The Creative Schools Initiative

The Creative Schools Initiative is an ambitious effort to help every CPS student receive a well-rounded education that includes the arts. The Creative Schools Initiative places a CPS Arts Liaison in every school; uses data and information to plan more effectively; and expands the pool of financial resources to help schools bring the arts to more students throughout their school years.

Each of the Initiative’s four leading components addresses a need identified during the CPS Arts Plan community engagement process.

Arts Liaisons

Arts Liaisons are the principal’s point person for the arts. Each Liaison is a CPS employee who tracks arts education in their school, works with the principal and parents, supports teachers, connects with Ingenuity and the District, and coordinates all internal and external arts instruction, including partnerships.

Creative Schools Data

artlook collects detailed information on arts instruction in every school including staffing, minutes of instruction, disciplines taught, and partnerships. Designed and managed by Ingenuity, this is the most comprehensive data collection effort for the arts in CPS. Data is used to identify each school’s position along the Creative Schools Certification continuum and provides a clear picture of the distribution and availability of arts education throughout the District.

Creative Schools Certification

The Creative Schools Certification is at the center of the CPS Arts Education Plan and identifies the level of arts instruction in each school in five categories ranging from Emerging to Excelling. It creates a clear picture for principals, teachers and parents on arts instruction in their school and is a roadmap for expanding quality and access. The Certification will appear on the school progress report along with other indicators of academic performance and will help schools develop plans and partnerships to address gaps.

Creative Schools Fund

The Fund provides grants directly to schools based on needs identified through the Creative Schools Certification. The Fund is meant to support a school’s progress along the Creative Schools Certification continuum. The Fund does not accept applications for programs designed to replace instruction provided by certified teachers in the classroom.