The following briefing papers were produced by the Council of Arts Accrediting Associations on issues relevant to the arts in higher education.
Children and Youth, the Arts, and Public Policy: Present Urgencies for Higher Education
Sorts out various definitions of arts education and makes the case for school-based curricular programs for all children led by highly qualified teachers. Covers issues of the arts as basic subjects, experience versus study, funding pressures, the role of specialist arts teachers, and the importance of standards.
Disciplines in Combination: Interdisciplinary, Multi-Disciplinary, and Other Collaborative Programs of Study
Poses definitions, analyses, questions, and cautions in regard to collaborative work among the arts disciplines and between the arts and outside fields.
Distance Education and the Arts Disciplines
Provides a checklist of policy issues in this developing field.
Giftedness, Arts Study, and Work
Answers questions often posed by students and parents about majoring in an arts discipline.
Guiding the Arts Student: Academic Advising, Career Counseling, and Mentoring
Identifies issues for institutions and administrators concerned with the provision of academic advising, career counseling, and mentoring for arts students. A bibliography is included.
Health Issues for Performing and Visual Arts Students (An Overview of)
Discusses medical issues for performing and visual arts students in general and by discipline, emphasizing the new relationship between prevention and treatment.
Minority Students and Access to Arts Study
Surveys issues concerning involvement of minority students in arts study at the precollegiate level, as well as current efforts to increase this involvement. Relationships of these issues to higher education are discussed.
Outcomes Assessment and Arts Programs in Higher Education
Explores the issue of outcomes assessment in higher education from the perspective of arts programs. Makes the point that outcomes assessment in the arts must adopt an artistic approach, not a technological one.
Policy-Making, The Arts and School Change
Examines the philosophical foundations of policy-making in K-12 education, with particular emphasis on current notions of education reform. It then makes the case for giving the arts a basic place in the K-12 curriculum, in ways which respect the integrity of the arts.
Tough Questions and Straight Answers about Arts Accreditation
Responds frankly to current national discussions and controversies about accreditation — costs, benefits, time requirements, duplication of reviews, how standards are set and applied, etc.
Work of Arts Executives in Higher Education
Outlines the multiple roles and responsibilities of those who direct arts programs in higher education. Shows that in addition to academic administration, arts executives may function as artistic directors, producers, facilities managers and community leaders.