Bill Strickland on Arts and EducationFebruary 19, 2009 | Bradley GeorgeLast year the dropout rate in Winston-Salem Forsyth County Schools was 5.49 percent. A coalition of non-profit groups and civic leaders, lead by the United Way, wants to bring down that number. One model involves integrating arts into the school curriculum. Bill Strickland is a champion of this approach. He's the founder and CEO of Manchester Bidwell Corporation in Pittsburgh. It's a non-profit that works in the inner city neighborhood where Strickland grew up. It provides after school arts education to young people and job training to adults. Strickland will talk about his concept tomorrow, at a luncheon in Winston-Salem. WFDD's Bradley George interviewed him earlier this week. Strickland says his high school ceramics teacher saved his life.
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