access to arts instruction for all students. Fifty-two
percent of the respondents likewise indicated that administrators and teaching staff always
monitor the appropriate placement of students in arts classes.
Survey results also showed that the administrators and staff of XYZ School have an
organized approach to arts education that aligns with the school wide instructional plan.
Majority of the responses to this query were Always and Most of the Time (62%). Only
seventeen percent stated that leadership sometimes has an organized approach to arts education
SUSTAINING THE ARTS 71

that aligns with the school’s instructional plan. The respondents indicated that leadership
allotted a budget for collaborative planning in the various arts disciplines. Majority of their
responses fell within Always and Most of the Time (48%). Only twenty-eight percent said that
leadership sometimes included collaborative planning in arts education in the school budget.
Table 4: Leadership of the Arts Programs

Leadership
1
Never
2
Sometimes
3
Most of
the Time
4
Always
1. Does your school employ highly
qualified teachers in the visual and
performing arts and contracts with
additional individuals and groups
with expertise in the arts?
0 0 5 20
2. Does the school budget (combined
district, state and federal funds)
include collaborative planning in
arts education (including all arts
disciplines)?
2 8 6 8
3. Do your school administrators and
staff have an organized approach
to arts education that aligns with
the school wide instructional plan?
0 5 7 11
4. How often do instructional leaders
review teaching outlines in the
major arts disciplines to ensure
instructional sequencing?
0 2 8 18
5. Do administrators review the
Master class schedule to ensure
access to arts instruction for all
students?
1 1 5 15
6. Do administrators and teaching
staff monitor the appropriate
placement of students in arts
classes?
1 1 6 15
7. Does the school leadership,
through explicit policies and
practices, make clear that arts
education is a responsibility of the
whole school and is critical to the
realization of the school’s mission
and vision?
0 4 1 21
SUSTAINING THE ARTS 72

Results for Research Question 3

The third research question of this case study asked, “How are resources allocated at
XYZ School?” Information gleaned from school documents, school survey, as well as
interviews with administrators and staff were the primary sources of data for this research
question regarding XYZ School’s resources and its allocation.
In an interview with the principal, it was noted that XYZ School derives funds from
public and private sources. Public funds cover about $5 million of the school’s total
expenditures of over $6 million (including the arts programs). Private funds in the form of
contributions from the school’s 501(c)(3) non-profit foundation, XYZ School Foundation, help
bridge the gap between available public funds and the actual cost of operating the school’s arts
programs. For more than two decades, the XYZ School Foundation has provided nearly $20
million of direct funding to support the arts programs. Institution donations account for over
$600,000 while parent and individual contributions account for some $400,000 in funds.
XYZ School’s principal has the unique role of managing public funds while generating
revenue which may include fund raising activities, grant writing, arts initiatives and projects,
among others. The principal has been highly successful in this role as the school has many
partnerships with the government sector, industry, educational institutions, private institutions,
arts organizations, artists, and alumni.
During the height of school budget cuts in schooyear 2012-2013, XYZ School, in its
January 29, 2012 Parent Townhall Meeting with members of the XYZ School Foundation
present informed the school community of the trigger cut of over $225,000 in public revenue
funds resulting in an estimated $1.2 million shortfall in expenditures. The XYZ School
Foundation reported that contributions from various institutions amounting to $603,347 and
SUSTAINING THE ARTS 73

$274,473 from parents and individuals were not enough to cover the shortfall. This led to a
consensus that revenue generation needed to be a top priority of the school community in order
to address budget constraints that will ultimately impact its arts offerings.
In his September 21, 2012 Budget Update, the principal of XYZ School acknowledged
the challenges of funding the school’s arts programs during the budgetary crisis. He stated:
The uncertain economic climate has impacted us severely. Most significantly, we have
cancelled arts classes on Fridays impacting the quality of experience for our students and
affecting the livelihoods of many of our professional teaching artists. We have closed
open positions to realize salary savings for arts programs. These include our assistant
principal for academics and numerous other staff positions. While there is virtually no
area of the school unaffected by stained budgets, our arts programs have been hit hardest.
(XYZ School website, 2012)
The principal likewise thank the faculty and staff for their resilience. He recognized the
hard work of the various art chairs who have exhibited steady leadership and wise decision
making despite fewer dollars and shouldering the stress of maintaining the quality of XYZ
School’s programs. According to him, the academic faculty was tasked with 90 minutes of
additional instructional time each week while the office and administrative staff have embraced
additional duties willingly and without complaint.
The principal thanked the families of students in XYZ School for their remarkable
response and tireless commitment to the financial strength of the school. He urged families to
continue to assist in institutional fundraising initiatives in collaboration with the Parent Council
and the XYZ School Foundation.
SUSTAINING THE ARTS 74

