Arts Education

“Education teaches students how to write their name; arts education teaches students how to find their signature.”
– Renée Elise Goldsberry

The School District of Palm Beach County serves over 193,000 students in Music, Visual Arts, Theatre Arts, Dance, and TV Production. As a top-performing urban School District in Florida, it offers arts education at the elementary, middle, and high school levels across the county. The School District of Palm Beach County has been a recipient of the National Association of Music Merchants (NAMM) Best Communities for Music Education distinction for the past 10 years, underscoring its support for arts education as part of a well-rounded education.

Elementary fine arts programs are offered during the school day, and students also have opportunities to visit local arts and cultural organizations on field trips. Students from the School District of Palm Beach County participate in local and national art competitions and exhibitions, including the Art in the Capital Contest, the Norton Museum Marden Art Exhibition, the Scholastic Art and Writing Awards, and the Fall and Spring District art exhibitions. District students have been selected to perform at the Midwest International Band and Orchestra Clinic, the American String Teachers Association Conference, the Annual Essentially Ellington National Competition and Festival, the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade, the Sugar Bowl in New Orleans, London’s New Year’s Day Parade, and the American Choral Directors Association National Conference.

The District is part of the Partners in Education program of the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts. Since 2005, the District has partnered with the Kravis Center for the Performing Arts.

“The Partners in Education program is based on the belief that teachers’ professional learning is an essential component of any effort designed to increase the artistic literacy of young people.” – Kennedy Center Partners in Education Program.

Benefits of Arts in Education

• The arts allow students to think critically, solve problems, develop socially, and relate personally to the learning experience.
• The arts engage students. The arts allow students to make a personal contribution to the collaborative learning process.  
• Engage with school and reduce stress.
• The arts give students a voice to be heard, seen, and recognized.
• The arts allow students to build knowledge and apply that knowledge to real-world challenges. 
• Students connect to self, the world, and others through the arts.  
• Learning through the arts allows teachers to differentiate their instruction to reach students with various learning styles/intelligence.  
• Arts in education improve academic achievement.
• The arts make a difference in the lives of students. 
• Develop social-emotional and interpersonal skills.