The first AEP National Forum of 2009 took place in New Orleans, a city to whom we owe so much of America’s rich cultural heritage, and whose reliance on culture as a linchpin of its survival is an example and lesson to us all.  Our theme for this forum – “All Together Now: Building Strong Communities Through Arts and Education Partnerships” – aligns with a time of change and uncertainty in our nation.  Some is dismaying, some encouraging, even exciting.  We know that in uncertain times, the temptation to fall back on the tried and the practical is almost irresistible and often advisable.  In learning environments, in our communities, we search for the skills and practices that will put us on the most firm footing for today and for the future. 

But we also know that the arts can provide an almost magical bridge between the known and the unknown.  Cultural traditions connect us to parts of the past so deep they are almost beyond memory, and they bind us together in the noisy but essential practice of being human.  In addition, however, the arts present a face of the future, in their making and in their observation, that coaxes us toward the unfamiliar and helps us imagine the world in a new way.  These two qualities of art and art-making, the communitarian and the revolutionary, hold great power to carry us forward in trying times, and even to help us see them as full of possibility.  As we continue to make the case for the arts in education for the 21st century, understanding this connection acquires a new force.

Throughout the Forum, in plenary meetings and in small group sessions, conversations focused on the real work – the challenges and opportunities – that we currently have in front of us as a field.  We heard from educators, artists, researchers, grantmakers, policymakers and legislators; from people in positions of power and from those who arbitrate and respond to that power.  We heard from the national, state and local perspectives that feed the work in different ways.  And we were privileged to experience the cultural treasures of New Orleans through the organizations, artists and individuals who hosted and welcomed us over the two days.

Here at AEP, we are embarking on a new phase of development that we like to call ‘AEP 2.0.’  We will continue to build on AEP’s leadership and the strengths of its work over the last decade and a half, but also be responsive to suggestions and recommendations from the field about what you need from the Partnership, and the exigencies of these very particular times and the opportunities and challenges they present our field.  Our winter 2009 AEP National Forum in New Orleans was one of the first steps in the process; we hope to continue to work with you as our partners as we take the next steps along the way.  In the next year we will be developing an Arts Education and 21st Century Learning Research and Policy Agenda; the latest update of our biannual state policy database; our fall 2009 AEP National Forum in Cambridge; and a new strategic plan.

At the heart of all the work is the continuing conviction that the greatest gift we can give the next generation is a rigorous, flexible, and creative education that allows them to meet the world as it comes to them and perhaps even fashion it into something new.  As arts educators, we know we have the tools to help.  We look forward to being on the journey with you.

All Together Now: Building Strong Communities through Arts and Education Partnerships - Program Agenda

The Cultural Economy: Growing Talent and Preparing the 21st Century Workforce through Arts Learning
Hon. Mitch Landrieu, Lieutenant Governor, Louisiana

How Should States Respond to the Challenges of Providing a 21st Century Education for All Students
Panel Moderator:Gene Wilhoit, Executive Director, Council of Chief State School Officers
Panelists: Hon. Jari Askins, Lieutenant Governor, Oklahoma; Hon. Barbara Lawton, Lieutenant Governor, Wisconsin; Susan Gendron, Commisssioner of Education, Maine

Shaping the Public Will for Imagination, Creativity, and Arts Education
Eric Friedenwald-Fishman, Creative Director/President, Metropolitan Group

Arts and Culture: Elemental Contributors to Social, Creative and Human Capital

Building Public Will: A communication approach to creating sustainable behavior change

The Power of Will (PDF Version of PowerPoint presentation)

Reception at the New Orleans Museum of Art - Thursday, February 12, 2009

Beyond the Marching Band: Reconciling Cultural Traditions with Traditional Education
Moderator: Dr. Andre M. Perry, Associate Dean, University of New Orleans College of Education and Human Development and CEO of the Capital One-UNO Charter Network

Opening Remarks by Dr. Andre M. Perry

What Are We Learning from Urban School Reform about the Future of American Education? and Reception at the Contemporary Arts Center - Friday, February 13, 2009
Paul Vallas, Superintendent, Recovery School District, New Orleans, LA

Day of Service - Saturday, February 14, 2009

On Saturday, February 14th, approximately 30 forum attendees gathered to perform service opportunities in the Lower 9th Ward. Volunteers worked alongside community members to support organizations focused on the arts, culture and community building in this historic neighborhood. Following their shifts all the volunteers gathered together to share experiences and an authentic New Orleans meal provided by vendors at the Sankofa Marketplace. The sites in the Lower 9th Ward were the Tekrema Center for Arts and Culture and the L9 Art Center.

Arts Education Partnership Research and Policy Agenda
Across the country, education is increasingly focusing on 21st century knowledge and skills. The arts, as the historic foundation of creativity and imagination, must play a key role in this revolution. In response, the AEP is developing an Arts Education and 21st Century Learning Research and Policy Agenda—a road map to guide the next generation of educational research and ensure that it drives and is informed by educational policy.

Forum Evaluation Survey
Please take the time to fill out our Forum evaluation survey. We greatly value all the feedback that we have received and hope to continue to receive.

Next AEP National Forum: October 2-3, 2009 in Cambridge, MA

AEP is happy to release the publication, Reflections on the Forum. This is a series of reflections taken from various attendees featuring leaders and newcomers in the arts education field on the Winter 2009 AEP Forum, All Together Now: Building Strong Communities Through Arts and Education Partnerships.