Ms. Rebecca Cruse

These 5 Tips Will Help You Become a Championed Arts Advocate

Posted by Ms. Rebecca Cruse, Dec 08, 2015 0 comments


Ms. Rebecca Cruse

In the arts, it seems as though we always have something on our advocacy schedule. We’re advocating for funding. We’re advocating for support. We’re advocating to be included in education and strategic plans. Sometimes we’re even just advocating to exist. And because of our interconnectedness, we’re seldom just advocating for our own cause. We have to advocate for each other, too. We have to advocate for the field as a whole. And we have to advocate at every level of the system. With all of this advocating, sometimes it can be difficult to get our other work done. Some lucky arts organizations have the fortune of a staff member whose sole job is to work on advocacy efforts. But this just isn’t feasible for many, especially in rural states like South Dakota where arts professionals are overworked and underpaid.

In addition to our own limitations, the folks we’re advocating to often are in similar boats. They usually are government officials who have tight budgets, hectic schedules, and harried staff members.

These factors make successful advocacy increasingly difficult. So here are some tried and true tips for effective and efficient advocacy.

1. Craft your message. In order to be effective advocates, we need to be able to tell our stories in multiple ways. The variance on the delivery of your message should be determined by the person or people you’re speaking with.

For instance, if I’m advocating for arts education inclusion, my message is slightly different for teachers, administrators, lawmakers, or parents. There are obviously many points that are included in each conversation, but with teachers I want to be certain to point out how the arts can significantly improve student engagement, making it easier to manage a classroom. I’m also going to show them how arts integration makes their jobs easier by meeting multiple content standards through one lesson. And I’ll, of course, point them to the abundant teaching resources and ready-made arts integration lesson plans available. When I’m talking to lawmakers, my main points shift to the way arts education affects student achievement when it comes to meeting statewide and national benchmarks. With policy-makers and funders, convincing stats are useful, but it’s also important to include the human element in those conversations by telling real stories showing real impact.

Keeping this in mind, the most important part of crafting your message is making sure you have the time to tell it. Prioritize your points. Have a good idea of how much time you’ll have to talk. And remember that you want to leave time for formalities, introductions, and questions/dialogue after your story. 

2. Be specific. This goes along with telling real stories showing real impact. There’s no need for most advocates to memorize a bunch of numbers or put together charts and graphs. We do that at the state and national levels, and there are numerous local organizations and arts councils that put out a numbers report annually. Using a couple of those numbers in your conversation and leaving the resource is perfectly appropriate, but the most effective arts advocacy is when they hear how people or communities they care about have benefitted from the arts. Just look for the right story for your audience. When I’m speaking with lawmakers in South Dakota, I like to find a story from each district to share. Whether it’s that of a community organization, a school, or a particular program, meaningful engagement makes a stronger impact than general statistics.

In addition to finding the specifics of the story, be specific and direct about what you want. Saying, “We want you to support the arts,” doesn’t give anyone enough information. How do they support your efforts? Do you need a vote from them? Do you need financial support? How much? When do you need it? If you want support for an effort, tell your listeners exactly how they can be supportive. And if they’re unlikely to offer support in the way you want, ask them anyway. Make them say no – but consider offering an alternative way for them to show support if it’s feasible.

3. Work as a team. We all have our own priorities to include in our advocacy efforts. You might specifically need to raise money. Maybe you want to change law or policy. Or maybe you need a partner for something you’d like to do. Whatever the case, one thing you can count on is there are others out there with similar needs, and you might be able to leverage your similarities into stronger positioning by combining efforts.

We had a proposal in front of our state school board in South Dakota a few years ago, which would have eliminated graduation requirements in various elective subjects and put them all in the same pool. None of the people working in respective areas – fine arts, physical education, family and consumer sciences, foreign languages, and industrial arts – wanted the graduation requirement for their subject eliminated. Obviously, we all had to advocate for the educational importance of our own areas. But what we also did was band together to oppose the change entirely.

We do this at the national level, as well. During Arts Advocacy Day, Americans for the Arts helps us all craft and deliver talking points that are useful for all. If you’re looking for teammates, your state arts agency, statewide advocacy organization and the national-level partners are great places to find support.

Unified voices make a difference. So whether you’re cooperating with other arts organizations, state and national partners, or an entirely separate entity that has a different mission all together, find your common ground and get on the same page to help get what you all need.

4. Follow up. Your work is never done. Consistent follow-up is probably the most crucial element of fruitful advocacy. This makes sense when you think about it. After all, we seldom have to advocate for things that are already a priority (though it never hurts), so regular contact once you’ve opened the advocacy gates is necessary.

Follow-up can and should be done in a variety of ways. Send email updates on progress or status changes, and remind the person you’re advocating to why you think they need the information you’re sharing. If an important event, vote, or decision is coming up, pick up the phone and call the person to remind them of what it is you need. Involve others. Ask board members, students, parents, or others served to also write or call and ask for support. Make sure they know what to ask for and have the key advocacy points outlined for them. And don’t forget to share your successes! Both before and after you’ve accomplished what you needed through your advocacy efforts, share the good news.

5. Go and do. And don’t stop. Arts advocacy is daunting, and it can be really frustrating when it feels as though the people you’re talking to aren’t listening. But don’t give up. People who are making decisions about arts funding and arts policy need to hear your voice. Every time. Every issue.

I recently had an advocacy meeting with someone who’s been in a high leadership position in our state for more than a decade. I’ve met with this person three times before, and before me others did – largely to no avail. But this time, for some reason, my voice was heard. Not only did it result in a supportive vote for our agency, but now we’re engaged in a different kind of professional relationship where my emails get read and my phone calls get answered. Giving up would have been easy and justifiable, but I’m so glad I didn’t.

If you can’t meet with them, then call them. If you can’t call them, then write them. But get your message to them one way or another, and keep doing it whether you get an answer or not. Someday it might make a difference.

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