State of the Arts Report

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The Arts Work for Texas

Through Art Can, the Texas Cultural Trust conducts research and publishes data to quantify the impact of the arts and creative sectors on the economy, education, culture, and health and well-being of Texas. These findings are published in the biennial State of the Arts Report.

The 2025 State of the Arts Report demonstrates the unequivocal impact the arts have in shaping the cultural, economic, and educational future of Texas. In this way, the State of the Arts Report serves as a resource for Texas artists, arts organizations and advocates, educators, policymakers, parents, philanthropists, and others to increase support and funding for arts and culture in the state.

Texas students highly engaged in the arts are more likely to meet college readiness benchmarks.

  • Up to 46% more likely to pass Texas Success Initiative (TSI) criteria

  • Twice as likely to meet Advance Placement/International Baccalaureate (AP/IB) exam criteria

  • 20% more likely to earn college dual credit achievements

Arts education fosters Social and Emotional Learning competencies, including self-awareness, self-management, social awareness, relationship skills, and responsible decision-making.

The arts support neurodevelopment in childhood. Structured arts activities can boost cognitive abilities by 17%.

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Texas students highly engaged in the arts are up to 112% more likely to earn an exceptional score on standardized tests

The Texas Arts and Culture Industry creates jobs, generates significant tax revenue, boosts tourism, attracts business, and revitalizes communities.

The Texas Arts and Culture Industry has grown by 63%, generating $7.3 billion in taxable sales and $459.1 million in sales tax revenue.

Across Texas, nearly 960,000 people are employed in creative careers, which represents 1 in 14 jobs.

1 in 4 visitors in Texas participate in cultural tourism. Arts and culture tourists stay longer, bring more people, and spend more money than non-culture tourists.

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The Arts and Creative Industry generated $6 billion for the Texas economy

1 in 14 Texas Jobs are Creative Careers

Cultural District Study

Cultural Districts create jobs, generate significant tax revenue, boost tourism, attract business, revitalize communities, and improve the quality of life for all Texans.

In 2023, case studies found that the examined cultural districts generated more than a 2 to 1 return on investment in state tax revenue.

Currently, there are 54 TCA-designated cultural districts in 41 cities across Texas. When funded by the Texas Legislature, the TCA provides competitive grants to support projects within cultural districts.

Cultural District Study

2 to 1 return on investment

The arts enhance overall physical, mental, and emotional health, encourage healthy behaviors, reduce stress, and increase social interactions.

Attending just one cultural event a month decreases cortisol by 60% and reduces the risk of developing depression by 48%.

Music therapy can decrease post-traumatic stress disorder symptoms by 30%.

Listening to a prescribed music playlist can improve blood flow through a stroke patient’s brain and can increase functional connectivity by 18%.

Attending community cultural events, such as visiting a museum or theatre, every few months or more is associated with a 47% lower risk of developing dementia.

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The Arts can reduce the risk of developing depression by 48%
Community cultural engagement can reduce the risk of developing dementia by 47%

Take Action

Pass on these findings. Tell your fellow Texans about the important impact the arts have on education, the economy, health and well-being, and our way of life.

Encourage your school board members and elected officials to support access to the arts and arts education. Use our tools at TXCT.org/Artcan

Learn more about how to promote and support the arts in Texas, or contact the Texas Cultural Trust directly.

While there are great areas of promise, there are also many areas for improvement in arts access. We invite you to join us in our efforts to ensure equitable access to the arts for all Texans. Join Partners in the Arts.

The Research

Economic Impact Data
Research into the economic impact of the Arts and Culture Industry, creative sector occupations, Core and Supporting Arts Industry, and tourism was conducted for the Texas Cultural Trust by Travis James of TXP, Inc. The research utilized data sets from the Texas Comptroller of Public Accounts, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, the Economic Development and Tourism Division of the Office of the Governor, and Future Partners. The objectives of the research were to assess the statewide economic impact of the 41 industry sectors that comprise the Arts and Culture Industry, the 16,000 Arts and Culture Industry businesses throughout Texas that employ nearly 138,000 workers, and the impact of the Arts and Culture Industry on travel and tourism dollars.

