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JOSEPH JACOBS 609-335-6429 JJacobs@Veccnj.org Website: http://www.njmea.org
Advocacy in NJ NJMEA is very fortunate to be represented and affiliated with The New Jersey Arts Educational Partnership (NJAEP). Bob Morrison, who is a member of the Governance Board for NJAEP and founder of Quadrant Arts Education Research, shared some exciting information with NJMEA at our February Conference luncheon. New Jersey continues to lead the nation through the release of detailed arts education information to the public. According to new state data, 94% of schools in New Jersey reported offering arts education programs that provide access to nearly 1.3 million students which is 97% of all students. These findings are based on the arts educator assignment data for all schools and the high school arts participation data from the New Jersey Performance Reports released from the NJ State Department of Education. There is a plethora of information and data available for the support of music advocacy on the NJAEP website. Please visit www.artsednj.org for additional information. The Arts Education and PARCC survey which was created in early March by Bob Morrison with input from NJMEA leaders, especially Nick Santoro, indicated TEMPO
the impact that state mandated testing has on our music programs. The initial response to the survey was overwhelming with over 500 music teachers completing and submitting the survey within 48 hours. It was very disheartening to see that over 60% of NJ music teachers saw a reduction of student contact time because of preparations for the PARCC testing and over 80% of us had a reduction of student contact time because of the testing schedule for PARCC. Many teachers had to cancel performances and trips because of the testing. I do not have the final results of the survey because of the deadline for this article but the intention was to share this data with the Assistant Commissioner of the NJ Department of Education. Bob Morrison was planning on meeting with the President of the State Board of Education and the Executive Director of the NJ Schools Boards Association to inform them of the impact that the PARCC testing is having on arts education. This is our first step in seeking a solution to this issue. NAfME Advocacy I wanted to share a response from NAfME on an email they received regarding what they do to 2
protect music education in our schools. NAfME currently has three full-time registered lobbyists on staff. In recent months, they have been heavily involved in discussions with both Senate and House education committee members as they work on a reauthorization of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act, also known as “No Child Left Behind.” This bill which authorizes supplemental funding for low-income students and sets forth federal guidelines for teacher preparation and evaluation, as well as student assessment, is undoubtedly the most important piece of federal education legislation in terms of its impact on our members. In recent years NAfME cofounded the Music Education Policy Roundtable, a coalition of over 30 organizations dedicated to the preservation of school music programs operated by certified music teachers that advocates collectively to achieve specific policy objectives. NAfME is also an active member of the Committee for Education Funding, the largest national coalition of education organizations that lobbies directly for increased education funding at the federal level. I believe that NAfME plays a very important and unique role in music education. They advocate for MAY 2015