HOUSE MEMORIAL 11

50th legislature - STATE OF NEW MEXICO - first session, 2011

INTRODUCED BY

Nora Espinoza

A MEMORIAL

REQUESTING THE CULTURAL AFFAIRS DEPARTMENT, THE PUBLIC EDUCATION DEPARTMENT, THE SUPERINTENDENTS OF THE ALBUQUERQUE AND SANTA FE PUBLIC SCHOOL DISTRICTS AND ARTWORKS AMERICA TO COLLABORATE TO IMPLEMENT THE "ECOART AMERICA CHALLENGE" PROJECT IN PUBLIC MIDDLE SCHOOLS IN THOSE COMMUNITIES AND ENCOURAGING THE SUPERINTENDENTS OF OTHER SCHOOL DISTRICTS IN NEW MEXICO TO JOIN TOGETHER TO IMPLEMENT THIS PROJECT STATEWIDE.

     WHEREAS, Artworks America is a not-for-profit organization dedicated to enriching the arts and cultural landscape in New Mexico; and

     WHEREAS, Artworks America works with both private and public sector partners to raise aesthetic appreciation of the arts by implementing projects that promote art and cultural values and that bring benefits to communities, education and the environment; and

     WHEREAS, previous successful Artworks America projects have raised four million five hundred thousand dollars ($4,500,000) for children's charities and have channeled more than three million dollars ($3,000,000) to local communities; and

     WHEREAS, EcoArt America Challenge is a project under development that reflects a partnership between Artworks America and the superintendents of the Albuquerque and Santa Fe public school districts; and

     WHEREAS, EcoArt America Challenge is a project in which seventh and eighth grade students, in collaboration with art teachers, envision, design and create imaginative, large-scale works of art using recycled materials and found objects; and

     WHEREAS, projects such as EcoArt America Challenge bring enjoyment to communities, publicity and business benefits to supporting sponsors and innovative educational experiences to participating students; and

     WHEREAS, EcoArt America Challenge is slated to begin with the fall 2011 semester of school, and it is expected to foster environmental awareness while providing invaluable art and environmental education for students in an era of strapped school budgets; and

     WHEREAS, the project will positively affect its business partners through a broad-based public relations and marketing campaign and will reward sponsors with two large-scale installations that they may showcase on their own premises or donate to others, including to the participating schools that created them; and

     WHEREAS, the project will be entirely funded through contributions from participating sponsors, which means that students will be able to experience this unique educational opportunity with no impact on local school budgets; and

     WHEREAS, EcoArt America Challenge will benefit schools, students, sponsoring businesses and the communities in which the project is implemented;

     NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE STATE OF NEW MEXICO that the cultural affairs department, the public education department, the superintendents of the Albuquerque and Santa Fe public school districts and Artworks America be requested to collaborate to implement the EcoArt America Challenge project in public middle schools in those communities; and

     BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the superintendents of other school districts in New Mexico be encouraged to join in partnership with Artworks America to implement the EcoArt America Challenge project statewide; and

     BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that businesses be encouraged to support EcoArt America Challenge and participating school districts by becoming sponsors; and

     BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that copies of this memorial be transmitted to the secretaries of cultural affairs and public education and to the superintendents of the Albuquerque and Santa Fe public school districts.

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