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<p class=MsoNormal>Throughout this discussion, almost every single person has
commented on the need to educate younger audiences about theater and the arts,
to ensure that the art forms survive, as well as to provide students with a source
of inspiration for their lives, education, careers, etc. Many have shared their
recollections of times they were engaged in the arts through a visit to the
orchestra or theater, and some have even mentioned their experiences with the
arts in the classroom. I, too, was fortunate enough to have many similar arts experiences.
I went on field trips to theaters and was engaged by visiting artists. <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class=MsoNormal>However, things have changed since then. In the last twenty,
ten, and even five years, the state of education, as a whole, has changed
drastically. The ability of schools to financially support arts and cultural
experiences has severely dwindled. Arts organizations, knowing full well that
their future existence is at risk, have attempted to pick up the slack, seeking
out funding to support bussing and reduced cost or free tickets to their events.
The organization I work for, Young Audiences of Northeast Ohio, is one of those
organizations. Unfortunately, even those efforts are being diminished by the
ever present need to justify the time spent on the arts in the classroom. It’s
not enough for arts organizations to provide free bussing and tickets to their
events, they also have to justify and convince funders, educators,
administrators and the government why teachers and students should be
missing class to attend those events. <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class=MsoNormal>The efforts of arts organizations to provide these
experiences to children and young adults is admirable, but is it solely their
responsibility? Who better to educate our youth than schools? <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class=MsoNormal>Having been involved in the arts since elementary school, I
know the transforming affect that the arts can have on a human being. I have
based my education, career, and most of my life on this. Unfortunately,
this can’t be about our faith in the power of the arts anymore, it now has
to be about proof. Until our society realizes that the input determines
the outcome, that to judge our education system and our arts and culture organizations
merely on how efficiently they run and how many industrious adults they can
produce is a wasted opportunity , and that a child, provided with the
opportunity to imagine and be inspired, will become a whole person who is
capable of creating amazing and wonderful things, this discussion will never
cease. <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class=MsoNormal>My dream is that one day, my organization will no longer
need to exist and that other arts organizations will no longer require an
education department of their own, because the arts will be a constant part of
every child’s classroom and home. <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-family:"Garamond","serif"'>Kristan A.
Oelbracht<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Garamond","serif"'>Yougn
Audiences of Northeast Ohio</span><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p>
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