Summer 2026 · National State Leaders Survey

What music & arts leaders told us

Music IS Education

Each year the Music IS Education Coalition surveys the state leaders and educators shaping music and arts education across the country. In 2026, more than 200 responded — from statehouse advocates and state arts officials to the teachers in front of students every day. Their message was clear and consistent: the challenges are real, and so is the momentum.

  • 39
    states represented by state leaders
  • 63
    state advocacy leaders responding
  • 145
    educators & community voices
  • 90%
    of leaders concerned about school funding

The four challenges — confirmed by the field

The Coalition has long pointed to four challenges facing music and arts education. The 2026 survey confirms all four — and shows that state leaders and classroom educators worry about the same things, in the same order.

Challenge 01

Funding for Public Schools

The number-one concern in the survey. State and local budget shortfalls and shifting federal dollars put school budgets under pressure — and when budgets tighten, music and arts programs are often first on the chopping block, with the deepest impact on already under-resourced communities.

90% of state leaders concerned — the top issue for the field, too
Challenge 02

Access to Music & Arts Education

As states expand career, college, and CTE pathways, students have less room in their schedules for the arts — and fewer states guarantee an arts credit for graduation. Educators, closest to students, feel this most sharply, ranking the erosion of a guaranteed arts credit among their very top concerns.

Curriculum narrowing worries 8 in 10 leaders and educators alike
Challenge 03

Focus on Workforce Skills

States are placing major emphasis on workforce readiness — often without recognizing that music education builds exactly those durable skills: creativity, collaboration, communication, and perseverance. The survey shows real uncertainty here, which is precisely the opening to define the arts’ role in the workforce conversation.

The most “uncertain” issue in the survey — a story waiting to be told
Challenge 04

The Music Teaching Profession

The nation faces a music teacher shortage, and every school needs a music teacher. Retirements, a thinning preparation pipeline, and rural staffing gaps threaten student access. This is fundamentally a question of supply and support — distinct from debates over licensure requirements.

A persistent, top-of-mind concern across every survey wave

From the capitol to the classroom

One of the survey’s clearest findings is agreement. State leaders in the statehouse and educators in the classroom name the same top priorities, at nearly the same intensity — funding first, then protecting arts time and the place of the arts in graduation. Where the two groups differ, it is educators — closest to students — who feel the loss of a guaranteed arts credit and the strain of the teacher shortage even more acutely. That shared voice, from policy to practice, is one of the most powerful advocacy assets the movement has.

The concern for music and arts education runs from the statehouse to the classroom — and it points the same direction.

Reasons for momentum

Advocacy is working. Alongside the challenges, state leaders reported concrete, replicable wins — proof that when advocates organize, policy moves.

  • State Seals of Fine Arts are becoming law

    Louisiana and Virginia have enacted a Seal of Fine Arts, recognizing students’ achievement in the arts on their diplomas — and more states are building toward the same, giving advocates a clear, replicable model.

  • Educators are defending arts time

    From restoring arts options for graduation and PE credit to stopping oversized, watered-down music classes, advocates are protecting the instructional time students need.

  • Coalitions are growing stronger

    State music, theatre, dance, and visual-arts organizations are joining forces — a coalition of coalitions — to speak with one unified voice to decision-makers.

  • Advocates know exactly what they need

    Across every survey wave, leaders asked for the same tools — model bills, cross-state examples, ready-to-use messaging, and coaching — the very support the Coalition and Karl B continue to build and refine.

The bigger picture

Beyond this survey, the national case for music and arts education is well established:

25M+

students participate in school-based music education nationwide.

92%

of all students have access to music education in their schools.

32–51%

lower chronic absenteeism among students in music and arts classes through high school.

~90%

of Americans say the arts are part of a well-rounded K-12 education.

Music and the arts are core academic subjects — for every student, in every school.

Summary of the 2026 National State Leaders Survey · Conducted by Quadrant Research for the Music IS Education Coalition.