Federal Funding to Support Arts Education
Arts education needs your support! Understanding federal funding for education and how to most effectively advocate can be challenging. The Arts Education Alliance has created resources to help arts education advocates understand federal funding and take action.
Questions? Contact advocacy@nafme.org.
Contents

Overview of Federal Funds—Titles I, II, IV-A
The Every Students Succeeds Act (ESSA)—Passed in 2015, ESSA shifted the federal focus to support for a “well-rounded” education that includes music and the arts (defined as: dance, media arts, theatre, and visual arts). With the passage of ESSA, Title funds may be used to support arts programs.
Title I
A grant program to help ensure that students, regardless of family income, can acquire an equitable education and achieve proficiency on challenging academic standards.
Funding Recipients: Local Education Agencies and Schools
Title II
Focuses on improving student academic achievement by bolstering skills and expertise of teachers, principals, and other educators and increasing the number of high-quality teachers and principals in schools.
Funding Recipients: Local Education Agencies and Schools
Title III
A grant program designed to improve the education of English Learner (EL) children and youth by helping them learn English and meet challenging state academic content and student academic achievement standards.
Funding Recipients: State Education Agencies
Title IV
A flexible block grant program which supports activities in three broad areas:
(1) providing students with a well-rounded education (e.g., college and career counseling, STEM, arts and music, civics, advanced placement); (2) supporting safe and healthy students (e.g., comprehensive school mental health, drug and violence prevention, health and physical education); and (3) supporting the effective use of technology.
Funding Recipients: Local Education Agencies
Assistance for Arts Education Program (AAE)
(1) The development and dissemination of accessible evidenced-based instructional materials; (2) implementation of evidence-based professional development programs for arts educators; and (3) outreach activities to expands partnerships between education institutions and community/national arts centers
Funding Recipients: Local Education Agencies and Nonprofit Organizations
Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA)
IDEA is a law that makes available a free appropriate public education to eligible children with disabilities throughout the nation and ensures special education and related services to those children. Children and youth ages 3 through 21 receive special education and related services under IDEA Part B.
Funding Recipients: State Education Agencies, Institutions of Higher Education, and Nonprofit Organizations
Carl D. Perkins Career and Technical Education Act (Perkins V)
The Perkins Act is a law authorizing federal funds to improve career-technical education programs, integrate academic and career technical instruction, serve special populations, and meet gender equity needs.
Funding Recipients: State Education Agencies

Title I Allowable Uses
Title I funds may be used to purchase classroom materials to support student achievement in an area highlighted by a district needs assessment.
Specific for Each Discipline
Dance:
“Title I funding was used to create a position for me to grow the existing K-5 and 9-12 dance program at the 6-8 grade level and promote vertical alignment and growth throughout the district.”
Music:
“Title I funds were used to purchase new instruments for students who could not afford their own. This allowed students from low-income backgrounds to fully participate in the music program and benefit from the same opportunities as their peers.”
Theatre:
“Our school used Title I funds to purchase a new sound board for the auditorium.”
Visual Arts:
“Following a community needs assessment we used Title I funds to hire additional arts teachers.”

Title II Allowable Uses
Title II funds can be used to prepare, train, and recruit teachers and other education professionals, including content-specific professional development which is so often lacking for arts educators.
Specific for Each Discipline
Dance:
Dance educators can use Title II funds for NDEO’s online courses and conference registration to support dance-specific professional learning; and substitute costs for dance educators to attend professional learning. Schools/Districts can use Title II funds to recruit dance educators, support new dance educators with coaching/observation, or provide stipends to dance educators to lead professional learning for other staff members.
Multi-discipline example:
Title II funding was used to provide content specific training in each artistic discipline to further the depth and breadth of teacher skills. Workshops were held on the following topics, plein air painting, ceramics, hand building, Adobe certification, music & audio technology, recording & sound engineering, lighting board trainings, Improv techniques, drum circle techniques, and early childhood training for special educators.
Theatre:
Theatre educators can use funds toward professional development such as EdTA’s Theatre Education Conference.
Visual Arts:
Aligned to school goals, Visual Arts Educators can utilize funds to support professional learning to gain new instructional strategies in the arts for reaching and serving all students.

Title IV-A Allowable Uses
Title IV funds may be used to support activities that provide students with a well-rounded education, which includes dance, media arts, music, theatre, and visual arts.
Specific for Each Discipline
Dance:
“Our school uses Title IV-A funds to hire an artist in Residence for the school Dance program.”
Media Arts:
Purchasing Equipment and Supplies (i.e., Chromebooks, Design Software)
Music:
"Title IV-A funds were used to enhance digital resources and technology in the classroom, including purchasing software for music composition and audio engineering. These resources are vital for preparing students for modern careers in music and the arts, particularly those from underfunded schools."
Theatre:
“Title IV funds were used to hire a consultant to help facilitate a Broadway Theatre Connections summer enrichment camp for students in grades 3-12.”
Visual Arts:
“Title IV-A funds were used to purchase curriculum modules to support struggling visual arts educators.”
Next Steps for Arts Teachers
Share Department of Education’s Guidance Letter
Share directly with your principal and district leaders to make them aware of the latest guidance and how it impacts your program.
Start Building Relationships NOW!
Build or leverage partnerships with staff, parents, and community organizations to develop a stronger support system for students to access arts in schools.
Use Opportunity to Learn Standards (OTLs) to Identify Specific Need(s) and Tie Them to Program Funding
Use discipline-specific OTLs to identify the needs for your arts education program and determine what federal funding streams can be used for support.
Align Needs with School or District Goals/Strategic Plans
Advocate!
Reach out to your elected officials in Congress and share how music and the arts are important to you and your community!
District Funding Cycle: When to Take Action
This is an example of a district funding cycle.
Budgeting
School districts develop a plan each year that includes an estimate of the money a district will receive (revenues) and how they will spend those funds (expenditures). The plan, which is usually developed by the superintendent, is then approved by the local school board.
Expenditures
During the school year, districts have multiple contracts and payments for staff salaries and benefits, transportation, facilities, food services, instructional supplies, and staff development just to name a few.
Monitoring and Reporting
Every year, school districts are required to make publicly available a report card that includes information related to a wide variety of student and school performance metrics, accountability, per-pupil expenditures, and educator qualifications, as well as any other information that the state or school district deems relevant.
Budgets are public documents that should be posted on the district website.
Arts Education Advocacy Resources
Arts Education Alliance
Department of Education
Guidance on ESSA Report Cards
Letter on Use of Federal Funds to Support Arts Programs
Guidance on Title II, Part A: Supporting Effective Instruction State Grants
Opportunity to Learn Standards
Additional Resources
Title IV-A Coalition
Arts Education Alliance
Share Department of Education’s Guidance Letter
Share directly with your principal and district leaders to make them aware of the latest guidance and how it impacts your program.