Expand public funding for arts

According to Americans for the Arts, the nonprofit arts industry (museums, theater and dance companies, performing arts centers, orchestras, arts councils and others) generates $22.3 billion in federal, state and local tax revenues annually — a yield well beyond their collective $4 billion in arts allocations.

Because the National Endowment for the Arts supports artistic excellence and improves access to the arts by granting funds to nonprofit arts organizations, I call on our federal officials to support an increase in funding for the NEA beyond its 1993 funding level of $174 million. That funding figure equals $277 million in today’s dollars.

Our schools need more arts education. Schools, especially those struggling, can retain their best teachers by becoming incubators for creativity and innovation, places where students want to learn and teachers want to teach. Students with an education rich in the arts have better grade-point averages, score better on standardized tests in reading and math, and have lower dropout rates — findings that cut across all socio-economic categories. Congress and state education leaders should support strong arts education programs in order for local school leaders to include the arts in all disciplines (dance, theater, music, visual and media arts) in their curriculum.

Our rural communities contain some of the greatest cultural assets of our country. Rural economic development should be strengthened to help these communities promote the richness of their heritage and assist local artists with their entrepreneurship.

Across the country, the role of the arts as an economic engine is growing in acceptance and strength. I call on all lawmakers to support funding and policies at the federal level that would recognize the growth potential and direct benefits of encouraging cities and states to strategically invest in the arts in order to drive economic development.

— Noelle Rhodes Scott

Concord

Keep local control

Like many others, I attended the recent town hall by Harry Warren et al. While I was disappointed in the extremely limited amount of time allotted for constituent questions or sharing of concerns, I did get the impression that Harry Warren was at least somewhat open to constituent questions and concerns and appeared to be not entirely partisans.

It was also apparent that Mr. Ford was condescending towards his constituents and extremely partisan. Mr. Ford has recently shown his true colors by his recent introduction of HR 508, which would ensure that Republicans will always maintain their majority on the local board of elections regardless of the makeup or will of their constituents. It ensures appointments will always be made at the state level without any input at the local level.

If you want to retain local input on the makeup of our local board of elections and feel neither party should have absolute control of the board, which should representative of its constituents, then please contact Mr. Warren and Mr. Ford as I have done to let them know that you oppose this partisan power grab.

Yes, maybe Democratic state legislators have put party agenda over constituents in the past, but two wrongs do not make a right. Decisions should be made at the lowest level whenever possible, and our politicians need to stop their petty partisan bickering and start working together to benefit all of their constituents.

— Fred Krusemark

Granite Quarry

Equality for all

The politicians that run our state did the right thing by repealing the notorious ‘’bathroom bill.”’ Unfortunately, they did the wrong thing by adding provisions that ban all cities in the state from creating anti-discrimination legislation until the year 2020.

We need a national law that states that all adult citizens must have the same legal, political and civil rights.

— Chuck Mann

Greensboro