Revising the SECAC Visual Arts Education Policy Statement: Putting the Teeth into It

Overview & Synopsis

This paper chronicles the development and updating of a visual arts education policy paper produced by the Southeastern College Art Conference (SECAC). The first statement was drafted and approved by the membership and published in 1995. The revision process for the second statement began in the spring of 2003 and was reviewed by the board of directors at the 2003 SECAC conference. The new statement was given final approval by the board and the membership at the end of the October 2004 conference in Jacksonville, Florida. The overall purpose of the 2004 SECAC visual arts education policy statement is to establish an institutional emphasis on art education in higher education and pre-K-16 education and to create an all-encompassing visual arts education policy statement to be used as standards and guidelines at all educational levels. The statement also has application for all arts education policy.