The fundraising activities included a Parent Pledge component, Chip In campaign, and
the Walk for the Arts yearly event. Proceeds of the Parent Pledged raised over $300,000 with
the funds directed to specific arts departments in order to allow the department chairs to utilize
the funds where they were needed the most. The target was 100% parent participation with any
pledge amount accepted. The Chip In campaign’s goal was to restore Friday arts classes.
Spearheaded by the Parent Council, the Walk for the Arts generated funds from individuals
outside the school community. All the funds raised from the Walk for the Arts campaign were
allotted for arts department events throughout the year.
Earlier in the year, XYZ School students, who founded an independent theater company,
likewise raised funds from a summer performance with proceeds going to the school’s theater
department. The principal lauded the students’ efforts and dedication to their school. He
likewise pledged his commitment to students of XYZ School as follows:
The students’ performance illuminated the importance of what we do and why we do it.
What we do here matters. Our students have buoyed my determination to see us through
these very difficult times. And although there may be change in the horizon—life seldom
escapes this—I pledge to the students of XYZ School to do everything I can to ensure
and promote the essence and integrity of this school. (XYZ School website, 2012)
By December 2012, with enough funds raised and the Passage of Proposition 30 which
eased educational budgetary concerns, the Principal of XYZ School announced the reinstatement
of Friday arts classes beginning the second semester in 2013. He announced the following:
This has been a difficult start to our schoolyear. Like other public schools around the
country, we have had to make difficult choices. Our response to the difficult budget
climate over the last few years has been marked by the strength of our community. Our
SUSTAINING THE ARTS 75

students and families, time and again, have demonstrated that action and passion can
triumph over frustration and despair. The true strength of a community is found, not
when the road is easy or familiar, but when uncertainty and difficulty loom large. (XYZ
School Website, 2012)
Funding-related questions in the survey provided a valuable source of information for
data collection to answer the third research question. Table 5 lists the survey questions related to
Research Question 3 with their respective responses. It was noted that the school receives
support from various sources. These resources are efficiently allocated to fund the arts programs
of XYZ School.
Seventy-three percent of the respondents indicated that parents actively supported the
school’s programs. Sixty-nine percent said that the school employs highly qualified teachers and
contracts other individuals and groups with expertise in the arts. Forty-five percent agreed that
community funding (teacher, grants, donations, and bond, local tax, etc.) exists in arts education
(including all arts disciplines). Thirty-eight percent of the respondents believe that supplemental
learning materials, adequate supplies, and functional equipment are available to students in all
arts facilities.
The responses of the faculty and staff on whether the school has established effective
instructional relationships with the business community to provide students with technical
resources, field knowledge, and/or skill-building experiences that will help them succeed in the
workplace were mostly Always and Most of the Time (52%). On the question on whether the
school’s budget (combined district, state, and federal funds) includes collaborative planning in
arts education (including all arts disciplines), majority of the faculty and staff responses were
Always and Most of the Time (48%).
SUSTAINING THE ARTS 76

Results of document review, observations, interviews, and the survey, attest to how XYZ
school is able to generate funds and allocate resources to ensure that the arts program offerings
are intact even during times of budgetary difficulties.
Table 5: Resource Allocation in the Arts Programs

Resources
1
Never
2
Sometimes
3
Most of
the Time
4
Always
1. Does the school employ highly
qualified teachers in the visual
and performing arts and contract
with additional individuals and
groups with expertise in the arts?
0 0 5 20
2. Does the school budget
(combined district, state, and
federal funds) include
collaborative planning in arts
education (including all arts
disciplines)?
2 8 6 8
3. Does community funding
(teacher, grants, donations, and
bond, local tax) exists in arts
education (including all arts
disciplines)?
0 5 7 13
4. Are supplemental learning
materials, adequate supplies and
functional equipment are
available to students in all arts
facilities?
1 5 7 11
5. Do parents at your school
actively support the arts
programs (e.g. chaperone class
trips, organize an arts booster
club, attend arts fundraisers)?
0 1 6 21
6. Has your school established
effective instructional
relationships with the business
community to provide students
with technical resources, field
knowledge, and/or skill-building
experiences that will help them
succeed in the workplace?
0 7 7 8

SUSTAINING THE ARTS 77

CHAPTER FIVE: ANALYSIS AND DISCUSSION
This case study is to examine how viable school programs in the arts are sustained
despite shifting educational priorities, accountability demands, and budgetary constraints. The
purpose of the study was to determine the key factors that enabled XYZ School to maintain its
successful arts programs. The study addressed the following research questions:
1. What are the arts programs that exist at XYZ School?
2. How does leadership at XYZ School support the arts program?
3. How are resources allocated at XYZ School?
This case study is one of eight in a thematic dissertation group that studied various public
schools with viable arts programs. Researchers established the criteria for successful arts
programs and used the same methodology for data collection. From the data, conclusions and
recommendations were drawn that will contribute to educational practice and policy at various
levels in the educational field.
Conclusions
In this chapter, the findings of the study are interpreted to come up with conclusions
arranged around the themes of sound pedagogical practices, strong student support structures,
shared dynamic leadership, and multi-stakeholder partnerships in the arts. These themes are
consistent with the focus areas cited by California Department of Education’s (CDE) Visual and
Performing Arts Framework for California Public Schools (2004).
The CDE recognizes that careful planning and implementation of comprehensive,
standards-based visual and performing arts education programs are crucial to success of such
programs. The following focus areas are essential in a viable school arts program: standards-
based curriculum, instruction and methodology, student assessment, professional development,
SUSTAINING THE ARTS 78

