California Press Conference Announcing Arts Education Funding

Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger held a press conference yesterday announcing California's massive half-a-billion dollar investment in arts education featuring American Idol's Randy Jackson and Earth WInd and FIres Phillip Baily. We have posted a podcast of the event at: http://www.music-for-all.org/FromtheTrenchesPodcast.html
For details on the funding Click Here
The quick recap:
ARTS AND MUSIC BLOCK GRANT
The 2006-07 Budget includes $105 million Proposition 98 General Fund for an annual Arts and Music Block Grant program. These funds will be distributed to school districts, charter schools and county offices of education to support standards aligned instruction in kindergarten through grade twelve. The funds will be available for hiring additional staff, staff development, purchasing materials, books, supplies and equipment. The funding will be allocated at an equal amount per pupil, with a minimum of $2,500 for school sites with twenty or fewer students and a minimum of $4,000 per site with more than twenty students.|
ARTS, MUSIC AND PHYSICAL EDUCATION ONE-TIME EQUIPMENT GRANTS
The Budget also includes $500 million Proposition 98 General Fund on a one-time basis for the purchase of arts, music and/or physical education supplies and equipment. With these resources, schools will be able to make significant investments in items such as musical instruments, kilns, photographic equipment and multi-media design equipment. Further, this significant investment of resources will allow schools to make meaningful investments in order to improve and expand the infrastructure of physical education programs to help address the rising incidence of obesity. Grants will be allocated to school districts, charter schools and county offices of education on an equal amount per pupil, based on the number of pupils in kindergarten and grades one through twelve, with a minimum funding level of $2,500 for small schools.