The Advancement Grant Program offers flexible matching grants to support Los Angeles County school districts aiming to provide quality arts education for public school students. Grant funds assist school districts in achieving key action items in their district arts plans, helping districts invest in launching or expanding projects that align with priority goals, and cultivating skills and practices that can be sustained beyond the term of the grant. Districts may apply for matching funds of up to $25,000.
Underwritten by the Funders Council, this program offers financial support to school districts in the Arts Ed Collective. Grants are matched by school district funds, leveraging public and private resources to expand high quality instruction in dance, media arts, music, theatre and visual arts. A complete list of grantee projects can be found below.
In 2016-17, the Arts Ed Collective provided 40 school districts and charter networks with $560,000 in matching grants. With each grant matched at least one-to-one, there was an overall investment of just under $2 million in direct services to students, professional development, purchasing instruments or supplies, district arts coordination or curriculum development.
2016-17 Advancement Grant Recipients
The Advancement Grant Program offered $560,000 in financial support to 38 school districts and two charter school networks in LA County for the 2016-17 school year.
Bassett Unified School District: $10,000 to support the creation of a district wide visual arts program.
Beverly Hills Unified School District: $15,900 to support teacher professional development for elementary dance integration, middle school theatre integration, and the creation of a secondary Arts, Media and Entertainment (AME) pathway.
Burbank Unified School District: $17,100 to support artist residencies, field trips and teacher professional development.
Castaic Union School District: $7,600 to support a district wide elementary instrumental music program and elementary artist residencies from the Santa Clarita Performing Arts Center.
Centinela Valley Union High School District: $14,400 to support assemblies for students and teacher professional development in theatre production management.
Compton Unified School District: $10,000 to support professional development in arts integration for elementary teachers and district wide planning by the CUSD Arts Consortium.
Covina-Valley Unified School District: $15,300 to support teacher professional development, elementary artist residencies and acquisition of materials for visual arts instruction.
Culver City Unified School District: $13,800 to support district wide teacher professional development and artist residencies from the Symphonic Jazz Orchestra.
Duarte Unified School District: $16,900 to support teacher professional development in visual arts integration and artist residencies from the Armory Center for the Arts.
East Whittier City School District: $14,400 to support expanded coordination of district wide teacher professional development in arts integration.
El Monte Union High School District: $17,500 to support the production of student arts showcases and to expand coordination of district arts advocacy, communications and school site collaborations.
El Rancho Unified School District: $17,700 to support teacher participation in the curriculum council, teacher professional development and implementation of the elementary arts integration scope and sequence.
Glendale Unified School District: $10,000 to support elementary artist residencies from Sophie Olson Dance Explosion.
Hacienda La Puente Unified School District: $16,900 to support district wide teacher professional development and the acquisition of educational technology tools.
Hawthorne School District: $6,300 to support parent training that builds community awareness and expands arts instruction to students.
ICEF Public Schools: $15,400 to support the expansion of theatre instruction for fourth and fifth grade students by a credentialed teacher.
Inglewood Unified School District: $8,800 to support elementary and middle school teacher professional development in STEAM, student showcases and district wide arts planning by the Arts Advisory Team.
Keppel Union School District: $10,000 to support curriculum development and teacher professional development in arts integration.
Lancaster School District: $13,400 to support the CREATE Festival of student art work and teacher professional development in arts integration.
Las Virgenes Unified School District: $17,000 to support teacher professional development in arts integration and the development of a team of elementary teacher arts advocates.
Lawndale Elementary School District: $14,800 to support district wide expansion of student participation in professional artist performances and workshops.
Little Lake Elementary School District: $7,000 to support theatre and dance artist residencies at three school sites.
Lynwood Unified School District: $14,500 to support the expansion of the district wide middle school instrumental music program.
Manhattan Beach Unified School District: $14,400 to support district wide elementary artist residencies and curriculum development by VAPA leads.
Monrovia Unified School District: $17,600 to support the expansion of the district wide elementary vocal music program.
Mountain View School District: $18,100 to support district wide artist residencies in theatre for fifth grade students provided by LA Arts Group.
Norwalk-La Mirada Unified School District: $17,600 to support district wide teacher professional development in visual arts and dance integration from The California Arts Project.
Palos Verdes Peninsula Unified School District: $13,900 to support visual arts curriculum development, teacher professional development and artist residencies from Palos Verdes Art Center.
Paramount Unified School District: $14,400 to support visual arts curriculum development, teacher professional development and student workshops.
Partnerships to Uplift Communities (PUC Schools): $10,000 to support district wide teacher professional development and the acquisition of instructional materials.
Pasadena Unified School District: $17,700 to support curriculum development and artist residencies in dance and music.
Pomona Unified School District: $17,100 to support teacher professional development in visual arts from The California Arts Project and to establish site arts leads at every elementary school.
Santa Monica-Malibu Unified School District: $16,500 to support district wide artist residencies in dance for fifth grade students provided by Dancing Classrooms.
Saugus Union School District: $17,000 to support artist residencies and teacher professional development in arts integration and assessment.
Sulphur Springs Union School District: $5,300 to support district wide artist workshops.
Temple City Unified School District: $17,800 to support visual arts curriculum development and teacher professional development.
Walnut Valley Unified School District: $10,000 to support the expansion of district arts coordination that will launch implementation of a newly adopted arts education plan.
Whittier City School District: $17,600 to support the expansion of district wide visual arts instruction for kindergarten through second grade students by a credentialed teacher.
Whittier Union High School District: $16,300 to support the expansion of district arts coordination that will launch implementation of a newly updated arts education plan.
Wiseburn School District: $14,000 to support the expansion of music instruction for third through eighth grade students by a credentialed teacher and district wide planning by the Arts Steering Committee.