qualified teachers, personnel, and program administrators, partnerships and collaboration,
budgetary needs, facilities, logistics, and necessary resources, program evaluation, and
time/scheduling.
Sound Pedagogical Practices
Key findings from document reviews, interviews, survey, and observation about XYZ’s
school arts programs point to the existence of a comprehensive and sequential instruction in the
various arts disciplines that is aligned with the California Visual and Performing Arts
Framework.
From the staff survey, it was noted that majority of the respondents of XYZ School
agreed that the school offers a curriculum of sequential, standards-based instruction in the major
arts disciplines. The respondents likewise said that the school has a written arts plan that aligns
with the district arts policy and arts education plan. They indicated that that XYZ School
employs highly qualified teachers in the visual and performing arts and contracts with additional
individuals and groups with expertise in the arts.
A review of documents indicated that students receive rigorous instruction in the arts that
is at par with college level arts courses. Class offerings range from fundamental to advanced
levels of training in the students chosen arts major. Many specialized classes are offered and
highly popular among students including: gospel choir, film scoring, music technology, jazz
dance, dance improvisation/composition, hip hop, movement/dance and animal studies, combat
and swordplay, dance for actors, career management/audition portfolio, multicultural/social
theater, animation, fashion design and construction, digital cinema, and screenwriting.
The interviews with school administrators attest to the success of the conservatory-style
training that is provided by a distinguished faculty of art specialists and professional teaching
SUSTAINING THE ARTS 79

artists who share their knowledge and expertise in music, dance, theater, visual arts, cinematic
arts, and musical theater. The school principal notes that with nearly a hundred artists serving as
teachers and mentors to young artists honing their craft, students benefit from high-quality public
school instruction in the arts that they would have otherwise had to pay for in private lessons.
School observations revealed that students have numerous opportunities to showcase
their skills and talent in performances held throughout the year including film festivals, concerts,
jazz festivals, dance showcases, musical theater productions, exhibits, and fashion shows, among
others. This, notes an arts department chair, is valuable to future performers who need to build
portfolios in order to audition for college/university arts programs both here and abroad.
It is this high-quality instruction in the arts, access to distinguished teacher/artists who
serve as mentors, performance opportunities to include in their audition portfolios, that makes
XYZ School so popular among incoming high school students looking for a public school
academic program that is grounded in the arts.
Strong Student Support Structures
Results of the staff survey, interviews, observations, and document review all point to the
existence of strong student support structures that allow students of XYZ School to thrive both
academically and artistically. The small learning community of over 600 students, faculty,
artists, and staff allows for a safe and nurturing environment for young artists to learn their craft.
According to an arts department faculty member, this environment ensures the development of
exceptional skill and talent among students that can be showcased in performances for discerning
audiences.
The principal of XYZ School in his Community Handbook message emphasized the
school-wide goal of continuing to build a healthy school culture with a focus on strengthening
SUSTAINING THE ARTS 80

student support structures and wellness. During a staff meeting, the principal of XYZ School
reiterated his desire to support students at risk of failing. He announced that ongoing Student
Success Team meetings composed of parents, academic teachers, art chairs, and administrators,
who will consider and implement interventions to improve a student’s performance in school.
The staff survey likewise indicated that the school leadership, through explicit policies and
practices, make clear that arts education is a responsibility of the whole school and is critical to
the realization of the school’s mission and vision.
The survey also showed that XYZ School’s arts curriculum meets the needs of diverse
populations of learners. A review of documents indicated that the school serves a diverse
population including socioeconomically disadvantaged, English Language, and special needs
learners. One of the XYZ School’s expected school-wide learning results (ESLR) is for all
students to develop respect and tolerance for diversity and for students to demonstrate
appropriate methods of conflict resolution.
Interview and survey results point out that the school’s arts curriculum includes real-life
applications that prepare students for postsecondary education, focused training, and eventual
employment. Two other important ESLRs of XYZ School is that all students will be given an
academic foundation that can adequately prepare them for a higher level of education and that all
students will become self-sufficient and be able to determine realistic vocational choices.
The school supports students’ postsecondary goals whether it be to continue on to an arts
conservatory/college, pursue a non-arts major while pursuing art for enjoyment and leisure, or
gain employment in their art field. The school principal notes that “it is this shared responsibility
and commitment to all of XYZ School’s learners that enable the school to send off over 95% of
its seniors to college.”
SUSTAINING THE ARTS 81

