The big picture: 

We are petitioning for the Ithaca City School District to invest in full-time arts education positions at our elementary schools. We believe that the arts are a crucial part of our students' education, and the arts programs make our school communities are more vibrant.

The full scoop: 

In Ithaca City School District, some elementary schools have full-time art and music teachers (they are dedicated to one school), and some schools have art and music teachers who are split between multiple schools (they spend some days at one school and some days at another school). This arrangement depends on how many different sections (number of classes at each grade level) they need to teach at each school. If there are more sections at a specific school, they need more time at that school, and are less likely to have to split their time between multiple schools. 

With the 2024-2025 ICSD budget cuts, we saw two major impacts on our teachers:

• class sizes increased across the district
• the arts department has been in a hiring freeze since the initial budget failed, and we are down one music teacher and two art teachers at the elementary level

Larger classes are challenging for teachers because their time and attention is stretched across more students, making it more difficult to manage the classroom and differentiate instruction (meet individual students' unique needs, interests, and strengths). When we have larger classes, it also means there are less sections for our art & music teachers.

With less sections (and due to the hiring freeze), some of our teachers are now expected to split their time between two schools. 

So, not only are our students in larger classes, they are getting less opportunities in art and music. 

 

 

What we lose when our art & music teachers are split between schools: 

Having full-time art and music teachers at our elementary schools allows our students to have art & music opportunities in addition to art and music classes. Some examples from BJM Elementary include: 

• Music and art clubs that students can opt into during the day, including ukulele club, makey-makey (a STEM and music combo), Piano club, and Rap writing club  
• Choice chorus ensemble, a volunteer, multi grade-level chorus  
• Class integration and cross-curricular opportunities, where music & art are brought into the classroom for additional projects 
• Special art & music events, like the pop-up art show that BJM 4th graders had at the State of the Art Gallery last year, where students shared their artwork, read poems, and performed music 
• Large-scale celebrations of art & music, like the art gallery walls at the Multicultural Dinner and the BJM magazine 

Now that the BJM art & music teachers are split between two schools, our students have lost out on all of these opportunities. 

 

 

The snowball effect of large class sizes and reducing arts education in our elementary schools that need additional support: 

Last year, one third of schools within the Ithaca City School District lost “good standing” with the New York State Department of Education (NYSED), meaning that specific student groups or the entire student group has low performance.

Two of our elementary schools, Enfield and Beverly J. Martin, were cited as needing Targeted Support and Improvement. Due to classes sizes (which means fewer sections), these are both schools where the art and music teachers are shared with another school this academic year. 

 

 

Why does that matter? Art and music programs have been shown to:

• Improve cognitive abilities, including problem-solving, critical thinking, concentration, and memory
• Support students' social and emotional well-being, academic performance, and overall personal development
• Encourage self-expression, boost creativity, and promote cultural understanding

Art & music opportunities support and improve the learning that happens in the classroom.

Rather than increasing class sizes and splitting our art & music teachers between multiple schools, the arts should be recognized as a crucial part of a holistic education, especially for those students at schools cited for Targeted Support and Improvement. 

 

 

How can you help? 

We are petitioning for the Ithaca City School District to invest in full-time arts education positions at our elementary schools. We believe that the arts are a crucial part of our students' education, and the arts programs make our school communities are more vibrant.

• Sign the petition below to add your name to the list!
• SHARE this petition and the importance of arts education to others in our community.
• Attend a Board of Education meeting and make a public comment that we should end the hiring freeze and hire more art and music teachers!

Resources: 

• Small Classes, Big Possibilities, The School Superintendents Association: https://www.aasa.org/resources/resource/small-classes-big-possibilities
• Accountability Status by Student Subgroup (chart that shows which schools cited by New York State as Targeted for Support & Improvement - in our elementary schools that is BJM & Enfield): https://www.ithaca.com/news/ithaca/icsd-says-it-is-far-from-failing-in-response-to-loss-of-good-standing-status/article_6be8bacc-16cc-11ef-96c7-9b1989217bc9.html