From Sumter School District December 16, 2016 Newsletter

Four teachers from Kingsbury Elementary (Sylvester Hickmon, Michelle Snyder, Michelle Blassengale and Theresa Witherspoon) recently traveled to Bonner Elementary in Moncks Corner to participate in the fall ABC site visit. Arts teachers, classroom teachers, administrators, and arts coordinators from ABC sites across the state came together to discuss and share best practices in order to provide quality arts programming for their students. In various small group sessions, classroom visits, and round table discussions, educators shared successes, challenges, and opportunities in arts education.

Kingsbury Elementary School recently earned $11,509 in Arts in Basic Curriculum (ABC) Advancement grants to enhance arts integration programs in the classroom as well as high-quality, rigorous, professional arts experiences such as field trips and performances, and artists-in-residence.

The ABC Institute is cooperatively directed by the South Carolina Arts Commission, the South Carolina Department of Education, and the College of Visual and Performing Arts at Winthrop University. Its purpose is to ensure that every child in South Carolina, from pre-school through college levels, has access to a quality, comprehensive education in the arts, including dance, drama, music, visual arts, and creative writing.

ABC annually awards grants to schools for implementing arts integration into core content and to arts-focused school districts. Applicants are required to write a five-year arts strategic plan outlining how the grant money will be used to enhance arts education and arts integration. Grant recipients receive the awarded money for three consecutive years and have the ability to reapply for ongoing funding at the completion of the grant cycle.