Whereas arts education, comprising a rich array of disciplines including dance, music, theater, media arts, literature, design, and visual arts, is an essential element of a complete and well-rounded education for all students;

Whereas arts education enables students to develop critical thinking and problem-solving skills, imagination and creativity, discipline, alternative ways to communicate and express feelings and ideas, and cross-cultural understanding, which supports academic success nationwide as well as personal growth outside the classroom;

Whereas arts education provides a well-researched and proven methodology to differentiate instruction to meet the needs of all students, especially for English language learners and students with special needs;

Whereas the nonprofit arts sector is an economic engine and plays a significant role in the economic health of communities large and small with direct expenditures of wages and benefits as well as goods and services;

Whereas to succeed in today’s economy, students must masterfully use words, images, sounds, and movement to communicate;

Whereas Young Audiences Arts for Learning impacts over 5,020,107 participants annually with valuable arts-in-education programs;

Whereas Young Audiences Arts for Learning presents more than 29,802 arts-in-education programs to students and teachers;

Whereas Young Audiences Arts for Learning produces programs in more than 3,987 schools and community centers annually;

Whereas Young Audiences Arts for Learning encompasses 30 affiliates across the country, and the entire network of such affiliates is participating in the 2026 National Young Audiences Arts for Learning Week;

Whereas Young Audiences Arts for Learning programs during the 2024–2025 school year engaged students, educators, families, schools, and communities in 28 States representing 183 congressional districts nationwide;

Whereas Young Audiences New York implemented over 200 programs serving 27 partnering schools and institutions in all five boroughs of New York City, including 193 integrated residency programs steeped in arts learning and arts integration practices in such areas as music, dance, visual and design arts, theater, media arts and technology in predominantly title I public school settings exploring teaching and learning pedagogy addressing the needs of all students;

Whereas Arts for Learning Western New York partnered with schools and institutions impacting 25,371 student learners in 9 counties of western New York State, integrating the arts into such areas as STEM, language arts, social studies, character education, environmental awareness, health and nutrition;

Whereas Arkansas Learning through the Arts delivered 147 arts-integrated programs to more than 2,903 students across the State of Arkansas;

Whereas the Arts & Learning Conservatory, based in Orange County, California, impacted over 3,800 students;

Whereas Arts Education Collaborative, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, delivered professional learning programs to 79 school and community partners throughout Western Pennsylvania;

Whereas Arts for Learning Connecticut worked with 152,845 students in the State of Connecticut last year;

Whereas Arts for Learning Indiana engaged 396 collaborating partners to deliver arts-integrated programs to nearly 17,895 students in the region;

Whereas Arts for Learning Maryland partnered with nearly 522 schools and community organizations in all 24 Maryland school districts to provide arts learning programs to 191,134 participants from pre-K through grade 12;

Whereas Arts for Learning Miami provided more than 65 programs reaching youth from infancy through high school graduation, in collaboration with 77 partnering institutions;

Whereas Arts for Learning Santa Cruz County, AZ, provided arts-based learning programs throughout Santa Cruz County;

Whereas Arts for Learning Virginia served 30,265 students across the State of Virginia last year;

Whereas Arts Partners, Wichita, Kansas, provided over 35 programs to 31,220 students;

Whereas ArtsNow Learning in Atlanta, Georgia, partnered with 220 institutions throughout the Southeast United States involving over 28,635 participants;

Whereas the Center for Arts-Inspired Learning, in Cleveland, Ohio, provided nearly 3,316 programs for more than 180,950 participants;

Whereas Chicago Arts Partnerships in Education worked with 6,110 students in 52 Chicago Public Schools settings;

Whereas Kansas City Young Audiences in Missouri, the largest nonprofit arts education provider in the region, served over 46,627 students;

Whereas Springboard to Learning, in St. Louis, Missouri, delivered 3,889 programs to students in schools and community venues;

Whereas Think 360 Arts for Learning, in Denver, Colorado, worked with more than 15,960 students across the State;

Whereas Young Audiences of New Jersey & Eastern Pennsylvania provided programming to students throughout the region in collaboration with 600 schools and partnering organizations;

Whereas Young Audiences of Abilene reached approximately 9,895 students last year;

Whereas Young Audiences of Houston provided over 3,160 programs to more than 290,466 students;

Whereas Young Audiences of Louisiana served more than 41,755 learners, including students, faculty, and families at the Young Audiences Charter Schools in Jefferson and Orleans Parishes;

Whereas Arts for Learning Massachusetts reached approximately 95,541 students in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts;

Whereas Young Audiences of Northeast Texas brought quality arts in education experiences to nearly 64,814 learners in northeast Texas;

Whereas Young Audiences of Northern California impacted over 21,026 students in the Bay Area this past year;

Whereas Arts for Learning Northwest in Portland, Oregon partnered with 167 institutions to engage over 49,457 program participants across the region;

Whereas Young Audiences of Southeast Texas partnered with schools throughout the region to deliver programming that integrates arts into all traditional areas of academic study to students in pre-K through grade 12;

Whereas Young Audiences of Lubbock (Texas) implemented 15 programs in 19 schools, impacting 1,040 students; and

Whereas the weeks of March 29, 2026, through April 11, 2026, would be appropriate weeks to designate as National Young Audiences Arts for Learning Week: Now, therefore, be it