[Congressional Record Volume 146, Number 82 (Monday, June 26, 2000)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E1121]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




  DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR AND RELATED AGENCIES APPROPRIATIONS ACT, 
                                  2001

                                 ______
                                 

                               speech of

                    HON. JUANITA MILLENDER-McDONALD

                             of california

                    in the house of representatives

                        Thursday, June 15, 2000

       The House in Committee of the Whole House on the State of 
     the Union had under consideration the bill (H.R. 4578) making 
     appropriations for the Department of the Interior and related 
     agencies for the fiscal year ending September 30, 2001, and 
     for other purposes:

  Ms. MILLENDER-McDONALD. Mr. Chairman, I rise today in support of the 
amendment being offered by Representatives Slaughter, Horn, and 
Johnson. I commend them on their continued commitment to arts funding 
and I urge my colleagues to vote to increase funding for the National 
Endowment for the Arts, the National Endowment for the Humanities, and 
the Institute of Museum and Library Services.
  After suffering major budgetary cuts in 1995, these three vital 
organizations have been forced to endure level funding for the last 5 
years. It is time, in this period of budget surpluses, to devote more 
resources to arts and culture.
  Art education plays an important role in the development of our 
youth. Brain research is showing that the stimuli provided by the 
arts--pictures, song, movement, play acting, are essential for the 
young child to develop to their fullest potential. These activities are 
the ``languages'' of the child, the multiple ways in which he or she 
understands and interprets the world. Active use of these forms also 
paves the way for the child to use verbal language, to read and to 
write--critical skills our children need to become productive members 
of society.
  Arts education improves life skills including self-esteem, teamwork, 
motivation, discipline and problem-solving that help young people 
compete in a challenging and high-tech workforce. According to the 
College Board, students who study the arts for four years score an 
average of 89 points higher than non-arts students on the Scholastic 
Assessment Test (SAT).
  Research conducted between 1987 and 1998 reveals that when young 
people work in the arts for at least three hours three days each week 
throughout the year, they show heightened academic standing, a strong 
capacity for self-assessment, and a secure sense of their own ability 
to plan and work for a positive future for themselves and their 
communities.
  The results of art education do not just build self confidence but 
deter crime as well. The U.S. Department of Justice's Office of 
Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention found in its YouthARTS 
study that arts programs designed to deter delinquent behavior of at-
risk youth dramatically improved troubled youths' academic performance, 
reduced school truancy, and increased their skills of communication, 
conflict resolution, completion of challenging tasks, and teamwork.
  The effects that an education enriched with art instruction can have 
on our youths is invaluable. Whether assisting in the development of 
our children or acting as preventative measures, increased funding for 
the NEA, and NEH, and the IMLS is in the best interest of our children 
and their future. I urge my colleagues to vote in favor of the 
amendment.

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