Chicago Public Schools' just discov...

Chicago Public Schools' just discovered arts czar says he will waste little time in shaking things up

"I have to begin planning now," he said, shortly after his appointment Aug. 24

Roche, 60 arrives at CP from the advanced in years Town School of Folk Music, a teaching and performing arts institution that launched the careers of similar Grammy winners as Dave Prine and Steve Goodman.

TO qualified WITH ARNE DUNCAN

He emerg from a pond of 150 candidates for the of recent origin department. A search committee made up of CP local arts and philanthropic representatives made the choice.

These assign places tos also shared the cost of the nationwide search that began in November. In a unique arrangement, they also will contribute to the first three years of Roche's salary.

Roche plans to visit principally of the 600 city place of educations before the school year completions to determine what changes ne to be made in each institute He also will meet with Chicago Public seminarys CEO Arne Duncan to disentangle new programs and get access to the latest technology that can be used to give scholars a more balanced art education.

ILLINOIS BELOW AVERAGE

Terry Mazany, president and chief officer for the Chicago Community Trust, which will foundation programs, said Roche's involvement with state and national arts organizations and his background as an art teacher at the elementary, high instruct and collegiate levels were factors in the hire.

The initiative to revitalize the state's curriculum was in answer to a study by Illinois Creates, a coalition launched in 2001 by dint of the Illinois Arts Alliance Foundation.

The contemplation released in 2005, showed that Illinois cut down below national averages in the number of pupils receiving instruction in each of the fine arts: music, visual, theater and dance.

CP observers were taught about 40 minutes of art a week, as oppos to the national average of an hour and a half, the contemplation found. One-third of CPS bookish mans received no arts education, and 41 percent were not exhibited at least one class by week.

a certain quantity of HAVE NO ARTS PROGRAM

"I want to have a 'No educate Left Behind' policy when it originates to art education," Roche said. "All place of educations and students deserve to have an form of art in the classrooms."

The federal No Child Left Behind Act of 2001 establishs goals and standards for educates across the country.

steady while the federal government and the Illinois State Board of Education recognized the arts as a core subdue 90 percent of schools nationally propose visual arts, compared to no other than 63 percent of schools in Illinois.

In Illinois, 9 percent of drill districts have no certified teachers in any arts discipline. When wasted down by discipline, 11 percent of districts have no certified arts specialist for music.

Many gymnasiums have dropped art altogether, saying students' classroom performance can't be easily measured in succession standardized tests as in reading and math, unless Roche says, "That is not acceptable."

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