Enchanted Circle Annual Report FY18_19

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NOTE FROM OUR LEADERS
Dear Friends,
We are proud to share this year’s annual report with you, a view into
the extraordinary world of Enchanted Circle and our award-winning
arts in education programs.
Celebrating 44 years of engaging, enhancing, and inspiring learning
through the arts, we have earned the reputation as a turn–around
agent in our region’s most challenged districts. We have a proven
history of excellence, rigor, and community commitment, and we
hold ourselves to the highest academic and artistic standards. Our
partnerships are built on an unwavering commitment to equity,
inclusion, and socially-just practices.
In the 2018–19 school year, we targeted our three most strategic
imperatives to ensure the greatest impact on our community:
• Equal access to arts integrated learning during the school day
to help give children the skills they need to succeed.
• A platform for creative expression and community connection
for youth to build a solid sense of identity and purpose as they
transition into adulthood.
• Training educators in culturally resonant, creative engagement methods, expanding their reach, and building a network of
teacher supports.
The story of our organizational growth is palpable and visible, and intentional. With our generous community of donors, we
have taken a developmental leap towards a sustainable future.
We believe in the power of arts in education to change lives – creating an equitable playing field for all children, giving voice
to our youth, providing support for our teachers, and illuminating the creative potential in all of us.
Thank you for your support.
Amy B. Dopp
President, Board of Directors
Pioneer Valley Data Collaborative
PHOTO CREDIT: Don Treeger / The Republican
Priscilla Kane Hellweg
Executive / Artistic Director
IMPACT STATEMENT
New research out of the Brookings Institute (2019) “provides strong evidence that arts educational experiences produce
significant positive impact on academic and social development.” Our experience at Enchanted Circle parallels national
findings: Arts integration improves academic achievement, attendance, attitudes, critical and creative thinking, effort,
empathy, and engagement. And that’s just from A–E.
ENCHANTED STATS LAST 3 YEARS
7500
STUDENTS
SERVED
HOLYOKE STATS
1000
PROFESSIONAL
DEVELOPMENT
ATTENDANCE
12,000
COMMUNITY
EVENTS
ATTENDEES
78% ECONOMICALLY
CHALLENGED
81%
LATINO
62% ENGLISH
LANGUAGE
LEARNERS
26% CHRONICALLY
ABSENT
SOURCES: MA Dept. of Elementary & Secondary Ed., 2019
NATIONAL STATS
LOW–INCOME STUDENTS
WHO ARE HIGHLY ENGAGED
IN THE ARTS ARE
5x
MORE LIKELY
TO GRADUATE
HIGH SCHOOL AS
THEIR PEERS WITH
NO ARTS EDUCATION
AMERICANS FOR THE ARTS, 2018
LOW–INCOME STUDENTS
WHO ARE HIGHLY ENGAGED
IN THE ARTS ARE
2x
MORE LIKELY
TO GRADUATE
STUDENTS WHO ARE INVOLVED
IN THE ARTS ARE
3x
MORE LIKELY
TO ATTEND SCHOOL REGULARLY
COLLEGE AS THEIR PEERS
WITH NO ARTS EDUCATION
LOW SOCIOECONOMIC
STATUS STUDENTS WITH A
HIGH PARTICIPATION IN
THE ARTS HAVE A
DROPOUT RATE THAT IS
5x
LOWER
THAN THEIR PEERS
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