A staff member and XYZ School alumna adds that as a student she learned many life
skills including problems solving, perseverance, commitment, and dedication which helped her
gain acceptance into a leading arts university. She continues her work in the arts as a member of
the school’s community engagement and admissions office. According to her, many of the
school’s alumni give back to the XYZ School through outreach and fundraising efforts. Students
at XYZ School have many role models in the former students who are now in the mainstream of
the creative arts field.
Shared Dynamic Leadership
Information gathered from interviews, staff survey, and observation of XYZ School
indicates that the principal exhibits strong qualities of a visionary leader. He has a clear mission
and vision for the school, effectively communicates this mission/vision to all stakeholders,
implements school wide learning outcomes, works with both public and private sectors to
generate funds for the school programs, and inspires students to live their dreams.
By being the school’s longest serving principal, he has ensures continuity of the school’s
prestigious arts programs and inspires confidence from among various stakeholders that the
integrity and excellence of XYZ School will be maintained and even surpassed.
A visionary leader at the helm of the school encourages buy-in from all stakeholders.
This makes for improved communication and shared decision-making where all stakeholders feel
their voices, concerns, and suggestions are heard. Administrators, faculty and staff, parents, and
private and public supporters of the school community share in the leadership of XYZ School to
guide the school from its present status of excellence to eminence in the arts. The Parent Council
and the XYZ School Foundation officials work closely with school leadership to fulfill the
school’s commitment of providing a world-class education in the arts to all its students.
SUSTAINING THE ARTS 82

Outreach programs undertaken jointly with public schools, universities, government and
private sectors, artists, and alumni have yielded even more success for XYZ School. These
programs have allowed XYZ School students to travel to China and visit as well as perform at a
sister arts school. Students from China have likewise visited XYZ School, attending both
academic and arts classes during their stay. In other programs that make music as well as theater
education accessible to young learners, students serve as mentors as well as afterschool tutors.
Students also participate in performances by visiting artists that aim to generate funds for the
school’s various arts programs.
Multi-Stakeholder Partnerships in the Arts
From interviews and document reviews, it was noted that XYZ School relies on
partnerships to sustain its programs in the arts. Funding for the school is provided in large part
by resources from state and local agencies. In addition, a non-profit foundation, established at
around the same time the school opened its doors to its first students, secures funding to bridge
the gap between public school funds and school expenditures, including the arts. Donations from
corporations, foundations, and individuals, as well as funds raised through special events, help
fund the arts programs of XYZ School.
The foundation has provided financial support to compensate teaching artists, underwrite
student performances, exhibits, and festivals, present master classes by visiting artists, transport
elementary and middle school students to the school to participate in outreach programs, provide
field trips to museums, galleries, and performances, produce publications and marketing
materials, purchase art supplies, musical instruments and technology equipment/software, make
available music lessons for students with financial needs, and award scholarship to students,
particularly graduating seniors.
SUSTAINING THE ARTS 83

The Parent Council consisting of 9 elected parents/guardians of students attending XYZ
School is an active supporter of the school’s objectives. It establishes and maintains a close
working relationship with the school community and advises the principal on art department
matters as well as the academic program. The council informs and promotes school activities
and events to the parent body, and the general public. It provides support through coordination
of volunteer programs for all school activities. The council also sponsors, promotes, or
facilitates programs of interest to the school community.
Recommendations and Implications for Practice
Sound pedagogical practices, strong student support structures, shared dynamic
leadership, and multi-stakeholder partnerships in the arts are some of the key factors that make
for sustainable arts programs in the face of accountability and budgetary constraints. It is
important that policy makers and district level personnel consider these key factors that
contribute to the viability of arts programs in public schools.
In this study, the arts are not a program at XYZ School but rather it is the program. The
program is what makes over 1,000 students dream of gaining acceptance into the school where
only about 150 are admitted. The program is the cornerstone of sound instruction, student
achievement, dynamic leadership, and shared partnerships in this highly successful school. The
school’s conservatory-style arts program allow students to train in a chosen art discipline under
the tutelage and guidance of art specialists and practicing artists while completing academic
requirements for high school in a public school setting.
The challenge for XYZ School as a public school of choice is to attract more students
from underserved communities who stand to benefit from an education grounded in the arts. It
recognizes this need and has started laudable work in making arts education accessible to a
SUSTAINING THE ARTS 84

greater number of students. Its community engagement arm is responsible for actively engaging
schools, arts institutions, arts non-profits, and community centers in underserved communities to
improve the landscape for arts education. XYZ School’s has partnered with leading proponents
of the arts to provide free instruments, intensive music training, and academic support to students
in underserved neighborhoods, empowering them to become vital citizens, leaders, and change
agents. Likewise, its Theater for Young audiences, reaches students interested in theater
performances.
Through these initiatives the school is attracting prospective students from underserved
communities to apply and audition to this public school of choice. This will enhance diversity in
the school with more Hispanic, African American, Asian, as well as socioeconomically
disadvantaged, English Language learners, and learners with special needs gaining acceptance
into the award-winning high school.
To open its doors to more students who have limited experience or training in the arts but
exhibit great potential, XYZ School might want to consider increasing the number of students
accepted into the school. Fund raising efforts may be especially dedicated for this purpose.
Organizations, companies, and businesses who stand to benefit from graduates in the arts field
may be willing to sponsor such an undertaking.
Undoubtedly, the school’s arts program while stellar, may be further enriched by offering
students opportunities for apprenticeship or internship in organizations, corporations, and
businesses engaged in the arts. Noting the students’ already demanding schedule during the
schoolyear, these opportunities may be provided during school breaks. The school would
likewise benefit from encouraging students to do volunteer work in their communities. All of
SUSTAINING THE ARTS 85

