“I usually don’t like classical music but the San Diego Symphony was GREAT!”
Joey, 4th Grade, Benchley Weinberger Elementary School

 In spite of the many wonderful opportunities offered by San Diego’s best arts and culture organizations – many of which are offered free of charge - schools are hard pressed to pay for buses. The destinations are there. The students are eager. The teachers are, literally, pleading. But too often the answer is “no”. And for no other reason than a lack of money.

Your contribution will help pay for busses for students from schools
throughout San Diego County. 

ArtsBusXpress helps schools get kids places, good places, where great things happen. For the past four years ArtsBusXpress has been transforming the lives of more San Diego school children by giving them an opportunity to discover first-hand what it means to hear a symphony or see a play, to be delighted by the magic of a ballet or explore new worlds in a museum or an art gallery. 

The program is growing exponentially as teachers across the County discover that ArtsBusXpress underwriting can put their fieldtrip buses back on the road. Since ArtsBusXpress’ beginning as a program of the San Diego Tijuana Sister Cities Society in October 2002 we have transported (both literally and figuratively) more than 100,000 students to places they may have never been before. Due to its strong success, ArtsBusXpress became an independent 501(C) 3 not-for-profit in April 2005.

ArtsBusXpress makes this happen by underwriting the cost of field trip buses.  Teachers apply on-line (www.artsbusxpress.org) for bus grants to take their students to concerts, plays, puppet shows, dance performances, art galleries, photography, science venues, and museum exhibits. Schools reserve buses according to district policy and then get reimbursed by ArtsBusXpress after the fieldtrip.

Did you know that San Diego Unified School District has 500 buses parked on their transportation lot every day from 9:00 a.m. – 1:00 p.m. when they are not being used for their regular bus routes. Without funding, though, they sit idle. It costs just $10.00/child to put these buses back on the road delivering eager students to arts and culture venues and events.

“…If it wasn’t for ArtsBusXpress, we would have not been able to enjoy
the beauty of dancing.  I had a fantastic time.  Now I can go back to my school
and share manynew and interesting dance moves and facts.” 
Ariel Alexander, 9th Grade, San Diego School of the Creative & Performing Arts

Class field trips often provide the only  The arts bring a whole new dimension to learning, giving authentic experiences that open new avenues to literacy and new horizons for young imaginations. Arts fieldtrips not only extend classroom resources for teachers and schools, they provide the essential source materials for building whole individuals who need the arts for art’s sake: the arts give children unforgettable experiences that awaken their hearts, stimulate their minds, inspire their curiosity and capture their imaginations. The arts give children a reason to learn and communicate, inspiring them to express their feelings and ideas. The arts help children discover who they are and who they might become in a whole new light. The impact can be felt across all disciplines. And experiences in the arts have an impact beyond the individual child’s development: without on-going cultivation of the next generation of artists, audiences, and patrons, the very survival of arts organizations and performing venues will be in jeopardy. 

Unfortunately, the lack of funds for arts education and enrichment is not unique to San Diego, but the solution is. ArtsBusXpress offers a vehicle (and yes, pun intended!) for individuals and organizations to get on board with their concerns about the essential role of the arts in educating children. There are nearly 500,000 children in the queue across the County in 42 school districts and more than 600 schools. It’s a tall order to send all of them on a “Ride to the Arts,” but we intend to do that and more: we are developing a model program that can be shared with communities across the country. With your help we can make a difference, not only in every child, but in the culture they will create.

 “Thank you for the service you provide to enable youngsters to attend arts
and cultural events. My kindergarteners loved the outstanding San Diego Symphony,
the dance and poetry in “Hailstones and Halibut Bones” presented at the Joan Kroc Theater. Your efforts to fund transportation make an awesome contribution to providing
a balanced curriculum for learners.”

Children’s letters and drawings reveal again and again the transformation: one enthusiastically announces her decision to become an artist; another wants to return and share the experience with his family; some decide to play an instrument; children with behavior problems sign up for the class play; drawings include keen details of a dance performance; on their first visit to a university campus children announce their decision to go to college some day; middle school students reading at the third-grade level are turned on by Shakespeare at the Old Globe and get excited about learning. It is always touching when children express their amazement and gratitude that someone they don’t know would reach out and do something special for them.

Teshan F., 4th Grade, Johnson Magnet School

An increasing volume of bus grant applications attests to the value of the ArtsBusXpress program for teachers. ArtsBusXpress was launched in 2002 and started picking up speed immediately: 1,643 students were served that first year.  During the last school year we sent nearly 54,000 children on arts fieldtrips this year, with more on a waiting list. Overall, more than 100,000 children have been served, and next year alone (FY 08) we hope to serve 75,000 children. 

As we grow the organization and reach out to develop the potential of ArtsBusXpress, we are determined to be “the little engine that could,” the little engine that could rally the San Diego community to assure arts in the education of its children. We ask for your support.