A high-school educator offers practical strategies for using student art to advocate for programs and inspire meaningful connections.

Linda White Kieling

Visual art is a form of communication; it has the power to teach and be used as a tool for change. In other words, art can be used for advocacy.

While it can look the same or similar, advocacy at the various education levels is different. As a secondary art educator, especially during challenging times, it has clearly been important to advocate for my program and students.

Why should we advocate? Consider this quote by Ernest Boyer, president of the Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Learning:

Art is humanity’s most essential, most universal language. Now more than ever, all people need to see clearly, hear acutely, and feel sensitivity through the arts. These skills are no longer just desirable; they are essential if we are to survive together with civility and joy.

In the school and local community, using art to communicate awareness is an effective approach. Holding student exhibits alongside other events, such as a band concert, exposes the program to different groups of people. Creating interactive opportunities where the audience is an active participant leaves a lasting impression.

At our school, we created Arts in Action, an annual display and participation event that has included an artwork scavenger hunt, a printmaking station, visiting artists, and collaborative art-making.

Developing partnerships with local businesses and agencies plays a vital role in raising awareness with the public. Many people in the community may not know what is happening for students in, with, and through art. These opportunities to display work are powerful tools, especially when paired with technology. Create QR codes that link to student artist statements, videos of students explaining their process, or to your program’s social media sites. Promote these on various social media platforms and local TV stations.

High-school students start to think about what comes after graduation, so itʼs important to help dispel the myth that with an art degree you either become a “starving artist” or a teacher. While choosing to become an artist or teacher is a valid and important choice, students must be exposed to the vast array of possibilities.

What I enjoyed most about this lesson is that Paré is a contemporary artist who continues to create today, allowing my students to connect with a living artist.

One job search platform lists and describes forty-five art-related jobs: The Art Career Project’s mission is “to help artists and craftspeople turn their passions into thriving careers.” Their online resources are specifically tailored to artists, providing them with important insights and tools for their career search. Sharing resources through newsletters, social media, and during conferences develops understanding.

Often, work that is displayed is seen as the work of talented students, with little thought about the hard work that is involved. Show process work along with students’ finished art. Always have informative text and artist statements accompanying the art. These help people connect to the skills being learned and used and the importance of art education.

Utilize your National Art Honor Society service hours by planning community events. We made community murals, decorated feminine hygiene bags for distribution, and offered student-made coloring books and face painting for children in the community during our Winter Blitz festivities, helping families in need. Try collaborating with community partner experts in other fields.

I had the honor of working on a NAEA Advocacy Advisory Committee, a four-person team representing each region. We made multiple recommendations, including the call for a comprehensive advocacy plan, which is now on the website with position and platform statements and resources. Then, at the 2024 NAEA Delegates Assembly, a new standing committee was approved to begin work on a National Arts Education Advocacy strategy as detailed in Pillar 4 of NAEA’s Strategic Vision.

The Council for Art Education administers the Youth Art Month (YAM) program nationally, and I now serve on the board. My YAM advocacy work in Oregon involved governor proclamations, endorsements from stakeholders, displays at the capitol, themed art and letters stuffed into art-filled envelopes to legislators, and even messaging on local shopping carts. A theme one year was Make Art Par for the Course and golf pro Peter Jacobsen was our honorary chairperson. For this work, I was asked to present in front of the Legislative Sub Committee on Education. Another time, an Oregon representative called me personally to offer his support, assert his belief in the importance of art opportunities for students, and discuss the need for our legislature to do more.

Developing an Art for Change exhibit can tug on powerful emotions, beg for questions, inspire action, and do something to make a difference. Look to examples such as Molly Gochmanʼs The Red Sand Project, HA Schult’s Trash People, The Blue Trees by Konstantin Dimopoulos, and The AIDS Memorial Quilt conceived by Cleve Jones. These dynamic displays are highly persuasive.

Instead of wondering why we advocate, can we make the shift to why not? If it isn’t you, then who? It’s a call to action. I urge you to come up with creative ways to use art to create awareness, understanding, and change. Our students and our programs might just depend on our efforts.

Linda White Kieling is a visual art educator at Adrienne C. Nelson High School in Happy Valley, Oregon. lwkieling@gmail.com

Awareness, Understanding, & Change through Advocacy