The link between art and innovation

Tuesday is Arts Advocacy Day on Capitol Hill. With so many complex challenges facing America — in education, public health and the economy — should Americans care? The answer is yes. Especially since addressing these problems will require continuous innovation.

Harvard researchers took six years interviewing thousands of executives to find out “what makes innovators different.” They learned it’s all about making connections. Innovation expert Debra Kaye agrees: “Great innovators make connections between seemingly unrelated observations to uncover unique insights.” Arts, like innovation, are all about making connections.

Music and arts connect kids to their schools, to each other and to the economy. Numerous studies — one tracking 12,000 students over a decade — show arts instruction improves academic performance, graduation rates and life beyond the classroom.