The UK arts community is up in arms over the British government’s plan to reduce funding for arts education by 50 percent at higher learning institutions such as colleges and universities for the 2021–22 school year, The Art Newspaper reports. Consultation regarding the scheme, which was first announced in January by education secretary Gavin Williamson, ends May 6. As a result, artists, curators, educators, and musicians are among those making a fierce last effort to prevent the cuts, which are based on the Office for Students’ (OFS) assessment of the arts as “high cost” and of lesser priority than subjects such as science, technology, engineering, and mathematics, which it considers “high cost” and also “high value.”
Among the subjects not considered “strategic” priorities by the government are dance, drama, performing arts, media studies, art and design, and archaeology. Under the proposed plan, funding for these subjects would be reduced from £36 million ($50 million) to £19 million ($26 million), within an overall budget…
