The arts definitely helped shape me into the person that I am today, it helped me mature and see the beauty and dark in the world and appreciate all of it. I learned to see history for what it was, and how it came to be. I gained a unique perspective as an arts student in high school. While involved in the arts my academics were consistent and structured. I learned time management skills, and I had a beautiful outlet and safe space. This is completely ignored when budget cuts arise or schools see the need to “scale back” on programs. We all know where the axe is being used, we know which programs are disproportionately going to be attacked, which teachers will lose hours, and which courses won’t be offered next year.
Many students credit a writing, language, art, theater, or other elective course to being the thing that sparked their passion to become a singer, author, or artist. Music and the arts are an outlet for students to gain knowledge, abstract thinking skills, and gain confidence in areas they didn’t know they could master. The benefits of investing in our arts and music programs go beyond the classroom, they’ve been directly linked to students doing better on standardized testing, and having better leadership skills in the work environment. Students are allowed a break from the structure and redundant classroom lessons, they get the chance to make their own rules and, within some boundaries make what they want and have the answer or meaning of it be what they choose. No one designates a one correct answer. They grow in confidence because it’s their work, something they made, and has so much sentimental value for students.
I remember taking art classes all through high school and finishing my art career with an independent studio course my senior year. It was the best decision I had ever made. When I got to Augsburg College I realized I was happiest working on my independent art work, and researching the history behind different works, and decided to change my major and minor to reflect who I truly was. I can now happily say I am an Economics major with a minor in Art History and I haven’t doubted thischoice or it’s worth because I know I have job prospects for the future yet I can have experience in case I’d like to one day follow that other path.
The arts and music have birthed some of the greatest minds in the world. Where we have gotten today can, in a lot of ways be thanked to artists who push the boundaries of conventional thoughts and values. Artists who made us see the value in different, in the female anatomy, in both nudity and modesty, in faith, and no faith. Arts and music give people a different sense of self, when you have a piece of art it is both you and not yet you, its separate in a way that allows you to be loud, scandalous, courageous, quiet, and subtle when in your day to day life you may actually be the complete opposite of that. Lets not forget the worth of the arts and music when it comes time to revisit those budget cuts, especially in areas where kids are struggling.
