Filling the Gap in Arts Education
From elementary classrooms to young adult programs, the Edmonds Arts Festival Foundation is ensuring every student has the chance to create, explore, and express through art
The Edmonds Arts Festival Foundation is once again stepping up to support local art education by helping fill the gap left by recent Edmonds School District budget cuts. This year, the Foundation is proud to partner with local organizations and schools to make sure creativity continues to thrive in every classroom.
“Our schools are full of talented, creative students,” said Foundation board member Samantha Saether. “We want to make sure every one of them has the chance to explore and express that creativity, no matter the budget.”
The Foundation is supporting visual arts education through several partnerships that reach students across all grade levels:
Art Start Northwest Partnership: The Foundation has provided $12,000 to Art Start NW, located at Graphite Art Center, to help five elementary schools—those with the highest free and reduced lunch rates—build “art closets” stocked with supplies and sketchbooks teachers can use throughout the year.
Middle and High School Art Support: With $15,000 in funding, middle and high school art teachers will have access to the supplies, field trips, and visiting artist programs that inspire students and enrich their creative learning—programs no longer covered by the 2025–26 district budget.
VOICE Program Funding: The Foundation has also contributed $2,500 to restore art classes for Vocational Opportunities in Community Experiences (VOICE) students—young adults ages 18–21 in special education programs—bringing art back into their curriculum after it was cut from the district budget.
For many years, the Foundation supported classroom art instruction through its Art Instruction Grant program. But after reviewing its impact, the Foundation chose to shift toward partnerships that reach more students, more consistently. “By pooling our resources and working directly with schools and community partners, we can make a bigger, longer-lasting difference,” said Foundation Vice President Kim Palmer.
The Edmonds Arts Festival Foundation has a long tradition of supporting the arts in our community. Each year, the Foundation awards more than $80,000 in scholarships and grants, and over the past 39 years has invested more than $1 million in local public art, education, and creative programs.
All of this is made possible through the beloved Edmonds Arts Festival, held every June over Father’s Day weekend and produced entirely by community volunteers. The Festival not only celebrates local artists, but also fuels the Foundation’s mission to keep the arts alive and accessible for everyone.
If you are interested in making a donation to the Edmonds Arts Festival Foundation, visit www.edmondsartsfestival.com/donate.