The Facts About Arts Education...

Here are some other findings:

The subsidy model is struggling. Arts and culture continue to lose their market share of philanthropy to other charitable areas — a decline that began well before the current economic downturn.
Demand for arts in education is up. A growing percentage of college-bound high school seniors are getting four years of arts and music, even as other national studies point to a decline in arts education. College arts degrees conferred annually have increased from 75,000 to 120,000 during the past decade.
How the public participates in and consumes the arts is expanding. More people are making art and playing music. However, attendance at mainstream nonprofit arts organizations is in decline. Technology has certainly had an impact: 50 percent of music and CD stores have disappeared in the past 5 years, while the number of online downloads has grown four-fold in just the past three years.
The competitiveness of the arts is slipping. Overall, the arts are not stacking up well against other uses of audience members’ time, donor and funder commitment, or spending when compared to non-arts sectors.
The National Arts Index hit its highest level in 1999, when it was 105.5. The index uses 76 equal-weighted, national indicators of arts activity. For more information, visit www.AmericansfortheArts.org

The times are a changing...