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PUBLIC TESTIMONY
Testimony by Kimberly Olsen, Executive Director of New York City Arts and Education Roundtable on Arts Education Funding
4:30:20
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Kimberly Olsen, Executive Director of the New York City Arts and Education Roundtable, testified on behalf of the It Starts With The Arts Coalition and the Coalition for Equitable Education Funding. She emphasized the importance of prioritizing funding for arts education in New York City schools and communities, highlighting the crucial role of the Department of Cultural Affairs and Cultural Development Fund in supporting arts education programs.
- Olsen revealed that approximately 300 schools still lack a certified arts teacher, leaving thousands of students without dedicated arts instruction.
- She pointed out significant delays in the CDF award letters and the New York City Public Schools' MTAC contracting process, which cause financial hardship for organizations and teaching artists.
- Olsen called for a $75,000,000 baseline to support arts and culture, along with ensuring an arts teacher in every school.
Kimberly Olsen
4:30:20
Thank you, chair Rivera, fellow council members, as well as council staff for your time today.
4:30:24
My name is Kimberly Olson, and I'm proud to be the executive director of the New York City Arts and Education Roundtable.
4:30:30
I'm here to testify as part of the It Starts With The Arts Coalition, as well as the Coalition for Equitable Education Funding, calling on our city to prioritize funding for arts education in New York City schools and communities.
4:30:41
The Department of Cultural Affairs and Cultural Development Fund are essential resources in New York City's arts education community, enabling hundreds of organizations to deliver essential arts ed programming across all five boroughs.
4:30:53
These programs, including in school instruction, after school programs, field trips, arts partnerships, and teen programs, funded by the CDF Fund, cultivate not only the next generation of arts workers and audiences, but prepare our city's young people with the skills necessary to enter the twenty first century workforce.
4:31:12
Last week's education hearing revealed that approximately 300 schools are still lacking a certified arts teacher, a persistent issue for over a decade, leaving thousands of students without dedicated arts instruction.
4:31:23
Furthermore, the roll out of the class size mandate, proposed changes to the foundation aid formula, and shifting federal funding threatened to widen the arts education access gap for years to come.
4:31:33
However, more than 700 organizations partnered with schools last year to bridge that access gap, broaden access to world class artists, and provide external funding to schools.
4:31:44
Unfortunately, delays in CDF award letters, as well as gross delays in New York City Public Schools' MTAC contracting process, averaging about sixteen to twenty eight months per recent member survey we conducted, impede these efforts, causing not only lost educational opportunities, but financial hardship, both for organizations and also the 5,000 plus teaching artists we estimate to be working in our city.
4:32:06
As a result, teaching artists, a vital workforce within our city's cultural and education landscape, face unstable employment and inconsistent compensation.
4:32:15
The fluctuating numbers of certified arts teachers adds another layer of complexity to this, as teaching artists are increasingly relied upon to fill gaps in arts instruction, yet often lack the same job security and benefits.
4:32:28
Investing in arts education is an investment in our city.
4:32:30
I join my colleagues in calling on a $75,000,000 baseline to support arts and culture, along with an arts teacher in every school.
4:32:38
Thank you so much.