(pictured on left) Josey McCall, senior at Inspire School of Arts and Sciences in Chico, CA.

As local districts set priorities and funding allocations to comply with California’s new Local Control Funding Formula (LCFF), young advocates can offer powerful evidence of the ways arts education empowers young people to be creative problem-solvers, effective communicators and critical thinkers. The Student Voices Campaign gives students a platform to demonstrate their creative power and passion for the arts with their elected officials.

Eric Nilsson, a principal at the Inspire School of Arts and Sciences in Chico, California, whose students are participating in the campaign, says: “Arts in education is absolutely critical to all of us. It nurtures the imagination, ignites creativity, and fosters curiosity and innovation. These things – imagination, creativity, curiosity and innovation – bring our young people alive and help them to see a world of possibility and hope.”

Nilsson’s students’ share his passion for the arts. Josh, a musical theater student says, “I love our school because everywhere I go on campus, there is music.” Nilsson continues: “When you step on to the campus of Inspire School of Arts and Sciences, you will see pockets of students, whose common denominator is their talent and passion. The orchestra is rehearsing Brahms’ 1^st Symphony, Fourth Movement, the original piano music of an Inspire alum wafts out of the Dance Studio as a dance ensemble works their way through a difficult piece, and students in Video are producing short films.”

Josey McCall, a senior at Inspire, created and contributed an animated short for the Student Voices Campaign that beautifully demonstrates why the arts matter to young people. She told us, "After hearing about the Student Voices Campaign, I wanted to tell a relatable story of the difficulties teenagers can face and the lack of expression they often feel.”

Her video depicts the separation that can grow between a teenager and her father and how art can re-connect people.

“Art can let you express the way you feel and lift weight from your shoulders. Despite communication seeming impossible at times, both the father and daughter know how much the other loves them, and know they'll always be there."

“Whether dance, theater, art studio, orchestra, design, recording arts, piano, or video production, everywhere you look there are artists, young people, who are discovering who they are, expressing themselves meaningfully and bringing their talents and passions to their community,” adds Nilsson. Dedicated, creative students, like those at the Inspire School of Arts and Sciences, are not afraid to speak up and share what their creativity looks like.

The California Alliance is proud to have the opportunity to work with such inspiring young advocates and hear their voices clear and loud. Thank you to Eric Nilsson, Josey McCall and the Inspire School of Arts and Sciences!