Fair Funding
From the Report of the Transition Leadership Team of Jim Rex, State
Superintendent of Education:
Charge: Identify recommendations to increase adequacy and
equity in education funding.
Committee on Fair Funding, SC Arts Education Summit 2007
Mac Arthur Goodwin, Chair
Goal I: Ensure fair and equitable funding to provide the resources for arts
education as an essential part of education reform in South
Carolina.
Strategies:
A. Form a task force (committee on fair funding) – and one to
examine legislation
 This activity was not formally acted upon. However, the efforts informal
activities were addressed the intent in piecemeal manner—with various
un-even degrees of effectiveness.
1. Action: to examine legislation that might impact the
arts
a. Teacher salary
b. Class size
c. Weighting
d. Programs
e. Infrastructure,
f. Facilities
g. Tax reform
h. Formula
 This strategy was address only the extent that members of the South
Carolina Alliance for Arts Education, the South Carolina Arts Alliance,
The South Carolina Arts Commission, and the ABC Project monitored
activities of 1) the legislative sub-committees on education funding, 2) the
Education Oversight Committee, and 3) the South Carolina Department
of Education.
2. Develop relationships
 South Carolina Department of Education
 Member of the South Carolina Arts Alliance, under the leadership of Susie
Surkamer [Executive Director of the South Carolina Arts Commission]
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met with senior staff in the Department of Education to garner a
perspective on the Department’s 1) views of and commitment to arts in
the curriculum and 2) identify ways that the arts community might assist
the Department in meeting its educational goals and objectives.
 Terry Peterson and Scott Shanklin- Peterson met with State
Superintendent of Education Dr. Jim Rex, to discuss the role the arts in
the curriculum and explore ways that the arts community might
contribute toward helping the Department of Education meet its
educational goals.

Joint Senate Funding Study Committee
 List of Committee members was circulated to Fine Arts Coordinators by
Betty Plumb and Larry Barnfield and talking point were provided for
continued advocacy/educational awareness.
 Members of this subcommittee monitored meetings of the senate and
house education funding committee to determine the impact of these
committees’ discussions on the arts in the curriculum. Efforts also
included direct conversations as well as written, phone calls and face-toface meeting with targeted legislators to garner their support for funding
arts education. The benefits of these activities led to maintaining
language supporting possible funding for the arts in legislative
recommendation put-forth by the Education Oversight Committee. Ken
May [Executive Director of the South Carolina Arts Commission] played a
critical role along this line.

House/Senate Education Committees & Staff
 Clara Heinsohn has left as senior staff for the Senate Education
Committee. Has been replaced by Sally Cauthen – new to that
Committee’s work. Betty has made an introductory call/conversation and
is sending her a copy of last year’s Advocacy Handbook, and a list of
current interests/issues related to arts education, etc.

Other Appropriate Stakeholders
 Sheila Gallagher (SCEA) and Paul Krohne (SCSBA) are excellent
partners.
They participated in “Table Topics” portion of November 1 SCAA
Board Meeting
B. Research
3. Action: To provide research to make the case for
adequate funding or arts education in the curriculum
a. Arts in Basic Curriculum Project and South
Carolina Department of Education
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b. State based & National
 We do need statistics. The information from the survey tool will be
critical to our issues.
Scot Hockman [Education Associate for the Arts] and Christine Fisher
[Director of the Arts in Basic Curriculum Project] facilitates development
and dissemination of a survey target benefactors of the Arts Curricula
Grant Program to determine there effectiveness. The results of the survey
should be available in the near future.
Timeline:
Advocacy: begin at the conclusion of the 07 legislative session for Task Force
to meet
 Pre-emptive steps were undertaken immediately at the Summit, by
working with Jo Anne Anderson, Len Marini, and Clara Heinsohn, and
Senator Wes Hayes, to get arts language in the school choice bill (It
remains in the legislation and Dr. Rex’s revised bill, which should be prefiled this week), and 4-K Early Childhood legislation, during the 2007
session.
Research: ongoing, with a focus on being able to extract appropriate issue
related research
Who: South Carolina Arts Commission,
South Carolina Department of Education,
South Carolina Arts in Basic Curriculum,
South Carolina Center for Dance Education,
South Carolina Arts Alliance, South Alliance for Arts Education,
South Carolina School Board Association,
South Carolina Association of School Administrators,
South Carolina Education Association
Palmetto State Teachers,
South Carolina Art Education Association,
South Carolina Music Educators Association,
South Carolina Theatre Association,
South Carolina Dance Education Association,
Higher Education, Parents, and other appropriate stakeholders
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