The Arts in Basic Curriculum (ABC) Project, a 35-year effort between Winthrop University, the South Carolina Arts Commission and the South Carolina Department of Education, will begin a five-year case study with the Allendale County School District to research how to improve arts education in rural communities, according to a press release.
A $2.58 million Assistance in Arts Education grant funded by the U.S. Department of Education was awarded to the ABC Project, to be put towards the Community Access to the Arts in Rural Education (CARE) Project, its study and resulting guidebook.
The project, which will begin in 2021, will include several state and local partnerships to develop ongoing approaches, which organizers hope will last even beyond the 2026 grant completion date.
“Rural communities require a rural network of partnerships because of their lack of resources, and the CARE Project will align, strengthen and expand community partnerships among the Allendale schools with state and local partners,” said ABC Project Director Kim Wilson.
Superintendent of the Allendale County School District Margaret Gilmore said her district is excited and grateful to have been awarded the arts grant for the students of Allendale County School District.
“This funding opportunity will certainly provide access to a sustainable arts-rich learning environment for the entire school community,” she said.
Director of Community Arts Development at The South Carolina Arts Commission Susan DuPlessis said she is also excited about the project.
“After many years of working in Allendale County, it’s clear that there are many people who love and care about their community and the next generation,” DuPlessis said. “We are excited about ways to engage the community as this study and new practices are developed.”
In communities with high rates of poverty, access to the arts can be difficult due to rural schools’ financial constraints, but access to the arts helps student engagement, and there is hope for fostering the arts in all of South Carolina’s communities, Wilson said.
The goal of the CARE Project is to develop and distribute a guidebook based on the experiences of Allendale County School District to help other rural communities of persistent poverty to improve access to arts education.
“There is an urgent need to research and serve these communities, which have been continually absent from research and policy discussions, yet represent the most extreme gaps in equitable education,” Wilson said.
South Carolina has a higher percentage of schools in rural communities than the national average, and 12 of the state’s 46 counties suffer from persistent poverty, meaning poverty rates have exceeded 20% of the population for more than 30 years, according to Wilson.
The CARE Project plans to provide arts education programs and professional development for arts educators, teachers and principals to support arts-rich learning.
The guidebook will contain instructional materials, lesson plans and other resources to engage groups in other rural communities to replicate the process researched during the CARE Project in Allendale.
This article is a reflection of a press release from The Arts in Basic Curriculum Project.