these experiences will make for a well-rounded high school education that will prepare them for
college and careers, whether this be in the arts or in a variety of other fields.
As graduates of XYZ School continue to gain acceptance into leading colleges and
universities abroad and take advantage of career opportunities outside United States, the school
needs to step up and focus its efforts towards further building relationships in the international
community. It already has a successful partnership with a performing arts high school in China.
The school should establish an international relations arm that will work to gain partner school or
adoptive school status with K-12 and post-secondary educational institutions abroad
The challenge of planning and implementing a comprehensive arts education program,
much like the one currently offered at XYZ School, is daunting. School leaders, however, must
take on this challenge through sustained and targeted efforts at the classroom, school, district,
and national level.
LAUSD’s Arts Education Branch (2013) describes a quality arts education program at the
classroom level as providing arts instruction connected to students’ life experience and culture,
having an arts-rich environment with art making embedded in learning activities, promoting 21
st

century skills including creativity, problem solving, divergent thinking, and collaboration,
assessing through ongoing student demonstration, designing lessons supported by standards
based arts curriculum, and collaboration among classroom teachers, arts specialists, and
community arts partners.
In building school level quality in arts education, Arts for All Los Angeles County
Blueprint for Arts Education (2010), recommends the following in the areas of pedagogy,
student learning, environment, and community: expert instructors, the arts as core subjects,
accessibility assessment, academic focus, college and career preparation, artistic rigor, cultural
SUSTAINING THE ARTS 86

inclusivity, fiscal commitment, creative spaces, materials, supplies, and equipment, time on task,
articulated arts plan, arts learning community, informed and engaged parents, and broad support.
California Alliance for Arts Education Chair Mark Slavkin and Vice President for
Education of The Music Center, in his 2013 EdSource article advocates for the following at the
District level: publication of an annual arts education report card documenting the current status
of arts education in their schools, require districts to include their plan for the arts in the overall
academic achievement plan, and require that student learning in the arts be included in Academic
Performance Index. He adds that the Legislature can establish innovation matching grants to
encourage districts to invest in the arts.
The National Task Force on the Arts in Education, in its Arts at the Core (2009) report,
calls for the following to advance the state arts education in the 21
st
century: promote arts for
underserved students, place arts at the core of education, encourage creativity, integrate arts
across the curriculum, establish a global arts perspective, support professional artists, affect
policy, and build partnerships.
Indeed, the work of sustaining the arts is a shared undertaking by all stakeholders in
education. The arts are essential in the education of today’s learners and our future leaders. The
provision of quality arts education ensures excellence, equity, and access to ever increasing
diverse student populations in public schools.

.

SUSTAINING THE ARTS 87

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SUSTAINING THE ARTS 94

Appendix A
Observation Protocols
School Level Observation Protocol
Name of Observer Date Time

Location Research Questions
1. What are the arts programs that exist at XYZ
School?

2. How does leadership at XYZ School support arts?

3. How are funding decisions made at XYZ School?

Physical Space
Define the physical
space of the classroom.
• Geographical
• Physical
• EHS artifacts
• Arts program
artifacts

What is the learning
experience for the
students (lesson
objective)?

Participant reactions to
physical setting.

Teacher and Students
Who are the
participants?

Demographic
information:
• Age
• Ethnic
• Gender

What are the roles of
those being observed?

What is the teacher
doing?

What are the students
doing?

SUSTAINING THE ARTS 95

What was each of the
specific participants
doing?
• Group
interaction
• Individual action
• Passive
participants
• Active
participants

Role of the Observer
What am I
doing? What
is my role
throughout
the
observation?

Describe
some of my
interactions
with other
participants
throughout
the
observation.

How did my
interaction/
presence
affect the
observation
process?

Sequence of Events
Beginning
Middle
End
SUSTAINING THE ARTS 96

Classroom Level Observation Protocol

FACILITIES/EQUIPMENT
In the space below, provide a brief description of the site including size of the space including size, arrangement of furniture,
distinguishing features.

Art is displayed in common areas? No Yes
Evidence of the arts being integrated into the curriculum? No Yes
Is the activity site accessible to all potential participants? No Yes
Are there projects underway? No Yes
Is participant work displayed? No Yes
Are there any unmet maintenance needs? No Yes

Please rate the following features of the physical environment at the site.

