School Arts Support Initiative (SASI)

A Student at MS 223

With generous financial support from The New York Times Company Foundation, The Center for Arts Education (CAE), in partnership with the New York City Department of Education (NYCDOE), is conducting the first ever School Arts Support Initiative (SASI).

SASI will provide $160,000 in funding and additional in-kind professional support services for the 2007-08 and 2008-09 academic years to three selected public middle schools with little or no arts education provided to their students:

  • MS 267: Math, Science and Technology Institute in the Bedford Stuyvesant area of Brooklyn
  • JS 231: Magnetech/Tri-Community Jr. High School in southeastern Queens at the border lines of the Springfield Gardens, Laurelton, and Rosedale communities
  • MS 223: The Laboratory School of Finance and Technology in the South Bronx

SASI grants will be used to help these schools assess their arts education needs, engage appropriate providers of arts education services to complement school resources, and design and then implement outstanding arts education curricula for their students.

The schools will work with CAE and the NYCDOE throughout the two-year period to meet project goals. An external evaluator will help project participants throughout the pilot period to identify how schools become “educated consumers” of arts services and to see what immediate changes result from the combined efforts of those involved.

At the end of the period, CAE will provide a report to the field summarizing the effects of the program on the schools’ capacity to provide a quality arts education. Based on findings, the project may be extended and expanded to a larger network of middle schools.

Click here to read the press release.

Read About SASI’s Progress from the February 2008 Featured Story
SASI One Year Later: What It Takes to Bring the Arts to Every Child!

SASI Schools

MS 223 X: The Laboratory School of Finance and Technology

MS 223 Principal Ramon Gonzales

Region: 9

District: 7

Grades: 6-8

Student Population: 473

MS 223 is an innovative learning community of middle school students that provides a student-centered, academically rigorous program in a supportive and nurturing environment. The school serves a population consisting of 71% Latino students from various countries including Puerto Rico, the Dominican Republic and other Central American nations; and 28% of students of African, African American and Caribbean heritages. The majority of the students are from low-income families and more than 90% qualify for free lunch. Approximately 18% of the students have Individualized Education Plans (IEPs) and receive the full continuum of services including Special Education Teacher Support Services, instruction in special education classes, and related services such as speech and language, counseling, and adaptive physical education. Additionally, 18% of the students are English Language learners (ELLs).

Current Obstacles: The school lacks the economic resources and expertise in arts education to deliver this type of program.

SASI Goals: The school’s goal is to develop global leaders through real experiences and critical analysis and hopes SASI will help them reach this goal through arts integration. Specifically, it would like to develop dance, music, arts, and drama literacy programs that link world experiences and classroom investigations such as investigating theme and variation in 20th century American social dances or studying early Asian art to gain a greater understanding of the influence of politics and economics reflected on that era’s art.


MS 267 K: Math, Science and Technology Institute

Region: 8

District: 16

Grades: 6-8

Student Population: 461

The community is a mixture of private homeowners of historic brownstones, apartment buildings and city housing projects. The school population is comprised of approximately 92% Black and Caribbean Americans, 6% Hispanic American and 2% other. Families come from countries such as Nigeria, Bangladesh and Puerto Rico. Over 85% of students are eligible for free lunch. MS 267 also has five self contained special education classes, including learning disabilities, emotional and social issues. Currently the school has no licensed/certified teachers of the Arts and no art, dance, music or drama.

Current Obstacles: Funding for Arts programs and access to experts in the field for professional development of staff and in-school residencies.

SASI Goals: The school hopes the SASI grant will allow it to provide arts experiences to students on a daily basis. It wants to utilize the Arts to enhance its academic program by providing a new motivation to the students who may not be doing well academically, giving them new and different opportunities where they can experience some success and excel.

JHS 231 Q: Magnetech 2000/Tri-Community Jr. High School

Region: 3

District: 29

Grades: 7-8

Student Population: 896

The school community is comprised of families of African-American and Afro-Caribbean descent of lower-middle and middle income. In recent years the visual arts and music programs where dismantle due to budget constraints. This year the school stretched the budget to allow for a scaled down arts program with a part-time visual art teacher and a part-time music teacher. With the help of the PTA the school also offers a drama class once a week.

Current Obstacles: Access to funding to ensure that all students are engaged in arts education in their respective Academy themes.

SASI Goals: SASI will give the school the opportunity to expose every student to a broad arts education, integral to its goal of developing the entire child. The grant will allow the school to enhance its instructional practices by supporting professional development for teachers in order to integrate the Arts with content area instruction.