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119-s-5635119th CongressWALLET

Arts Education for All Act

Sponsored By: Senator Luján, Ben Ray [D-NM]

Introduced

Summary

Would elevate arts education as a core pillar across early childhood, K–12, juvenile justice, and national research. It would expand training, curriculum integration, reporting, and afterschool programming, and would authorize arts use in reentry while directing the National Assessment of Educational Progress to include an arts assessment.

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  • Families and students: K–12 students would face stronger, standards-based and sequenced arts instruction and expanded afterschool and summer arts opportunities. Schools would report arts offerings, enrollment, staffing, and access broken down by poverty quartile.
  • Teachers and schools: Early childhood and arts teachers would get new training focuses, coaching, and pathways to full arts certification or licensure, with added emphasis on hiring and supports in high-need classrooms.
  • Juvenile justice, research, and assessment: Juvenile systems would coordinate with arts agencies and could use arts education in reentry to connect youth to education and jobs. The bill would authorize large-scale peer‑reviewed research on arts instruction and direct the National Assessment of Educational Progress to include an arts assessment.

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Bill Overview

Analyzed Economic Effects

4 provisions identified: 4 benefits, 0 costs, 0 mixed.

Arts programs for youth reentry

If enacted, the bill would require State juvenile justice plans to coordinate services with State and local arts agencies and arts organizations. It would add arts access to criteria for programs serving neglected and delinquent youth. The bill would also authorize using arts education in specified offender demonstration projects and reentry court programs to support reentry, reduce recidivism, and connect participants to education and work. No specific funding or guaranteed individual services are set in the bill.

Child care training adds arts

If enacted, the bill would change the Child Care and Development Block Grant rules so supported child care programs must offer provider training, coaching, or professional development on evidence-based child development practices. These key strategies would include nutrition, age-appropriate screen use, and cross-disciplinary instructional methods that may use the arts. Providers serving populations prioritized in the law and children with disabilities would get specialized training. The bill does not specify new funding amounts.

Afterschool programs can add arts

If enacted, the bill would let 21st Century Community Learning Centers partner with arts organizations and community arts nonprofits to provide creative youth development. It would also let afterschool programs provide staff professional development in arts education. The bill does not require programs to use these options or provide extra federal funding.

More arts in K–12 schools

If enacted, the bill would require State education plans to describe how arts education will raise achievement, be integrated into curricula, and expand arts staffing. It would ask States to ensure standards-based, sequential arts courses through grades 6–12 and focus on schools serving many low-income students, students with disabilities, English learners, or students of color. Local districts could use certain subgrant funds to support pathways to arts teacher certification and must provide professional development to support arts teachers and arts integration across subjects. School report cards would also show detailed arts-class data and staffing, and NAEP would include arts assessments at least as often and in the same grades as scheduled before July 24, 2021.

Sponsors & CoSponsors

Sponsor

Luján, Ben Ray [D-NM]

NM • D

Cosponsors

  • Sen. Hirono, Mazie K. [D-HI]

    HI • D

    Sponsored 9/30/2026

Roll Call Votes

No roll call votes available for this bill.

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