Poor

Fair

Good

Excellent

NA

Attractiveness of physical facility (freshly painted, good lighting etc.)

Condition, appropriateness, and quantity of furniture

Ability to accommodate both large and small group activities at same time

Availability of supplies/materials needed for the activity

Availability of books or other reading materials

Attractiveness to children/participants

Overall room/facility rating

Site ____________________________ Location ________________________ Date: _________Time:_________
Observer _______________________ Purpose for Visit: ______________________________________________
Activity Description (s):___________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________________________
What Learning Objectives were addressed:

Running Head: SUSTAINING THE ARTS 97

Appendix B
Reflection Tool

School Organization
(Bolman & Deal)

Evidence (circle one)

Notes
(Description/Examples)
1. Structural Frame:
School organization emphasizes environment,
goals, and policies, etc.

None Some Most NA

2. Human Resource Frame:
School organization emphasizes relationships,
skills, and needs, etc.

None Some Most NA

3. Political Frame:
School organization emphasizes politics, power,
and competition, etc.

None Some Most NA

4. Symbolic Frame:
School organization emphasizes rituals,
ceremonies, and stories, etc.

None Some Most NA

5. Other: _____________________________
_________________________________
__________________________________

None Some Most NA

Art is integrated successfully into the curriculum None Some Most NA

Allowing participants to practice an art skill. None Some Most NA
Projects/Products/Presentations/Performances
that are visible during the session (circle those
that apply)
None Some Most NA

Other: ______________________________
None Some Most NA
Overall session rating (circle one): Poor Fair Good Excellent
Misc: _______________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Running Head: SUSTAINING THE ARTS 98

Appendix C
Survey Questionnaire
Faculty Survey

Directions: Please check only one box for each question.

How many years have you worked at XYZ School?
1-5 years
6-10 years
11-15 years
16 or more years
How many years have you worked as an educator/artist?
1-5 years
6-10 years
11-15 years
16 or more years
What subject or content do you teach?
Math
English
Science
Social Studies
Foreign Language
Physical Education
Music
Dance
Theater
Film
Visual Arts
Musical Theater
Features of Arts Programs
PEDAGOGY

Does your school offer a curriculum of sequential, standards-based instruction in the major arts disciplines
(dance, film, music, theater, and visual arts)?
Never
Sometimes
Most of the time
Always

SUSTAINING THE ARTS 99

How often do teachers/artists at your school discuss student artwork, assessment and arts instruction at grade
level/subject-alike planning meetings?
Never
Sometimes
Most of the time
Always
How often do teachers/artists at your school use arts learning outcomes to evaluate their curriculum and
instructional methods?
Never
Sometimes
Most of the time
Always
How often do school instructional leaders review teaching outlines in the major arts disciplines to ensure
instructional sequencing?
Never
Sometimes
Most of the time
Always
Do teachers/artists at your school meet regularly to engage in professional dialogue about instruction, individual
student needs, and learning outcomes in and through the arts?
Never
Sometimes
Most of the time
Always
Does your school have a written arts plan that aligns with the district arts policy and arts education plan?
Never
Sometimes
Most of the time
Always
Does your school's arts curriculum meet the needs of diverse populations of learners?
Never
Sometimes
Most of the time
Always

SUSTAINING THE ARTS 100

STUDENT LEARNING
How often do you encourage students to draw on their personal background and experiences to inform their
learning?
Never
Sometimes
Most of the time
Always
How often do you urge students to explore a variety of artistic traditions from around the world?
Never
Sometimes
Most of the time
Always
Does your art instruction emphasize cooperation, interactive learning, and team building?
Never
Sometimes
Most of the time
Always
Do you utilize student learning outcomes to evaluate the curriculum and your instructional methods?
Never
Sometimes
Most of the time
Always
Do you provide parents with specifics about their student's progress in arts learning programs?
Never
Sometimes
Most of the time
Always
Do your periodic report cards document student learning in key arts standards?
Never
Sometimes
Most of the time
Always
Does the arts curriculum include real-life applications that prepare students for postsecondary education,
focused training, and eventual employment?
Never
Sometimes
Most of the time
Always
Running Head: SUSTAINING THE ARTS 101
ENVIRONMENT
Does your school employ highly qualified teachers in the visual and performing arts and contract with
additional individuals and groups with expertise in the arts?
Never
Sometimes
Most of the time
Always
Does the school budget (combined district, state, and federal funds) include collaborative planning in arts
education (including all arts disciplines)?
Never
Sometimes
Most of the time
Always
Do your school administrators and staff have an organized approach to arts education that aligns with the school
wide instructional plan?
Never
Sometimes
Most of the time
Always
Does community funding (teacher, grants, donations, and bond, local tax) exist for the school arts education
(including all arts disciplines)?
Never
Sometimes
Most of the time
Always
Do administrators review the Master Class Schedule to ensure access to arts instruction for all students?
Never
Sometimes
Most of the time
Always
Do administrators and teaching staff monitor the appropriate placement of students in arts classes?
Never
Sometimes
Most of the time
Always
Are supplemental learning materials, adequate supplies and functional equipment available to students in all
arts facilities and courses?
Never
Sometimes
Most of the time
Always
Running Head: SUSTAINING THE ARTS 102
Does the school leadership, through explicit policies and practices, make it clear that arts education is a
responsibility of the whole school and is critical to the realization of the school's mission and vision?
Never
Sometimes
Most of the time
Always

