Digital Arts Alliance Gets Boost from NEA, FIE, E3
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The Digital Arts Alliance, which promotes digital arts in K-12 education, is expanding its membership with the addition of three education-focused organizations, including the National Education Association (NEA) Foundation, the Foundation for Investor Education, and Employers For Education Excellence (E3). The Digital Arts Alliance also announced new initiatives for schools for the coming year.
In conjunction with the Pearson Foundation--the founder of the Digital Arts Alliance--the NEA Foundation is launching digital arts programs in school districts that are part of the its "Achievement Gap Sites" program. These programs will include professional development and classroom experiences, as well as "technological capacity grants supported by Digital Arts Alliance partners, the Pearson Foundation, the International Society For Technology in Education (ISTE), and Peachpit," according to the NEA Foundation.
The group said the first schools to participate in the programs (for the 2008-2009 school year) will be in Seattle and Milwaukee, as well as schools in southern Ohio, which were part of a 2008 pilot program.
"This innovative, collaborative approach, that both builds on the knowledge of teachers and school district officials and brings in support and resources from the community and corporate sponsors, is just the combination that will take public education to the next level," said Harriet Sanford, CEO and president of the NEA Foundation. "This project fits perfectly with our mission to advance student achievement by investing in public education."
E3 also announced that it's joining the Digital Arts Initiative. The Oregon-based non-profit said that in the last school year, several teachers taking part in its "Oregon Small Schools Initiative" also participated in digital arts workshops that were hosted by the Pearson Foundation.
Finally, the Foundation for Investor Education, an organization that advocates investor education in the United States and publisher of an online trading simulation called "The Stock Market Game," has joined up with the Alliance in an effort to make the digital arts an integral part of its educational programs.
Other members of the Digital Arts Alliance include Nokia, Adobe, the National Academy Foundation, Facing History and Ourselves, The International Society for Technology in Education (ISTE), The Jane Goodall Institute, Peachpit, Phi Delta Kappa International, Pearson Education, and the American Red Cross. Further information can be found here.
ISTE also announced this week that it's expanding the Digital Arts Alliance Leadership Institute program, which "cultivates leadership teams across the United States in partnership with ISTE regional affiliates and supports new, innovative digital arts programs in participating school districts."
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About the author: David Nagel is the executive editor for 1105 Media's online education technology publications, including THE Journal and Campus Technology. He can be reached at [email protected].
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