Throughout March, in addition to brackets and basketballs, the Arts Education Partnership and AEP partner organizations will celebrate the arts in a big way and you are invited!

AEP is pleased to participate in the upcoming opportunities that keep the momentum of the implementation of the 2020 Action Agenda for Advancing the Arts in Education going. Check out these March activities that support your ongoing work to make high-quality arts education accessible to all students in the United States.

Understand and share your state’s policies:
On March 6, AEP will release the 2018 ArtScan at a Glance summary and updates to the ArtScan database. These two resources will provide a descriptive look at how all 50 states, plus the District of Columbia, support education in and through the arts, including in standards, assessments and graduation requirements, among others. You can share this resource with your state networks as you work to expand arts in education in your state. #ArtScan

View the current education policy landscape:
On March 10, AEP, with generous support from Americans for the Arts and the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, will host the 2018 AEP State Policy Symposium in Washington, D.C. Don’t miss your chance to attend and explore key policy topics impacting the arts in education, including an in-depth look at opportunities for the arts under the Every Student Succeeds Act. Register today! #AEPSPS18

Learn more about the impact of arts in education:
AEP continues to highlight the positive academic, cognitive, personal, social and professional outcomes of an arts education with the addition of new research study summaries published on ArtsEdSearch. This one-of-a kind online research clearinghouse, with more than 250 research summaries, provides arts in education stakeholders with reliable, up-to-date information on student and educator outcomes associated with arts learning in and out of school. #ArtsEdSearch

Participate in national celebrations:

National Young Audiences Arts for Learning Week: YA Week starts on March 25 and raises awareness of the YA network — consisting of 28 affiliates serving students in 22 states — and the arts in education initiatives they support through public programming, special events and residencies. Learn more here. #YAWeek

March is the official month of Music in Our Schools and Theatre in Our Schools. Learn more about how AEP partner organizations are raising awareness of the importance of student participation in music and theater education:

• Music in Our Schools Month: The National Association for Music Education’s MIOSM, with a 2018 theme of Music Connects Us, raises awareness of the importance of music education for all children, and provides music teachers with the opportunity to share the impact that music education has on students. Learn more here. ‪#‎MIOSM #MusicConnectsUs
• Theater in Our Schools Month: Sponsored by the Educational Theatre Association, the International Thespian Society and the American Alliance for Theatre & Education, TIOS month raises awareness of theater education’s impact through community- and school-based events and nationwide celebrations. Learn more here. #TIOS18 #TheatreInOurSchools

With so many reasons to celebrate the arts ahead, AEP looks forward to a month full of arts-inspired conversations, engaging events and new resources helping to promote the importance of equitable access to the arts in education for every child.