Publications
Scientific journal articles, non-technical reports, case studies, findings to inform state legislative reports, and worldly knowledge captured within an encyclopedia entry.
Links to each work are provided when available.
Accessibility of Dance Programming
Gara, T. V., Winsler, A. (2024). Who is taking dance electives, when, and for how long? Adolescents’ dance participation and persistence in middle and high school. Research in Dance Education, 1(23). Click here to view the abstract.
The Impact of Federal Education Policy on the Visual and Performing Arts Educator Workforce
Gara, T. V., Farkas, G., & Brouillette, L. (2020). Did consequential accountability policies decrease the share of visual and performing arts education in U.S. public secondary schools during the No Child Left Behind Era? Arts Education Policy Review. Click here to view the full article.
Academic Achievement Outcomes Associated with Visual and Performing Arts Engagement
Winsler, A., Gara, T. V., Alegrado, A., Castro, S., & Tavassolie, T. (2019). Selection into, and academic benefits from, arts-related courses in middle school for low-income, ethnically diverse youth. Psychology of Aesthetics, Creativity, and the Arts,14(4), 415-432. Click here to view the abstract.
Featured Arts Education Journal Articles
Selected Publications
Boal, A., Gara, T., Zimiles, J., & Cerna, R. (2024). California’s Historic Investment in Community Schools: Early Evidence to Understand Shifts in Community School Practices Before and After Grant Participation. Journal of Education for Students Placed at Risk. 1-25. View the abstract.
Gara, T., Zimiles, J., & Boal, A. (2024). Learning Communities for School Success Program Case Study: Sacramento City Unified School District. WestEd. The California Department of Education. Awaiting online publication on the California Educators Together webpage, The California Department of Education's official repository of high-quality instructional materials, as well as legislation.
Gara, T., Zimiles, J., & Boal, A. (2024). California Community Schools Partnership Program Case Study: Los Angeles County Office of Education. WestEd. The California Department of Education. Awaiting online publication on the California Educators Together webpage, The California Department of Education's official repository of high-quality instructional materials, as well as legislation.
Boal, A., Gara, T., Zimiles, J. (2023). California Community Schools Partnership Program: Findings from the Pre-Post Assessment of the Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief (ESSER) Fund Cohort. San Francisco, CA: WestEd. Report to the Governor and Legislature: 2023 Formative Evaluation of the California Community Schools Partnership Program. View the legislative report.
Gara, T. V. (2021). High School Dance Education: Academic Achievement and Commitment among Hispanic Adolescents in an Urban School District. University of California, Irvine. ProQuest ID: Gara_uci_0030D_16891. View the dissertation.
Gara, T. V., & Winsler, A. (2020). Selection into, and academic benefits from, middle school dance elective courses among urban youth. Psychology of Aesthetics, Creativity, and the Arts, 14(4), 433-450. View the abstract.
Gara, T. V. Adolescent Motivation to Participate in the SanArts Dance Conservatory: 2018-2019. Report prepared for the Santa Ana Unified School District and Dance Conservatory Staff.
Gara, T. V., Brouillette, L., & Farkas, G. (2018). Did the frequency of early elementary classroom arts instruction decrease after no child left behind? If so, for whom? Early Childhood Research Quarterly, 45(4), 263-276. View the abstract.
Gara, T. V., & Winsler A. (2018). Art. In M. Bornstein (Ed.) The Sage Encyclopedia of Lifespan Human Development. New York, NY: Sage Publications. View a sample of the encyclopedia entry.
Note: Evaluations of the California Community School Partnership Program and The Learning Communities for School Success Program conducted with WestEd, a national non-profit research and evaluation organization.