Timeline of Arts Education

Timeline of Arts Education:

1834- Wheaton College in Norton, Massachusetts became the first liberal arts college and decided to include a visual arts program.

1837- Horace Mann becomes the first secretary of the Massachusetts board of education and requires his students to be literate in art and design.

1840-Elizabeth Palmer Peabody, who established the first kindergarten, publishes papers on the importance of installing art into the education system.

1848- The Philadelphia School of Design for Women becomes the first art college for women. Today it is known as the Moore College of Art and design.

1852- New York School of Design for Women is founded where students learn how to create technical drawings as well as design paper for manufacturers.

1854-Seperation for “children of color” because they were believed to “have a lower level of intelligence”.

1857- National Education Association is created with the goal of giving educators a voice.

1865-Vassar College becomes the first women’s college to own an art gallery.

1867- Art history is introduced to the curriculum at Vassar College.

1868- The 14th amendment is passed providing students with equal education.

1870- Massachusetts legislators authorize drawing to be taught in public schools. It later became an act that required state schools to teach art as a subject. 

1872- Art, Education, Scholastic and Industrial by Walter Smithis published. Later, this becomes reference for those who are for the teaching of arts in school.

1873- Massachusetts Normal Art School is founded. The school is for teachers going into the art field. Today it is called Massachusetts College of Art.

1873- Syracuse University is founded and becomes the second school to offer a degree in art next to Yale.

1883- National Education Association creates an art department that gives teachers ideas and guidelines to help them in the classroom.

1890- Milton Bradley publishes a book that teaches children six standard colors called Colour in Kindergarten.

1898- Penny Magazine for School and Home is created. This magazine had great influence on the “introduction of art appreciation and art reproductions into public school curriculum.

1901- The Applied Arts book is introduced into the school system in hopes that children will become interested in art.

1903- Binney & Smith make the first box of Crayola Crayons with eight different colors to be used in school and art classes.

1909- NAACP (National Association for the Advancement of Colored People) is established to fight segregation

1912- Thanks to Alfred Stieglitz, children become recognized as artists when he displays their work in his New York gallery.

1919- The Progressive Education Association created change in the way to look at art in school. It was to be more about a child expressing creativity versus hand eye coordination and picture study.

1925- Miss Marion Richardson develops her “child-centered approach” to teaching art at Dudley Girls High School. She believed that it was important to give students encouragement and guidance rather than imposing taste and aesthetic judgments.

1931- Finger paints are first used at the Shaw School in Rome. The idea of finger paints came to Ruth Faison Shaw when she sent a student to the bathroom to put iodine on his cut. When he did not return, she found him painting iodine all over the bathroom walls. Finger-painting was later instituted in America in April of 1936.

1936- The National Art Education Association is founded to promote art education through Professional Development, Service, Advancement of Knowledge, and Leadership.

1956- Play-Doh is sold in stores for the first time, it is the first non-toxic, pliable and child-friendly modeling compound to be sold.

1961-Youth Art Month is established by Deborah Fanning to promote the value of a quality art education nationwide. Fanning stated, “Students exposed to the creative process through art develop better problem solving skills, excel in other educational subjects, and gain in self esteem.” Youth Art Month exhibits the shift from art’s perceived aesthetic value to the increasing awareness of art’s psychological benefits

1962 The United States Office of Education establishes its Cultural Affairs Branch, providing important support for arts education.

1962 -Central Midwestern Regional Educational Laboratory (CEMREL) which developed curricula from educational research, created an Aesthetic Education Program. This program introduced art, music, dance, film, literature, and theatre to enrich the lives of elementary children.

1966- The Educational Resources Information Center (ERIC) is created by the U.S. Office of Education to provide educators with access to an extensive body of education-related literature. Today ERIC is the largest education database in the world, containing over 1 million records of journal articles, research reports, curriculum and teaching guides, conference papers, and books.

1968- The number of art teachers graduating from college increases by two hundred percent since the 1950s.

1972- Graffiti becomes a new American art form created by Black and Latino teens. A Puerto Rican sociology student, Hugo Martinez, established the United Graffiti Artists (UGA) in 1972. Prior to the creation of the UGA, graffiti was considered only as vandalism. The following summer, graffiti art is introduced to upscale galleries in Soho, New York.

1973-The Children’s Museum of Manhattan (CMOM) is founded. The museum’s intent is to engage children and families in learning through interactive exhibits and educational programs. In addition, CMOM teaches its audience about the cultural diversity within many societies of the world through the use of visual arts.

1977- The Goodman Theatre begins offering student matinee performances for high school and college audiences.

1982- The Arts Council of the African Studies Association is established with a beginning membership of 750 people. The idea behind this organization is to promote scholarship and communication among those interested in Africa and African Diaspora art.

1984- Crayola created an art education program for elementary school students called DREAM-MAKERS. It is an Internet site that teachers can go to in order to find lesson plans, and ideas for creative projects.

1992 – Under the leadership of Ensemble member David Kersnar, Lookingglass Theatre Company founds its department of Education and Community Programs.  This same year the company begins a partnership with Hawthorne Scholastic Academy designed to infuse the curriculum with arts integrated units.  The partnership between Lookingglass and Hawthorne celebrates its 15th anniversary this year.

1992- Chicago Arts Partnerships in Education (CAPE) is founded and becomes a leader in the field of school improvement through the arts. CAPE's partnerships serve as a living laboratory for a community of artists and teachers dedicated to infusing arts throughout the curriculum, and for a community of researchers dedicated to understanding how teaching through the arts improves student achievement.

1998- The School at Steppenwolf is founded.  This is a training residency for professional actors to immerse themselves in ensemble traditions, values and methods.

2006 – Lookingglass Theatre Company forms its Young Ensemble, a program designed to nurture and support talented and focused young, school-age artists in the Chicago community.

Reference: Website: Introduction to Art Education History Time Line
Website:  Steppenwolf Theatre Company
Website:  Goodman Theatre