Star-backed measure for arts education on California ballot

By JULIE WATSON
Associated Press

SAN DIEGO (AP) — From Hollywood movies to the Beach Boys and Snoop Dogg, California has been a world-famous incubator of the arts. But arts education is lagging in public schools. Advocacy groups say fewer than a quarter of California’s public schools have a full-time arts or music education teacher, and most schools serving low-income students offer few, if any, courses. But a November ballot measure would pump as much as $1 billion a year from the state’s general fund into arts and music education, according to the state’s legislative analyst. The measure has no organized opposition and is backed by a celebrity lineup that includes Barbra Streisand and rapper Dr. Dre.