The importance of this research is to understand why arts programs are so wide ranging in the level of quality and access from school to school. Every year I ask my students about their art making experiences - when they last had an art class and what it was like. There are a variety of answers, many of which note a distinct lack of arts classes or having taken classes years before coming into high school. Those with some arts experiences note that the classes seemed poorly organized compared to other classes. My research studied why this is and why this occurs in schools specifically with majority BIPOC students. It has been said that the arts are important to a student’s overall education - and particularly in the NYCDOE, there has been great strides made to make sure that the arts are available to all students in all schools. However more must be done to ensure the place and quality of the arts within schools. That can only happen if educational policy begins to truly reflect that. ESSA has allowed for states, their districts and schools to develop systems and structures of accountability to ensure that specific things are in place. Now it is time to take it a step further and ensure that the arts have the same purposeful planning and integration into schools. Currently the only requirement related to the arts is having a set credit requirement for the arts class, but not defining what is needed for those classes does not go far enough. In some schools, arts classes can be taught by non arts certified teachers.  This is something that would never be considered for an academic subject class at any level. There continues to be a hypocritical approach to the arts where the arts must be as rigorous as the academic classes, but at the same time the arts are the “fun” classes that do not need the same kind of instructional support as academic classes. How can arts educators work within a system to strengthen their programs when the very system disregards their learning as important and necessary? There should be a collaborative effort that includes arts educators not only in the conversation, but taking point in how arts should be integrated into learning. 

There needs to be a reevaluation of what is “valuable” in a student's education. Educational policy has created a culture of hierarchy among subject areas, where academic courses are on top and anything else takes a backseat. However, we have to examine how these value determinations are made. Are academic subjects more important because these are skills that go beyond the classroom? Or are academic subjects more important because they are measured for in assessments that give schools funding? By that logic if you add an arts assessment, would that give value to the arts? Should we be basing the values of our education on standardized assessments? We must continue to examine how we value learning and ask ourselves what is the purpose of student education. Should our students value and equate school learning as making a grade on a test? Or can we begin to shift learning as a way to actually prepare students to be active citizens beyond the classroom. Stakeholders - teachers, students, parents, school leadership and policy makers - have to start to question what the purpose of education and learning is and what it can be. COVID-19 has dramatically changed the landscape of education that we will continue uncover over the next few years. In the next months and years, we will deal with a new normal in education - what will that mean for policy? Will we double down in our attempt to go back to what was? Should we be going back or can we move forward with a different mindset? Our world is ever evolving and we have to make sure that all students are equipped with an actual well rounded education in order for them to navigate as active citizens and create the change they want to see.