COMMUNITY

Does your school arts program enhance a sense of community by fostering improved relations across diverse
student groups?
Never
Sometimes
Most of the time
Always
Do parents at your school regularly receive information on the importance of arts learning?
Never
Sometimes
Most of the time
Always
Do parents at your school regularly receive information on how to encourage their student's arts learning in
school and at home?
Never
Sometimes
Most of the time
Always
Do parents at your school attend student exhibitions and performances?
Never
Sometimes
Most of the time
Always
Do parents at your school participate in classroom learning activities and field trips in the arts?
Never
Sometimes
Most of the time
Always

SUSTAINING THE ARTS 103

Do parents at your school actively support the school arts program (e.g. chaperone class trips, organize an arts
booster club, attend arts fundraisers)?
Never
Sometimes
Most of the time
Always
Do parents at your school regularly receive information on arts-related career pathways?
Never
Sometimes
Most of the time
Always
Has your school established effective instructional relationships with the business community to provide visual
and performing arts students with technical resources, field knowledge, and/or skill-building experiences that
will help them succeed in the workplace?
Never
Sometimes
Most of the time
Always

* This survey was adapted from the School Arts Survey developed by Griffin Center for Inspired Instruction for Arts for All, a program of Los Angeles County Arts Commission and Los Angeles County
Office of Education

SUSTAINING THE ARTS 104

Appendix D
Interview Instrument

1. What arts programs currently exist on campus?
2. How did they get started?
3. Who is responsible for keeping these arts programs going? OR Who would you say is the driving force
for the arts program at this school?
4. How do they work to make sure that these programs keep going year after year?
5. When are the arts programs available to students?
6. Are there different levels that the students can take?
7. (If so) who decides which students are in which level?
8. How do you know that the arts programs are successful? AND Who is involved in evaluation
process?
9. How are changes made to the program when necessary?
10. How were supplies and materials provided for these programs?
How was it determined that these were necessary?
12. How have these arts program changed within the last three years?
13. What changes are expected for the future?
14. Are there partnerships that exist between this school’s arts programs and the community?
15. How were these partnerships formed and maintained?
16. Is there anything else that you would like to share with me?

SUSTAINING THE ARTS 105

Appendix E
Review Documents

Research Question #1
• Community Handbook
• School Website
• SARC
• Community Handbook
• WASC
• New Building Staff Orientation
• Master Schedule/Calendar
• Syllabus and Lesson Plans
Research Question #2
• Community Handbook
• School Website
• Parent Council Meeting
• Professional Development Agenda
• Bell Schedule
• Master Schedule/Calendar
Research Question #3
• Community Handbook
• School Website
• Townhall Meeting Budget
• Master Schedule/Calendar
• Parent Council Meeting
• Foundation/Donations
• Grants

SUSTAINING THE ARTS 106

Appendix F
Recruitment Announcement and Consent Form

Date

Dear [School administrator/representative],

I am a doctoral student at the University of Southern California in Los Angeles working towards
an EdD, focusing on Educational Leadership. I am currently working on my dissertation and am
looking for a school to examine as a case study, exemplifying some of the best practices public
schools that are actively committed in retaining arts education in the face of high stakes testing
and post No Child Left Behind.

I would need to visit [School’s name] for approximately 6 days this fall - to observe what goes
on, to talk to faculty and staff, to visit classes, to understand the school. From this visit, I will
then identify the best practices and the impact of the arts on school culture. While this case
study will form the basis for my dissertation at USC, it will also serve as a model to other
schools seeking to develop their own arts education program.

I would love to talk to you about this opportunity further when you have time. Though the actual
school visit would not occur until the fall, I am in the process of finalizing my site selection. I
hope that you would be agreeable to allowing me to study [School’s name].

Sincerely,

Carla G. Foronda
Ed.D. candidate
University of Southern California

SUSTAINING THE ARTS 107

Appendix G
Institutional Review Board Fact Sheet

University of Southern California
Rossier School of Education
3470 Trousdale Parkway
Los Angeles, CA 90089

INFORMATION/FACTS SHEET FOR NON-MEDICAL RESEARCH

PRESERVING THE ARTS

PURPOSE OF THE STUDY
The topic that will be studied is arts education in public K-12 schools. The purpose of the study
is to identify how public schools in California are able to maintain arts education as a priority
within their instructional time, while managing other demands that have emerged from mandated
accountability measures and budget constraints.

