Arts for LA surveyed 177 candidates in 31 school board elections this fall as part of our semiannual Arts & Culture Candidate Survey program.

The highest rates of return were in Culver City (86%), Hermosa Beach (38%), and Norwalk-La Mirada (29%).  South Pasadena USD was the only district to achieve full participation with 100% of candidates responding, thanks to the hard work of our local survey partner the South Pasadena Arts Council.

Roughly one third of all eligible candidates in these elections participated in our process, but nearly half of all our survey respondents were elected to their school boards.

We are thankful for our regional survey partners, the California Alliance for Arts Education and LA2050, as well as our other local partners Friends of Arts Education at the Cerritos Center for the Performing Arts, Museum of Art & History, Nuvein Foundation, PS Arts, and Whittier Art Association & Gallery.

Access to arts education for all students continues to be a pressing issue in Los Angeles County.  With the advent of the Local Control Funding Formula changing the way schools receive state money and the roll out of the federal Common Core standards, a great evolution is underway that will affect our students for years to come.