I spent the first part of last week in Wisconsin, promoting both their statewide economic impact results and several regions within.  It was an action-packed trip with great press from the communities about AEP3.

Sunday night I arrived in Hudson, WI, a beautiful river community on the Wisconsin/Minnesota border.  It's the kind of place that makes me want to stop traveling and stay.  The arts community came out in full force for three events on Monday, including a special preview session of the research, plus and advocacy briefing by Anne Katz of Arts Wisconsin and George Tzougros, director of the Wisconsin Arts Board.  Jill Shannon of the St. Croix Valley COMMUNITY Foundation did a spectacular job coordinating the event.  With 200+ attendees, 7 newspapers, and many state and local electeds from both WI and MN, it was a huge success!

Monday afternoon I drove across Wisconsin to Milwaukee.  We started the day on Tuesday with a great editorial board meeting at the Milwaukee Sentinel with Lt. Governor Barbara Lawton and George Tzougros.  The people of Wisconsin are fortunate to have a great arts champion in their Lt. Gov.  She really gets the value of the arts and its connection to the new economy.  The editorial board was followed by a presentation of the local data at the Marcus Center for the Performing Arts.  Then we raced across the state to Madison for another editorial board meeting and a presentation of the Dane County local findings at the Overture Center.  The day ended with Lt. Governor Lawton and I doing a "Live at 5" interview on WISC-TV, the local CBS affiliate. 

Phew! What a whirlwind trip.  Overall, it seems like there are lots of people talking about the study and the arts in Wisconsin.  It was great to see their excitement firsthand and help them share their good news about the arts statewide.  Next up: Columbia, SC, and California!