WHAT WE BELIEVE
THE ARTS ARE AN IMPORTANT PART OF EDUCATION
For many of America's youth, public schools serve as the major provider of formalized arts instruction. Therefore it is critical that the arts maintain their status as a core academic subject.
When arts education funding became threatened the Orcutt Children's Arts Foundation was created in 2002 to support the visual and performing arts in the Orcutt Union School District.
Statistics from the National School Boards Association and Americans for the Arts show that students that consistently participate in comprehensive, sequential and rigorous arts programs are:
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4 times more likely to be recognized for academic achievement
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3 times more likely to be elected to class office within their schools
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4 times more likely to participate in a math and science fair
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3 times more likely to win an award for school attendance
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4 times more likely to win an award for writing an essay or poem
STUDENTS SHOULD BE EXPOSED TO ALL GENRES OF ART
The foundation supports arts in the Orcutt schools in a variety of ways. Arts Attack - a visual arts program, Teacher Grants, Dance, and Classroom are just some of the things funded by the foundation at the Elementary level. OCAF also supports special arts-related projects and programs such as band, drama, music and more.
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Drama helps with understanding social relationships, complex issues and emotions; improves concentrated thought and story comprehension
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Music improves math achievement and proficiency, reading and cognitive development; boosts SAT verbal scores and skills for second-language learners
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Dance helps with creative thinking, originality, elaboration and flexibility; improves expressive skills, social tolerance, self-confidence and persistence
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Visual arts improve content and organization of writing; promote sophisticated reading skills and interpretation of text, reasoning about scientific images and reading readiness
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Multi-arts (combination of art forms) helps with reading, verbal and math skills; improves the ability to collaborate and higher-order thinking skills
BOARD OF DIRECTORS
Melanie Waffle, President
Dr. Eric Castle, Vice President
Michelle Boyd, Treasurer
Joe Dana, Secretary
Dr. Holly Edds
Roberta Hough
Dr. Suzanne Levy
Laura McIntyre
Blanca Mejia
Jeremy Rich
Joe Schmidt
Jan Zilli
