SmartARTS began in 2002 with a grant from the U. S. Department of Education. The program expanded with two subsequent USDoE grants, which funded this work until December, 2007. As a result of these three grants, SmartARTS was able to build a solid foundation for its innovative work. Details of each grant are below.

The Tanglewood Project

The Tanglewood Project was a three-year inititive at Tanglewood Middle School funded by a U. S. Department of Education Cultural Partnership for At-Risk Youth grant. Launched in October, 2002 and extended for a fourth year, the project integrated the arts into all subject areas and strengthened student’s exposure to and knowledge of the arts. The test and behavior data from 2002-2007 shows many positive trends, including a significant increase in Tanglewood’s district rating. Over the course of the grant, Tanglewood moved out of Unsatisfactory status on the state report card and had the top Improvement Rating in the country for middle schools for two years in a row on the state accountablility measures.

Honors & Awards

• Recipient of Sounth Carolina Alliance for Arts Education Creative Ticket Nomination, 2004-2005
• South Carolina School Board Association’s “Champions of Public Education” Award
• Palmetto Silver Award 2005, recognizing high levels of academic achievement and high rates of student academic improvements
• Bank of America Model Arts Education Program Award through the American Symphony Orchestra League for exemplary practice in arts education

The Grove Model Arts Project

The Grove Project at Grove Elementary School was funded by a U.S. Department of Education Model Development and Dissemination grant. This project was successful in replicating the model started at Tanglewood Middle School. The arts were integrated into all 3rd through 5th grade classrooms as well as special education and related-arts classes (visual art, music, and physical education).

Over the course of the grant, parental attendance at the school events increased tremendously, particularly at those that spotlight the arts and arts-integrated units of study. Many teachers report that arts integration has become a permanent staple in their teaching practice.

Honors & Awards

• Palmetto Silver Award 2007, recognizing high levels of academic achievement and high rates of student academic improvement.

Professional Development

In the winter of 2004, SmartARTS began implementation of The Professional Development Project funded by a U. S. Department of Education grant. The Professional Development Project provided training to Greenville County Title 1 teachers and area professional artists in the use of arts integration methods. Through the training, teacher/artist teams learned how to co-create standards based units of study that were team taught in the teacher’s classroom. These rich units resulted in greater student engagement and continuing development of the self for students, teachers, and artists as they partnered in the learning process. This grant also provided additional training workshops during the school year for Title 1 schools and area artists.