By Gina Moore, M.F.A.

All across the nation, academic institutions and art programs are facing declining enrollments. This is prompting art administrators and faculty to garner support and develop strategic effective short- and long-term planning.

What initiatives can/must be implemented? What value-added enhancements can/must be considered to not only stem declining enrollments, but to turn a downward spiral to an upward trajectory? How can we work to embed in the consciousness of the academic community the understanding that art and design study is an integral aspect of the success of our nation and therefore must hold an important and secure place in the institution’s mission? The art administrator must survey the landscape to ascertain which options have the best possible chance for success. (2018 NASAD Conference Program).

According to the NACE JOB OUTLOOK 2018, employers were asked to rate the essential need of the eight career readiness competencies as defined by NACE, and the proficiency of their new hires within those competencies. The table below shows that critical thinking/problem solving is rated as most essential by respondents, as it has been every time employers have been asked to rate the competencies. Critical thinking and creative problem solving are student learning outcomes taught and assessed in every studio art, design, and art history course.

We are seeing a shift in the way people are making a living. The rise of the gig economy and portfolio careers is turning individuals into an army of solo entrepreneurs with a variety of diverse revenue streams that give them both flexibility and stability in this environment. The Bureau of Labor Statistics recently gave its first official report; 11% of workers (16.5M Americans) have already made this shift. NASDAQ estimates that 43% of all American workers will be freelancers by 2020. Artists and designers are natural fits for thriving in this type of workforce. Never before in the history of humankind have artists faced the opportunity to define and redefine the global human experience in the ways we live, work, and play. Never before in the history of humankind has an individual person had the chance to share her work with billions of people around the world. Never before in the history of humankind have we had adapt to adapt quickly and strategically to stay relevant. 

The 4^th revolution isn’t coming, it is here. Kelly Pollock, Executive Director of the Center of Creative Arts in St. Louis, states “At a time when innovative thinking, creative problem solving and flexibility are highly valued and needed to succeed in today’s economy, the arts provide the most powerful methods for developing these abilities.” Pollock further states “The true purpose of arts education is not necessarily to create more professional dancers and artists. It’s to create more complete human beings who are critical thinkers, who have curious minds, who can lead productive lives.

 Arts educators and administrators must seize the opportunity to put art and design at the center of this revolution, not in the peripheries. You do have one not-so-secret weapon—the artist and designer. With the courage it takes to commit to their path, aligned with their creative and independent thinking abilities, their curiosity, their carefully-formed questions, and their depth of empathy, these individuals have the raw skills needed to lead this revolution. With artists and designers at the helm welding science and technology to create the next frontier of the human experience, I know they will be the ones to guide us into the 5th Industrial Revolution. (Vidya Spandana The Fourth Industrial Revolution).

It is essential that we rewrite the narrative about what an art degree provides. We must define the relevance of the arts and cultivate that relevance. We must collaborate with other disciplines on campus to form interdisciplinary partnerships. We must inform our recruiters of what we do and exactly what we offer. We must make our programs distinctive from other institutions, while focusing on career pathways and post-graduate opportunities. We must build stronger networks with alumni and enhance our visibility within the community.

In addition, we must continue to develop skills that employers are looking for. The left sidebar demonstrates what attributes employers seek on a candidate’s resume. (NACE JOB OUTLOOK 2018).

In unceasing efforts to advance art and design in higher education in our country how can an art executive ensure that demographics and numbers alone do not control a unit’s destiny? As art continues to thrive as an academic discipline, it is important to have dialogue with others facing these very same problems. 

We must exchange reports of achievements, conditions and challenges and raise, explore, and share problems, advice and solutions as we regenerate our advocacy campaign on the relevance of art and its place in the academy.