INDIANA ARTS COMMISSION PARTNERING ARTS, COMMUNITIES, AND EDUCATION

PROGRAM SUMMARYUPDATED SUMMER 2018

In 2015, the Indiana Arts Commission established Partnering Arts, Communities, and Education (PACE) to assist elementary schools and artists/arts organizations in establishing long-term, in-depth, and sustainable partnerships for the purpose of impacting student growth and achievement through extended and connected arts and literacy experiences.

1 Partner Schoolcommitment from teachers

and administrators local and district-wide

1 Partner Arts Organizationleading the grant writing and

program management

Teaching Artistsimplementing workshops on

arts and arts integration

• Regular Exposure: Arts experiences occur at regular intervals throughout the entire school year• Learning in literacy: Curriculum developed between the teaching artist and teachers to address literacy learning

concepts that align with Language Arts standards. • Learning in an artform: Curriculum developed by the teaching artist and arts organization to address arts

learning concepts.• Family and community engagement: connecting education with the community is an important component of PACE.

HOW PACE WORKS

PACE PARTNERSHIPS In the PACE program, the community arts organization is the primary contact with the IAC. They work to find a school partner in their community that would benefit most from PACE, and together, the arts organization and the school create a plan that fits their unique community. The arts-focused curriculum is presented by highly qualified teaching artists during the school day at regular intervals (weekly, bi-monthly, or similar). The classroom teachers support the teaching artists during the arts sessions by assisting the artist and helping students.

These partnerships work well because:

• Funding for the initial planning phase enables the school and organization to create a comprehensive curriculum plan.• Ongoing planning includes monthly meetings between teachers and teaching artists to check on student progress and

adapt to changing curriculum goals. • Arts integration encourages learning in and through the arts giving equal attention to the arts and another subject area.

Grant Recipient Partner School Grade Level(s) Discipline City

Arts for Learning Pine Elementary School 4, 5 Dance Michigan City

Robinson Community Learning Center McKinley Primary Center 4 Theatre South Bend

Fort Wayne Dance Collective South Wayne Elementary School 1, 2 Dance Fort Wayne

Marion Community School of the Arts John W. Kendall Elementary 2 Music Marion

ISU’s Community School of the Arts Meadows Elementary School 1, 2, 3 Visual Arts Terre Haute

Arts Council of Indianapolis James Russell Lowell (IPS #51) 3 Theatre Indianapolis

Brown County Art Guild Van Buren Elementary School 1, 2 Visual Arts Nashville

Research is a major component of PACE. The IAC’s goal is to gather evidence through rigorous assessment showing that when the arts are part of learning, students succeed in the classroom.

In partnership with Dr. Robert Sabol of Purdue University assessment instruments were created that measure:

• Student attitudes• Student learning in the artform• Student understanding of arts vocabulary• Student writing skills• Student skills in the artform• Student general knowledge in the arts

Dr. Sabol’s analysis of the assessment data of the first two years of the program in conjunction with the IAC and participant progress evaluation confirmed the following:1

• PACE program collectively contributed to students’ knowledge of the arts and acquisition of arts specific vocabulary to significant degrees

• Students made progress in developing essential arts related skills• PACE program contributed to creating and developing positive attitudes toward the arts• Increases were produced on all writing skills measurements• PACE program is positively influencing student learning in the arts and that literacy development also may be positively

influenced by its integration with arts education

1 The full report(s) of Dr. Sabol’s research analysis can be found online at arts.IN.gov

GATHERING THE DATA

The PACE program is a three year cycle during which the partnership develops, the students receive multiple years of arts experiences, and the arts organization becomes embedded in a school community. We encourage sites to improve the partnership each year with more integrated lessons and more frequent planning. Through this three year format the IAC is able to gather longitudinal research and impact each school at a deeper level. Future plans include expansion to more sites across the state.

WHAT’S NEXT FOR PACE?

Madison Primary Center, South Bend• 501 total school attendance• 88% free and reduced lunch• “F” School Report Card• 22% passing Math; 22% passing ELA• 176 students participating in PACE• Grades 1 and 2

McKinley Primary Center, South Bend• 405 total school attendance• 79% free and reduced lunch• “D” School Report Card• 27% passing Math; 49% passing ELA• 170 students participating in PACE• Grades 1 and 2

South Wayne Elementary School, Fort Wayne• 381 total school attendance• 83% free and reduced lunch• “C” School Report Card• 46% passing Math; 41% passing ELA• 57 students participating in PACE• Grade 1

James Russell Lowell IPS 51, Indianapolis• 414 total school attendance• 72% free and reduced lunch• “F” School Report Card• 16% passing Math; 26% passing ELA• 26 students participating in PACE• Grade 3

PARTICIPATING SCHOOL PROFILES

Meadows Elementary School, Terre Haute

• 309 total school attendance• 83% free and reduced lunch• “B” School Report Card• 53% passing Math; 50% passing ELA• 104 students participating in PACE• Grades 1 and 2

Pine Elementary School, Michigan City• 420 total school attendance• 81% free and reduced lunch• “C” School Report Card• 41% passing Math; 51% passing ELA• 125 students participating in PACE• Grades 3 and 4

Van Buren Elementary School, Nashville

• 291 total school attendance• 51% free and reduced lunch• “A” School Report Card• 68% passing Math; 72% passing ELA• 39 students participating in PACE• Grade 1

John W. Kendall Elementary, Marion

• 370 total school attendance• 70% free and reduced lunch• “D” School Report Card• 50% passing Math; 54% passing ELA• 40 students participating in PACE• Grade 2

Schools added in 2015

Schools added in 2016

Schools added in 2017