A study of 55 school districts and a group of opinion leaders examined the status of arts education in Arizona. Information from surveys collected and interviews conducted throughout 1995 and 1996 was analyzed to determine whether or not improvement occurred following the 1988 "Vision 2000" program. Survey responses and interviews suggest: (1) signs of improvement appear along with indications of status quo maintenance; (2) four out of ten respondents thought the overall status of arts education was better now than five years ago, another third thought it was about the same; (3) significant support for arts education exists among school personnel and parents; (4) funding, staffing, and curriculum were identified as the most critical need over the next 3 years; (5) arts education remains vulnerable to funding cuts, neglect, and competition from other educational priorities; (6) local sources of external funds are often used to supplement district funds but the potential for private funding of the arts has not been fully tapped; and (7) Arizona schools compare reasonably well with schools nationally in terms of the provision of visual art, music, and other arts programs. Recommendations are made for continued study, establishment of arts education quality indicators, monitoring, and mechanisms for reporting and sharing statewide data regarding the status of arts education.

Artist Wayne Rainey’s Shade magazine is a good sign for the Maricopa region. The bi-monthly publication covers contemporary art and culture, supports downtown redevelopment efforts, and works with many institutions to encourage the arts. However, as promising as Shade and other inventive ventures are, the fact remains that the Maricopa metropolitan region is just waking up to the need to recognize and support arts and culture as a critical contributor to a knowledge economy.

At one time, arts and culture have intrinsic value, economic value, and value as tools to further an all-important “sense of place” as well as to aid in such areas as workforce development, education, and community revitalization. As a result, arts and culture both enrich residents’ lives and give places meaning, identity, and economic opportunity.

This report provides statistics and information that give a sense of local arts and culture resources and challenges in the areas of 1) performing, literary, and visual arts; 2) history and preservation; 3) science and nature; 4) landmarks and events.

Project STRIDE has been the source of many personal success stories since it began at Keys Community Center in August 1997. This report describes Project STRIDE’s activities and development over an approximately 16-month demonstration period and offers recommendations for the future. Information was gathered through interviews and discussions with staff, instructors, and participants, observations, and reviews of various program records. This is the second and final evaluation report on Project STRIDE. The first report appeared in June 1998.

Beginning in 1996, the City of Phoenix Enterprise Community Job Linkages Initiative set out to increase employment in this distressed area by matching "local people with local jobs." Morrison Institute for Public Policy (School of Public Affairs, Arizona State University) participated in the development of the job linkages initiative and evaluated its two demonstration projects. This report provides the concluding evaluation information for the second project at Friendly House and presents the lessons learned across the job linkages activities.