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Q&A
Current state of arts education in NYC schools
1:32:14
ยท
169 sec
Council Member Narcisse inquires about the number of schools, arts teachers, and schools with arts programs in NYC. DOE representatives provide some data but acknowledge challenges in disaggregating information, especially for elementary schools.
- NYC has 1,600 public schools
- There are 3,558 arts teachers in the NYC school system
- Not all schools have dedicated art teachers
- DOE faces challenges in disaggregating data, particularly for elementary schools where common branch teachers may teach arts courses
- Council Member Narcisse emphasizes the need to push harder to ensure all students have access to arts education from pre-K through college
Mercedes Narcisse
1:32:14
So how many schools that we have in New York City?
Audrey St. Clair
1:32:18
Sixteen Hundred public schools.
Mercedes Narcisse
1:32:19
Alright, so how many arts teachers that we have in New York City that's actually teaching?
Audrey St. Clair
1:32:30
I'll defer to my colleagues at the DOE.
Mercedes Narcisse
1:32:32
And if I may add since my time gonna go on, I want to know how many school have arts.
1:32:40
Somehow like dance, you know any I mean musical, any drama, whatever.
1:32:49
So can you tell me if all our school building have that?
1:32:53
Something going on.
Paul Thompson
1:33:01
So I'm gonna read some numbers out to you.
1:33:03
So the total number of arts teachers that we presently have in the system is 3,558.
Mercedes Narcisse
1:33:13
And for the schools?
1:33:16
So Is all the schools have art teacher right now?
Paul Thompson
1:33:20
So no.
Mercedes Narcisse
1:33:22
No.
1:33:22
How many that don't have art teachers?
Paul Thompson
1:33:26
So this is one of the things that we prepared.
1:33:29
Chair Joseph, I feared having to say to you because I know how serious you are about your data.
1:33:37
But in all seriousness, especially in the elementary school grades where common branch teachers can teach arts courses.
1:33:47
So it it makes it difficult to disaggregate this data.
1:33:50
And so we're working with the data office on our end.
1:33:55
Just couldn't turn some of this data around in time, but we are more than happy to follow-up with an answer to this question.
Mercedes Narcisse
1:34:04
My point is all stated from your statement, all statement here, how important it is to have arts because myself personally from the little country I came from, we had arts.
1:34:18
So New York City is a leading city, the the capital of the world.
1:34:24
The reason that we're so excited people love this city, I can tell you because of artists.
1:34:30
So therefore let's work harder.
1:34:32
I know how difficult it is.
1:34:34
I'm not I'm a dreamer somehow, but I'm a realist, so we're gonna have to just push a little harder to make sure our kids are exposed to art somehow from pre k kindergarten to where they're supposed to go in college.
1:34:53
So thank you because I live it and I'm beneficiary I'm benefiting from artists in my home and I know how important that is.
1:35:01
So thank you so much for your time.