Arts education. Over the last two decades, it’s become a spotlighted subject in the academic sector. A tremendous majority of Americans recognize the importance of the arts in education, over 88% according to a 2015 survey conducted by Americans for the Arts. Despite these findings, subsidization has remained low. In the past 20 years, public funding in inflation-adjusted terms through the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) has decreased overall by 12.8%. Even with recent increases, the 2019 fiscal year appropriations for the NEA totaled $155 million. This figure pales in comparison to the more than $8 billion allocated to the National Science Foundation.
So, what explains the gap between public support for the arts and the lack of financial backing? For starters, artistic progress and performance cannot be measured as readily as math and reading skills. Also, its benefits often seem less obvious. They mostly come from studies which link involvement in the arts with better critical thinking skills, behavior, and academic performance. Still, I don’t think that the shortage of empirical evidence regarding the advantages to an arts education explains the whole situation.
Perhaps the previously mentioned disparity highlights the cultural stigmatization surrounding the arts as a field of study. Under the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA) of 2015, music and the arts are listed as disciplines of a well-rounded education. In this respect, they hold equal weighting with math, science, reading, and other subjects. Yet, the pursuance of arts in higher education is often frowned upon. About 9 in 10 Americans acknowledge the importance of an arts education at the elementary, middle, and high school stages. But, what about at the postsecondary level?
In a world in which Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math (STEM) is increasingly more valued in today’s technology-based economy, traditional liberal arts majors suffer. Such majors generally don’t receive the same respect as those studying science or business. Often, students are discouraged from seeking arts degrees, as people view them as either wasting their potential or choosing a career path which does not ensure a steady paycheck.
While the struggles of art majors should be taken into consideration (having an additional major may assist them financially), the truly talented should not be discouraged from their artistic pursuits. If individuals possess the passion, skill, and dedication to their craft, they will find future satisfaction in their field of study. Success cannot be measured purely by the dollar signs on their paychecks. Rather, their commitment to and love of the arts holds a great deal of value (and arguable one worth more than financial capital). The purpose of education is not only to prepare students to be workers, but also to be conscientious citizens and impassioned human beings who appreciate the beauties of the world surrounding them.
My best friend has always demonstrated an incredible devotion to the arts. Although she’s currently studying both violin performance and physics, her true passion lies in music. She spends countless hours practicing, auditioning, rehearsing, and performing. Underpaid and undervalued, it’s clear that she’s not in the arts for the money. She’s in it because she loves making music and communicating its emotional power to others.
Now, isn’t that something worth funding?
Sources
https://www.giarts.org/article/public-funding-arts-2017
https://www.arts.gov/open-government/national-endowment-arts-appropriations-history
https://nsf.gov/nsb/news/news_summ.jsp?cntn_id=297170
Images
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I do agree with you that the arts don’t tend to be valued nearly as much as STEM. My high school was cut from the school board on funding for the art program. I never took art classes in high school but I remember that I was never allowed to borrow paint from the art room for clubs that I was in due to lack of funding. Also, I don’t think my family would support me in an arts-related major. However, I do believe that the arts need to be funded and valued more. The arts have made every culture what it is.
The disparity between the funding levels for the National Endowment for the Arts and the National Science Foundation is astounding, but ultimately understandable given what skills are valued in the workforce. Your friend’s decision to study both a STEM major which is fairly marketable and an arts major that she is more passionate about seems like a sensible decision for those who wish to take extra precaution in securing employment, and is highly commendable.