The study aims to add to the existing literature by specifically identifying how the school
addresses and demonstrates the significance of the arts, as well as determine how the school is
funding the arts and the perceived impact of arts education on school culture in order to have this
information accessible to educators to assist them in applying similar strategies and practices that
can aid in retaining the arts within their schools.

Your participation is voluntary. Your relationship with your school/district will not be affected,
whether or not you participate in this study.

PARTICIPANT INVOLVEMENT
Researchers will be looking for cultural norms, practices, and programs that have assisted your
school in thriving in the area of the arts.

If you agree to participate, you will be asked to complete an 30 question survey. The survey is
anticipated to take 20 minutes to complete.

You may also be asked to participate in an interview; the interview will be audio-recorded with
your permission and is anticipated to take 45 minutes to complete.

You will be asked to allow researchers to observe the general school environment, classroom
instruction, VAPA events, staff meetings, leadership meetings, and parent meetings.

CONFIDENTIALITY

Any identifiable information obtained in connection with this study will remain confidential and
will be disclosed only with your permission or as required by law.

SUSTAINING THE ARTS 108

The survey and observational data will not contain identifiable information; interview data will
be coded with a false name and any identifiable information will be maintained separately from
responses.

The data will be stored on password protected computers and maintained for three years after the
study has been completed and then destroyed.

The members of the research team, the funding agency and the University of Southern
California’s Human Subjects Protection Program (HSPP) may access the data. The HSPP
reviews and monitors research studies to protect the rights and welfare of research subjects.

When the results of the research are published or discussed in conferences, no identifiable
information will be used.

INVESTIGATOR CONTACT INFORMATION
Jeanette Archambault via phone (626) 533-0731 or email: jarchamb@usc.edu; Pamela Brown
via phone (310) 946-5592 or email: pamelarb@usc.edu; Kyle Bruich via phone (909) 833-0004
or email bruich@usc.edu; David Dunstan via phone (310) 889-4740 or email: dunstan@usc.edu;
Gregoire Francois via phone: (562) 706-2146 or email: gfrancoi@usc.edu; ; Carla Foronda via
phone: (310) 918-1151 or email carlafor@usc.edu; Deara Okonkwo via phone (323) 253-8972 or
email dokonkwo@usc.edu; Lucia Perales via phone (323) 317-0232 or email lperales@usc.edu.

IRB CONTACT INFORMATION
University Park Institutional Review Board (UPIRB), 3720 South Flower Street #301, Los
Angeles, CA 90089-0702, (213) 821-5272 or upirb@usc.edu.

Abstract (if available)

Abstract This case study explores the factors that sustain the arts in an urban Southern California public high school of choice. In light of shifting priorities and accountability demands, this school has been successful in maintaining a quality arts and college-preparatory program. The study looks into three main factors: (1) the arts programs within the school, (2) leadership support of the arts programs within the schools, and (3) resource allocation in relation to the arts programs at the school. The data collection process involved a review of school documents, interviews and shared stories by members of the school community, a survey of school faculty and staff, and observations of various school events and activities. Research findings and discussion was presented around the themes of sound pedagogical practices, strong student support structures, shared dynamic leadership, and multi-stakeholder partnerships in the arts. Recommendations and implications for practice were likewise offered to guide policy makers, district level personnel, school leaders, and various education stakeholders in establishing schools of choice that are grounded in the arts and in sustaining successful arts programs in public schools.

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University of Southern California Dissertations and Theses

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Asset Metadata

Creator Foronda, Carla G. (author)

Core Title Sustaining the arts: a case study of an urban public high school of choice

School Rossier School of Education

Degree Doctor of Education

Degree Program Education (Leadership)

Defense Date 03/05/2014

Publisher University of Southern California (original), University of Southern California. Libraries (digital)

Tag arts education,arts programs,OAI-PMH Harvest

Format application/pdf (imt)

Language English

Contributor Electronically uploaded by the author (provenance)

Advisor Gothold, Stuart E. (committee chair), Escalante, Michael F. (committee member), Hocevar, Dennis (committee member)

Creator Email carlafor@usc.edu,tforonda@hotmail.com

Permanent Link (DOI) https://doi.org/10.25549/usctheses-c3-469954

Unique identifier UC11286937

Identifier etd-ForondaCar-2888.pdf (filename),usctheses-c3-469954 (legacy record id)

Legacy Identifier etd-ForondaCar-2888-0.pdf

Dmrecord 469954

Document Type Dissertation

Format application/pdf (imt)

Rights Foronda, Carla G.

Type texts

Source University of Southern California (contributing entity), University of Southern California Dissertations and Theses (collection)

Access Conditions The author retains rights to his/her dissertation, thesis or other graduate work according to U.S. copyright law. Electronic access is being provided by the USC Libraries in agreement with the a...

Repository Name University of Southern California Digital Library

Repository Location USC Digital Library, University of Southern California, University Park Campus MC 2810, 3434 South Grand Avenue, 2nd Floor, Los Angeles, California 90089-2810, USA