From Sidewalks to Classrooms: Chalk It Up’s Impact on Arts Education
Updated: 1 hour ago
What began as a gathering of local artists in 1991 has grown into a Labor Day tradition drawing roughly 40,000 people to Midtown Sacramento. Chalk It Up is more than a chalk-art competition, bringing together local artisans and makers, food and treat vendors, live local music, a beer garden, family activities and hundreds of sidewalk chalk artists who create their artwork in real time. For more than three decades, the festival has remained free to the public.
This non-profit organization has a much larger mission that focuses on youth arts education in public schools. Chalk It Up's stated mission is to empower the next generation of artists by providing grants and programs for teachers and schools, with an emphasis on equitable access to arts education, particularly in Title I schools, according to Chalk It Up.
The cost of running this free festival is roughly $130,000, and chalk alone cost $8,661. Chalk It Up says its operations are overseen by a volunteer executive board and executive director, while volunteers, donors, community partners and sponsors provide much of the labor and funding needed to make the festival possible.
Christy Jourdan, executive director of Chalk It Up, describes the festival as “a gift to the community.” She said the organization gives between $12,000 and $15,000 each year in grants to public school art teachers throughout the region.
Chalk It Up also supports young artists through its annual High School “Self-Portrait Show.” This past March, 143 students from 17 local high schools submitted self-portraits for a monthlong gallery exhibition. Local artists judged the work, awarding prizes for categories such as Best in Medium and Best in Show, while grants were also given to the teachers of participating students. This year, the program provided a total of $6,000 in prizes and grants. The exhibition also included an opening reception where students and their families could celebrate the artwork together, accompanied by live music from local musicians.
Chalk It Up’s grants can help cover small classroom expenses that teachers may otherwise have to pay for themselves. Jourdan gave the example of a new T.K. (transitional kindergarten) program in Elk Grove Unified that needed about $92 worth of multicultural crayons representing different skin tones. Although the school had funding for its new program, it could not cover the additional cost of the crayons after addressing its other needs. Chalk It Up stepped in to help provide the supplies.
The colorful artwork covering Midtown’s sidewalks is only part of the big picture for Chalk It Up. The festival provides a free Labor Day weekend tradition for thousands of people, but the organization’s work continues long after the chalk is washed away. Chalk It Up directs its resources toward giving young people opportunities to experience and create art in their schools. What began as a gathering of local artists more than three decades ago has become a community tradition that uses art not only to bring people together but also to help make arts education more accessible to Sacramento-area students.
Chalk it Up Local Volunteer Frozen Beverage at Chalk It Up Festival Chalk Drawings at Chalk It Up Festival Dolly Parton Chalk Drawing Chalk it Up Festival Child stands near California logo chalk drawing Chalk it up festival Toucan and Abstract chalk drawings on sidewalk at Chalk It Up festival
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