F*ck You NRA! Principal Fires Guards, Expands Arts and Sees Test Scores Soar
"Bott completely cut the school’s security infrastructure and revitalized its art programs. Musical instruments were pulled out of locked storage and returned to classrooms. Faculty reopened dance and art studios that had been out of commission for years.
Within a year, the school already saw “significant increases in the numbers of students reading at grade level and the percent of students proficient on grade level math assessments.” And within three, Orchard Gardens completely transformed. Not only have test scores and grades improved—students are also better behaved.
“We have our occasional, typical adolescent ... problems,” Bott told NBC. “But nothing that is out of the normal for any school.”
Orchard Gardens’ refocus is emblematic of studies linking arts education with academic achievement. A 2012 study by the National Endowments for the Arts found that “At-risk students who have access to the arts in or out of school also tend to have better academic results, better workforce opportunities, and more civic engagement.” Chris Plunkett, a visual arts teacher at Orchard Gardens is starting to see that play out."
http://www.alternet.org/education/fck-you-la-pierre-principal-fires-guards-expands-arts-and-sees-test-scores-soar
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He's changing children's lives forever, giving them an actual chance at a better future. He's what being an educator is all about. 
"Art has always played an important role in society. Hieroglyphics, which are drawings left behind on cave walls, stones and stone structures by our ancestors, are artist pictures that tell us about the history of our world. Artistic talent that began with the creators of these crude depictions of people, animals and places has evolved over time and now we have artists that create pieces of work that amaze and astound us as well as teach us about the world we live in.
The lessons life has to offer inside and outside the classroom are often portrayed in art, movies, books and music. They are generated for all ages and all learning levels. Young children learn to read from picture books. Picture books would not exist without the artists who write the words and create the pictures that go in these books. It would be extremely hard to try to teach a child to read words without pictures associated with them, especially when they are learning to read the names of objects. Graphic novels are created from classic novels to capture the imagination of young adult readers who may be having a hard time reading these stories that are often required reading in high school and college. The original versions of these books are filled with historical language that can be hard to understand. The graphic novel versions tell the stories with pictures and words making it easier from some students to understand the story’s message. Films about animals, history, nature, science, etc. are created to teach people about many things that a person may not get to experience other than through pictures or videos. These are just a few examples of how art helps people learn today.
Children have vivid imaginations and learning art is an excellent way for them to learn to express themselves in a positive way. Learning to express themselves through art and music at a young age can also prove the be a wonderful outlet for the stresses of testing that is required as they go through the higher grades of school. Learning art and music also increases young peoples’ creativity levels which play an important role in how they solve problems both inside the classroom and out.
Funding for schools in the United States has become so strongly tied to the results of standardized testing that it is hard to argue for the importance of art programs in schools when the skills gained from these classes cannot be processed into a computerized tests. However,"