Arts Education Impact Data
Research on the arts’ impact on students was conducted for the Texas Cultural Trust by Dr. Wen Luo and Dr. Daniel Bowen. The study utilized Texas Education Agency (TEA) data for every Texas student first enrolled as a 9th grader in 2018-2019, i.e., the projected high school graduating class of 2022, and their student-level demographics, attendance, enrollment, and College and Career Readiness data. The study analyzed patterns of fine arts course enrollment, focusing on the number of semester-long art courses taken and the highest level achieved within each fine art discipline. Differences in enrollment patterns were examined by comparing various demographic groups. Additionally, the association between arts education and academic achievement was assessed by comparing students with varying levels of engagement in fine arts courses in terms of key academic outcomes, such as attendance rates and College and Career Readiness metrics.

Arts Education Access Data
Research on student access to the arts in elementary schools was conducted for the Texas Cultural Trust by Dr. Wen Luo and Dr. Daniel Bowen. The study utilized data from the Texas Education Agency (TEA) for the 2022-2023 school year, focusing on all elementary schools across the state. Three primary sources of data were analyzed: (1) course offerings and enrollment for each school, (2) campus demographic data, and (3) teacher records and certification information. Public campus-level data, including student demographics, was obtained directly from the TEA website.

Art education access was assessed based on several factors: the number of fine arts courses offered at each school, the number of teachers exclusively teaching fine arts classes, and the proportion of fine arts classes taught by fine arts-certified teachers. Potential disparities in access to fine arts education were examined by comparing schools across different community types, as well as by the percentage of economically disadvantaged and minority students at each campus.

Dr. Bowen’s efforts on the Arts Education Impact and Elementary Arts Education Access studies were supported in part by a grant from the National Endowment for the Arts (#1919727-38-23). The opinions expressed are those of the authors and do not represent the views of the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) Office of Research & Analysis or the National Endowment for the Arts. The National Endowment for the Arts does not guarantee the accuracy or completeness of the information included in this material and is not responsible for any consequences of its use.

Social and Emotional Learning
Research on arts education and social and emotional learning was conducted for the Texas Cultural Trust by Dr. Robin A. Ward, who is a Clinical Assistant Professor of Mathematics and the Director of Curriculum Integration at the Rice University School Mathematics Project, as well as a former aerospace engineer. Dr. Ward conducted a literature review of 192 sources, researching the topics of arts education, social and emotional learning, and academic outcomes.

Health and Well-Being Data
Research on Arts in Health was conducted for the Texas Cultural Trust by Shay Thornton Kulha, the Operations Manager for the Center for Performing Arts Medicine at Houston Methodist and an instructor for the Arts in Health graduate certificate program at the University of Houston. Kulha conducted a review of prominent statewide Arts in Health programs.

Texas Voter and Parent Survey
Mike Baselice, of Baselice and Associates, Inc., oversaw the Texas Cultural Trust’s 2018 Texas Voter Survey, which was conducted from August 13 to 21, 2018 among n=600 Texas voters to measure their attitudes about increased funding for arts education. The poll was conducted online and carries a margin of error of +/- 4.0 percentage points.

Art Can Map
January Advisors is a data science consulting firm that works with nonprofits and government agencies. They work on data and public policy projects in various fields, including housing, criminal justice, climate change, social services, and education. Jeff Reichman is the founder of January Advisors and is responsible for the data visualization in the Art Can Map found at TXCulturalTrust.org.

Creative & Design
The 2025 Art Can branding campaign for the State of the Arts Report and video/photography were developed by Arts+Labor, a full-service creative content company in Austin. Arts+Labor specializes in commercial production, film and design with a special emphasis on Texas culture and artists.

Partners

Texas Commission on the Arts
The mission of the Texas Commission on the Arts (TCA) is to advance our state economically and culturally by investing in a creative Texas. TCA supports a diverse and innovative arts community in Texas, throughout the nation, and internationally by providing resources to enhance economic development, arts education, cultural tourism, and artist sustainability initiatives.

Texans for the Arts
Texans for the Arts (TFA) is a highly effective, non-partisan, statewide arts advocacy organization that provides coordinated information about legislative activity related to arts issues and organizes advocacy efforts in order to protect and increase public funding for the arts at the state, national and local levels. For more information, visit texansforthearts.com.

2025 Sponsors