Building student engagement and learning through the arts

K-12 STEAM education

Expand existing project, program, or initiative (expanding and continuing ongoing, successful work)

There is a persistent educational opportunity gap in LA. Despite research on the link between the arts, student achievement, and wellbeing, LA County schools serving marginalized students offer less arts instruction than other public schools.
Compounding this is the pandemic’s impact. Students are dealing with a mental health crisis and facing arts scarcity at a time when they could benefit from it the most. Teachers report hard-to-engage students and pressure from the state to catch students up to grade level. Research shows that marginalized students disproportionately receive below-grade-level instruction. Acceleration - the integration of old and new content at once - has been shown to increase learning. Turnaround Arts trains teachers to integrate the arts into classroom instruction in order to accelerate learning and reach all students. Teachers are embracing their creativity, and are surprised at the level of student engagement when the arts are a part of everyday learning!

Our project will support ten schools in marginalized LA County communities to leverage the arts across the school community to equitably support student wellbeing and success. Our innovative, community-driven approach to addressing the challenges our schools, teachers, and students face focuses on four key areas:
Building teacher collaboration and leadership to advance school-wide arts goals: Our coaching program helps schools form Arts Leadership Teams and develop and implement annual strategic arts goals. We bring partner schools together 3x per year to share challenges and successes for building equitable schools through the arts. Helping teachers integrate the arts into their classroom to provide more entry points into learning: Our professional development program provides teachers with tangible culturally responsive strategies to integrate the arts into their teaching of all subjects, including math, science, history, and English. We focus on using the arts to reach nontraditional learners.
Using the arts to create positive school cultures that celebrate student voice: Special projects at schools aligned with their strategic arts goals, such as artistic residencies, musicals, and murals, build community and pride. Engaging family and community members as partners in learning: We support schools to develop initiatives such as student art exhibitions, family art nights, and drumming workshops that nurture strong relationships between teachers, parents, and students.

Turnaround Arts: California is working at the intersection of the arts and the education system to reimagine teaching and learning and advance a new vision for public education in LA County - one where students have access to high-quality, arts-rich, and culturally responsive instruction, and are more excited to engage in their learning. We continue to expand our innovative programming, both in breadth and depth, and reach more schools across the LA County region. Over the past year, we expanded our reach to an additional 800 students and teachers in LA County, and in the coming year we will be recruiting for at least two new partner schools in the region, adding an additional 600+ students and teachers to our network.
Our approach is unique among arts education nonprofits, partnering with the whole school and supporting the wellbeing and success of public school teachers, empowering them to better meet the needs of their diverse students and families.

We gather quantitative and qualitative data through school reports 2x per year, an annual survey of teachers, and post-workshop surveys. The information gathered helps us assess the progress schools are making toward their arts for equity goals, and identify areas that may need further support. Turnaround Arts schools’ cultures are positive, vibrant, creative, and attract better teachers committed to creatively supporting student growth. In our 2024 teacher survey, 95% reported that the arts had a positive impact on student engagement, 85% on academic learning, and 89% on social-emotional learning, 93% reported that their school’s culture celebrates creativity, and 83% reported that their school regularly engages family through the arts.
In their own words: “My students are more creative. I don’t think I have heard my students say ‘I can’t do this!’ Instead they are more willing to try something new, accept the critique and keep working.”