Dear Future President,

Fine arts programs are continuing to be cut in public schools. I believe fine arts programs are crucial to students education. With limited public funding, schools are relying on private funds and fundraisers to keep the fine arts programs going. According to the National School Boards Association, multiple studies have shown that students who take fine arts courses are more likely to stay in school. “The elective courses are what keep the students in school” says Steve Ellis, a principal at Fike High School. Without fine arts courses, students won’t want to come to school.

Fine arts programs are constantly in danger of being cut, even though they’re shown to improve academic grades. According to the Arts and Education Initiative, students who participate in fine arts programs have been 4 times more likely to be recognized for academic achievement. If we help to keep fine arts programs in schools, students grades will improve.

Other people may say “the government doesn’t have enough money to fund fine arts programs, so we should just fund academics.” But the problem is students cannot just thrive on academic classes. Not everyone has the money to take piano lessons or art classes outside of school. This can cause students to feel left out or different because they cannot do what their other friends can do.

To help schools to keep their fine arts programs alive, we need to start equally funding different programs. Federal funding for the National Science Foundation gets $5 billion a year, while the arts and humanities gets only $250 million a year. This is a huge difference. If we start to equally fund each program, the fine arts programs won’t have to depend on private funds and campaigns. As a student in choir, this will help many other students in fine arts.

Sincerely,

Abby J.