At a public meeting in Los Angeles last week, members of the California Arts Council voted in support of five new programs and initiatives to be funded by one-time support from the California State Assembly.

The Council's decisions reflect its longstanding commitment to arts education and California's young people, and a desire to stimulate increased economic development in communities across the state through the arts and creativity.

In July, the California Arts Council received $2 million in savings from the 2013 State Assembly operating budget. The funds, directed to support arts and arts education programs in California communities via grants or direct services, must be encumbered during the 2013-2014 fiscal year and will not be used for administrative costs at the agency.

Funds will be distributed through competitive grant programs and through special arts education initiatives, resulting from two years of work by a statewide arts education coalition, known as CREATE CA (Core Reforms Engaging Arts to Educate).

The California Arts Council is a founding organization of the CREATE CA coalition, which was created to address the full inclusion of arts into the California public education system. The coalition has engaged in discussions, planning, and collaboration with a variety of organizations, associations, and interested parties.

The Council also voted to invest a small amount of funding to explore cultural exchange with China via a symposium event, positioning arts and culture in a leading role, as California's ties with China continue to grow.

The following programs and initiatives were approved by Council Members. Details on each program, including eligibility and grant application guidelines for applicable programs, will be published as they become available. Some initiatives may be subject to review by State control agencies.

• Creative California Communities: Transforming Communities through the Arts ($750,000) A pilot competitive grant program designed to bring communities together by harnessing arts and culture as a key economic development strategy for communities large and small.

• The Arts in Turnaround Schools in California: Creating Successful Schools through Arts Education ($300,000) This unique pilot project will provide targeted arts education strategies and programming to significantly improve low-performing K-8 schools, in cooperation with the California Department of Education. This pilot project is a result of CREATE CA coalition recommendations.

• Creativity at the Core: Powerful Arts Teaching and Learning in the Common Core ($300,000) This special arts education initiative is focused on developing and implementing professional development resources to deepen teaching and learning through the arts, aligned with Common Core State Standards. This program was developed in partnership with the California County Superintendents Educational Services Association, and is a result of CREATE CA coalition recommendations.

• JUMP StARTS: Juveniles Utilizing Massive Potential Starting with Arts ($200,000) A pilot competitive grant program targeting at-risk youth through arts and arts education programs by supporting further development of model juvenile justice arts programs.

• Statewide Chinese Cultural Exchange Symposium ($15,000 - $25,000) A cultural exchange symposium will be developed in order to build relationships and expose California arts organizations to the benefits of cultural tourism, cultural investment, and cross-cultural understanding with China.

Interested members of the public, artists, arts organizations, and community leaders are encouraged to regularly visit the California Arts Council's website to learn more about these programs and initiatives as further details become available. Notification of guidelines for applicable programs will be published in the California Arts Council's weekly newsletter, California ArtBeat. Subscribe at www.arts.ca.gov.