Funding for Sports and the Arts
Many people complain that the arts are cut from schools due to lack of funding and often point out that the sports programs are still in tact.
Well, sports are not more expendable than the arts, let's just get that straight. That being said, let's get into all of the fund raising I had to do as a cheerleader.
Every home game I had to sell programs. They're not easy to sell, especially when there are 40 other girls selling the exact same thing within 100 feet of you. I had to sell homecoming ribbons. What the freak is a homecoming ribbon anyways? It's just this thing that says "Homecoming" in gold with a little hornet on it. Or what about all of that cookie dough? So much cookie dough... Let's not forget about my favorite, the coupon book. That coupon book was rediculus. It took forever to find one person to buy it, let alone five.
And exactly how much money did we have to pay to be on teams? Well, there was uniform rental, purchasing practice uniforms, purchasing the parts of uniforms we got to keep (no one wants used spankies), and the fees. So many fees... Every season it cost about $300-400 to cheer. Track was a $50 deposit on the uniform, unless you wanted to keep it, then it cost more. Not to mention, running shoes and spikes are hella expensive. AND our equipment was old. It's not like we were throwing new shots or hurdeling two-season-old hurdles. No, sir. Stuff was old.
So when you drama students complain about your old auditorium, you art students complain about the state of the art classroom, you scuplture students complain about the lack of materials, you musicians complain about how small your lockers are, just think about how much you're not paying to be there.
Also, sports are very important. Almost everyone knows that the arts provide stimulation that helps most students do well in other class. Well, it has been shown that sports help with concentration, amongst other important cognitive elements essential to academic sucess (Scheuer 4). I'll even cite a source for you.
I know that participating in sports made my high school experience much better. It improved my concentration, gave me more energy and helped me develop time-managment skills. Something you could learn in a classroom or get from the arts? I don't think so.
"I like to run in circles."
Work Cited:
Scheuer, Leslee, Dr. Debby Mitchell. "Does Physical Activity Influence Academic Performance?." SportaPolis. May 2008. Sports Media. 30 Oct 2008 http://www.sports-media.org/sportapolisnewsletter19.htm.
Well, sports are not more expendable than the arts, let's just get that straight. That being said, let's get into all of the fund raising I had to do as a cheerleader.
Every home game I had to sell programs. They're not easy to sell, especially when there are 40 other girls selling the exact same thing within 100 feet of you. I had to sell homecoming ribbons. What the freak is a homecoming ribbon anyways? It's just this thing that says "Homecoming" in gold with a little hornet on it. Or what about all of that cookie dough? So much cookie dough... Let's not forget about my favorite, the coupon book. That coupon book was rediculus. It took forever to find one person to buy it, let alone five.
And exactly how much money did we have to pay to be on teams? Well, there was uniform rental, purchasing practice uniforms, purchasing the parts of uniforms we got to keep (no one wants used spankies), and the fees. So many fees... Every season it cost about $300-400 to cheer. Track was a $50 deposit on the uniform, unless you wanted to keep it, then it cost more. Not to mention, running shoes and spikes are hella expensive. AND our equipment was old. It's not like we were throwing new shots or hurdeling two-season-old hurdles. No, sir. Stuff was old.
So when you drama students complain about your old auditorium, you art students complain about the state of the art classroom, you scuplture students complain about the lack of materials, you musicians complain about how small your lockers are, just think about how much you're not paying to be there.
Also, sports are very important. Almost everyone knows that the arts provide stimulation that helps most students do well in other class. Well, it has been shown that sports help with concentration, amongst other important cognitive elements essential to academic sucess (Scheuer 4). I'll even cite a source for you.
I know that participating in sports made my high school experience much better. It improved my concentration, gave me more energy and helped me develop time-managment skills. Something you could learn in a classroom or get from the arts? I don't think so.
"I like to run in circles."
Work Cited:
Scheuer, Leslee, Dr. Debby Mitchell. "Does Physical Activity Influence Academic Performance?." SportaPolis. May 2008. Sports Media. 30 Oct 2008 http://www.sports-media.org/sportapolisnewsletter19.htm.