Guest Commentary | The arts are alive and growing in Lee County Schools
Before I stepped into my current role as assistant director of arts, athletics and activities with The School District of Lee County, I spent 10 years as a music teacher in this community. A jazz performance major and saxophone player in college, I have loved every kind of music my entire life. I took this job because I saw firsthand the impact that the arts can have on students, and I wanted to help grow, develop and support arts programs at every school in our district. Today, I am proud to say those programs are not just surviving-they are thriving.
More than families might expect
Families are sometimes surprised to learn just how much our school district offers. We provide more arts education than all the area’s private schools combined, with all four major arts disciplines represented in our middle and high schools: visual arts, music, theater and dance. We have band, choir and orchestra programs, theater programs popping up everywhere, one of Florida’s larger collections of dance programs and at least one full-time visual arts teacher at every school. Each high school has its own flavor, whether that is remarkable theater productions, award-winning visual artists or marching bands that have exploded in size and performance. Our middle schools are just as strong, with at least three fine and performing arts teachers at every campus.
Achievements worth celebrating
The results speak for themselves. More than 10,000 students across Florida audition each year for the Florida Music Educators Association’s All-State ensembles, and this past year more than 50 Lee County students earned a spot, representing schools across the county, not just our arts magnet programs. For the first time, every one of our 21 middle schools had a student earn a place in our all-county band. More than 70 schools participated in the River District Art Walk in April, and our High School Musical Theatre Awards participation was the highest I have seen in a decade. Perhaps most exciting, 250 of our students earned Florida’s new fine arts seal on their diplomas in only the program’s second year. That tells me our kids are not just trying the arts. They are staying in them.
A commitment that holds firm
Many families heard about the district’s recent budget adjustments and worried about what that would mean for the arts. Here is the truth: We have not lost an arts program at a single school. In fact, we have added positions that did not exist last year, including a second dance and theater teacher at a growing high school, a full-time chorus teacher, and expanded dance and visual arts offerings at campuses that never had them. When I started in this role, about 600 students across our district of nearly 100,000 students took orchestra. Today, that number is close to 3,000. Even with a tight budget, the School Board made a commitment to protect and expand arts education because arts, athletics and activities are what keep kids excited to come to school.
Why does this matter so much? The arts build creative and critical thinking skills that students simply do not get elsewhere. I will never say the arts are more important than any other subject, but they are just as important. We love celebrating the students who move on to Broadway or major in music at college, but our bigger mission is creating the next generation of arts patrons. We have an all-state trombone player who is also a welding student. We have future doctors, bus drivers and everything in between who will carry an appreciation for the arts for life.
The power of partnership
None of this happens without our incredible teachers or our community partners. Organizations such as the Sidney & Berne Davis Art Center, ArtFest Fort Myers, the River District Alliance, the Alliance for the Arts, Florida Repertory Theatre and the Gulf Coast Symphony provide performance spaces, gallery opportunities, professional development and donated instruments, costumes and supplies. If your business or organization is looking for a way to invest in this community’s future, supporting arts education is one of the most powerful ways to do it. When we build a culture that appreciates the arts, our theaters stay full and our galleries stay busy for generations to come.
As for what parents can do, my answer is simple: sign your kid up. When your child is choosing electives, request an arts class they have never tried. Some of my favorite moments are watching a sixth grader who never imagined taking ballet fall in love with dance, or a student who thought the violin was lame discover a lifelong passion. You can always make a change later, but the benefits of the arts will far outweigh the fear of trying something new.
Looking ahead
My vision for the next five years is ambitious. I want to double enrollment in our arts programs, build the financial stability to support them no matter what the economy does and make Lee County the model of arts education in Florida. We are the largest school district in the state not tied to a major metropolitan area, and I want to show what a growing community can accomplish with the proper support. With our teachers, families and community behind us, I have no doubt we will get there.
Dr. Jason Thomashefsky is the assistant director of arts, athletics and activities for the School District of Lee County. For more information about arts programs in Lee County Schools, visit leeschools.net.