Four Burbank schools were among 33 California institutions that recently received awards for the quality of their arts education.
State Superintendent of Public Instruction Tony Thurmond named Burbank High School, John Burroughs High School, Dolores Huerta Middle School and Luther Burbank Middle School as California Exemplary Arts Education awardees on Thursday. Schools that received the award met state arts standards for public schools and showed progress on key indicators.
“This year has been especially challenging for our students and schools, but I commend these schools for recognizing that this is a time when the arts are more critical than ever,” Thurmond said. “These schools excelled in providing quality arts education, despite all the obstacles presented by distance learning. It is with great pleasure we honor these schools for their steadfast dedication to arts education that plays a powerful role in supporting wellness, bridging social divides, and expanding creativity and critical thinking in our students.”
In addition to the other criteria, to apply to be recognized as an Exemplary Arts awardee, schools must offer sequenced instruction to all students in a minimum of three of the five arts disciplines identified in the state arts standards: dance, media arts, music, theatre and visual arts.
They must also show one level of improvement for at least one student subgroup in one of the following three areas based on the California School Dashboard: school climate, in the area of suspension rate; student engagement, in the area of chronic absenteeism or graduation rate; academic achievement, in the area of English language arts, mathematics or college and career readiness.
These California Exemplary Arts Education Schools, along with California Distinguished Schools, National Blue Ribbon Schools and recipients of California Department of Education recognition programs, will be honored virtually later this year.
State Recognizes Burbank Schools for Arts Education
