Marin County Office of Education

The Marin County Office of Education supports 19 school districts and 33,200 students attending transitional kindergarten through grade 12. As one of California’s 58 county offices of education, it is the primary agency for implementing state education policy, including the Visual and Performing Arts Standards, in Marin County. The Education Service department provides professional development, direct instruction, and other services to schools and districts that are not meeting the state’s education standards, including those for arts education. Support for Marin County Office of Education’s Educational Services department is aligned with the Performing Arts Program’s Youth Strategy through the Policy and Advocacy substrategy.

The Marin County Office of Education supports 19 school districts and 33,200 students in grades TK through 12. The Teaching In & Through The Arts project is a county-wide effort, supported by the Marin Community Foundation and led by Marin County Office of Education staff, to re-invest in arts education in Marin. Poverty in Marin schools mirrors broader trends in the county, where lower per pupil spending correlates to lower levels of arts access and participation in schools. The Teaching In & Through The Arts program is intended to ensure that arts resources reach those schools. A first-time Hewlett Foundation grant will kick off arts education strategic planning, as well as support mapping of arts education access throughout the county. Funds will also support a collaboration with the Alameda County Office of Education (a Hewlett Foundation grantee) for arts-based teacher professional development.

The Marin County Office of Education supports 19 school districts and 33,200 students in grades TK through 12. Poverty in Marin schools mirrors trends in the broader county — clusters of high-poverty schools in a few neighborhoods, which also tend to be much more racially diverse than the county as a whole. Schools with the highest proportion of low-income students also have lower levels of per pupil spending. The Teaching in and Through the Arts project is a county-wide effort, supported by the Marin Community Foundation and led by Marin County Office of Education staff, to re-invest in arts education in Marin. A first-time Hewlett Foundation grant will kick off arts education strategic planning, as well as support mapping of arts education access throughout the county. Funds will also support a collaboration with the Alameda County Office of Education (also a Hewlett grantee) for arts-based teacher professional development.