By Jim Speirs, Executive Director, Arts South Dakota
One of the most vital elements in protecting South Dakota’s cultural heritage, promoting our creative industry and providing an enriching environment for all generations is the strengthening of vibrant arts education throughout the state. To enhance and grow South Dakota’s arts education experiences, representatives from the state’s leading professional arts education organizations have initiated ArtsEd Alliance SD.
Composed of ten educator groups ranging from the South Dakota Bandmasters to the Speech Communication and the College Art Associations, ArtsEd Alliance acts as a unified voice to advance experiences in arts education for all South Dakota students through professional collaboration, advocacy and resource development. Mary Cogswell, Band Method co-editor and retired band educator from Brookings, serves as chair of the new organization.
The ArtsEd Alliance meeting in July established a set of immediate priorities for the organization, which included becoming a strong voice for arts advocacy in South Dakota. As a partner with Arts South Dakota, the Alliance can speak to the needs of our state’s student population in all age groups, using compelling real world examples of the power of the arts to motivate, educate and inspire.
Growing the organization to include all statewide arts education groups to enhance professional collaboration and encourage mentorship is another goal for the ArtsEd Alliance, as is participation in the development and revision of Department of Education standards and providing curriculum resources through an effective and dynamic resource web page.
We’re excited about having arts educators as active partners in advocating for the arts in South Dakota and sharing the message that the arts are essential to achieving a quality education for all our students. We congratulate our state’s education professionals for their dedication to the arts and to the future enrichment of all learners.
To learn more about arts education across the state and the resources available to grow arts education, please visit www.ArtsSouthDakota.org.
