The National Endowment for the Arts has released a new report that draws a strong association between arts involvement and academic achievement for at-risk youth. In his introduction to the report, NEA chair Rocco Landesman writes:
- Students who had arts-rich experiences in high school showed higher overall GPAs than did students who lacked those experiences.
- High school students who earned few or no arts credits were five times more likely not to have graduated than students who earned many arts credits.
- Arts-engaged high school students enrolled in competitive colleges —and in four-year colleges in general—at higher rates than did low arts-engaged students.
- Students who had intensive arts experiences in high school were three times more likely than students who lacked those experiences to earn a bachelor’s degree. They also were more likely to earn “mostly A’s” in college.
- Young adults who had arts-rich experiences in high school were more likely than other young adults to have volunteered recently.
- Young adults who had arts-rich experiences in high school were more likely to vote and/or to participate in a political campaign.
Read the NEA's report on "Arts and Achievement in At-Risk Youth."
