It is with great sadness that I share the news of the passing of one of New Jersey’s arts education giants, Carol Belt, this past Monday surrounded by her loved ones after an extended (and largely quiet) battle with cancer.

Carol served our state in many capacities. As a member of the New Jersey State Council on the Arts, a board member for Young Audiences of New Jersey and helped create, lead and support the Trenton Educational Dance Institute (TEDI) serving thousands of Trenton students through dance for more than 25 years.

Carol was critical member of the Governor Kean’s Literacy in the Arts Task Force in the late 1980’s whose final report became the catalyst to move New Jersey from earning “barely a passing grade” regarding the provision of arts education to our place today as the national leader in arts education.

Carol was instrumental in the creation of Arts Ed NJ. From the first planning meetings calling for the creation of a new statewide arts education leadership organization (2004), to the first Census for Arts Education (2006) to the creation of the New Jersey Arts Education Partnership (2007) to the launch of the Arts Ed Now Campaign (2016) and our most recent Summit (2017)… Carol was a constant source of wisdom, context and encouragement. She was a member of our steering committee before we even knew we HAD a steering committee! She was one of the kindest and most generous people I have ever met.

For her role in setting New Jersey on our arts education improvement pathway she was awarded the Governor’s Award in Arts Education for her Lifetime Contribution in 2015.

While she was small in physical stature she was a giant for arts education in our state. All of us at Arts Ed NJ are so grateful for all she has given to us as an organization and to the millions of students in our state whom over the past 30 years have seen the opportunities to participate in arts education diversify and grow.

Thank you, Carol. We will miss you!

To Carol’s family we offer our deepest of sympathies. We hope her long lasting legacy in arts education provides you with some comfort during this difficult time. 

Bob Morrison
Director
Obituary for Carol Forer Belt

Carol Forer Belt, 77, an arts advocate and leader in arts education, who fought her whole life to keep the arts alive in public schools, died at home on Monday, Jan. 29, 2018, surrounded by her loving family.

Carol started her career as an art teacher to local Trenton students when she was just a teen. She continued on to study at the Rhode Island School of Design and got her first teaching job as an art teacher in the Trenton school system. Carol loved dance and the visual arts, and studied both while at RISD. She believed that training in the arts was a crucial part of education and that, without art, we are denying future generations access to creative thinking skills.

Carol's career highlights included creating an arts curriculum for the Trenton schools, where she ran the art department for the district, to serving as a board member for the NJ State Council for the Arts and as a board member for Young Audiences of NJ. Carol was awarded the prestigious Kennedy Center Honor for her work in keeping the arts alive in schools.

Of her many achievements, Carol was most proud of her work in helping to establish and maintain the Trenton Educational Dance Institute, or TEDI, a program that supported dance and programming for thousands of Trenton public school students over the past 25 years.

Daughter of the late Dr. Robert and Mildred Forer, she is survived by her husband, Barry. Barry and Carol were married for 53 years and had a loving, joyous marriage. Carol is also survived by two sons, David and Jonny Belt, and their wives, Antonia Belt and Polly Smail. She is also survived by her loving grandchildren, Stella (17), Natascha (14), Grady (10) and Mazzy (8).

Funeral services are on Friday, Feb. 2, at 11 a.m. at the Princeton Abbey, 75 Mapleton Rd., Plainsboro, NJ. Private burial will follow at Ewing Cemetery, Ewing. A reception in Carol's honor for all funeral attendees will be held at The Boathouse at Mercer Lake from 1 to 4 p.m.

A celebration of Carol's life in the arts will be held in mid-May. The family respectfully requests memorial contributions to  bcfny.org/carol-belt-memorial-fund . The fund will donate to arts groups that support Carol's lifelong mission of arts education.

Funeral arrangements are by Orland's Ewing Memorial Chapel, 1534 Pennington Rd., Ewing Township, NJ. Orland's Ewing Memorial Chapel 1534 Pennington Road Ewing, NJ 08618 (609) 883-1400

Arts Ed NJ | Phone |  Email  |  Website