What prompted the creation of ACT

By Sumner N. Milender

I attended elementary school during the Great Depression when the Government sent WPA musicians every few months to play classical music for us.  I learned to love classical music from this early exposure.

At age 65, I was fortunate to be appointed an Adjunct in Education at the Harvard Graduate School of Education where I worked in Professor Howard Gardner’s Project Zero with Arts Professor Jessica Davis.  She was developing Project MUSE (Museums Uniting with Schools in Education), a program of interactive teaching tools that provide greater accessibility to the arts.  At a time when the arts were being cut out of education budgets, Project MUSE enabled traditional classroom teachers and others the opportunity to expose a greater number of their students to the arts.

After moving to Tucson, my late wife Edie and I began discussing two trends: the impact of the “No Child Left Behind Act of 2001” resulting in less music education in schools, coupled with research proving that exposure to music improves progress in various academic areas.  Edie kept pressing me to find ways to bring music back into students’ lives.  After several early attempts, we connected with Dr. Martin Gardiner to develop this program.  Arts for Critical Thinking® (ACT) has evolved significantly since then, based on experience and feedback from many people.

I can’t describe the joy and satisfaction I feel when I watch ACT participants having fun while learning valuable life skills.   My hope is that years from now, ACT will be enriching lives and developing thoughtful minds for many children and adults.  And of course, making them smile.