Thank you to the many people who have been blog contributors to, and readers of ArtsBlog over the years. ArtsBlog has long been a space where we uplifted stories from the field that demonstrated how the arts strengthen our communities socially, educationally, and economically; where trends and issues and controversies were called out; and advocacy tools were provided to help you make the case for more arts funding and favorable arts policies.

As part of Americans for the Arts’ recent Strategic Realignment Process, we were asked to evaluate our storytelling communications platforms and evolve the way we share content. As a result, we launched the Designing Our Destiny portal to explore new ways of telling stories and sharing information, one that is consistent with our longtime practice of, “No numbers without a story, and no stories without a number.”

As we put our energy into developing this platform and reevaluate our communications strategies, we have put ArtsBlog on hold. That is, you can read past blog posts, but we are not posting new ones. You can look to the Designing Our Destiny portal and our news items feed on the Americans for the Arts website for stories you would have seen in ArtsBlog in the past.

ArtsBlog will remain online through this year as we determine the best way to archive this valuable resource and the knowledge you’ve shared here.

As ever, we are grateful for your participation in ArtsBlog and thank you for your work in advancing the arts. It is important, and you are important for doing it.


Alie Wickham

Arts and Healthcare: Get the Discussion Started!

Posted by Alie Wickham, Apr 05, 2010 2 comments


Alie Wickham

Hello Everyone-

I have been waiting to make an "official" post until I could create a slightly organized pattern as to how these posts would go so that folks would know when to check if a new post has been published. I have decided, until the conversation gets going a bit more, I will publish one post about a specific portion of the green paper every other week, and a post about a general topic regarding the field in the weeks between. So, check the blog each Monday, and something new should be up. :)

Specific topic #1
Reading thru the green paper, I came across this sentence that I thought many of us could relate to:

"Changes in the American economic and healthcare systems, coupled with the growth of our aging populations, bring opportunities for expansion of the arts in healthcare into rural communities and the realms of public health, social services, and human services."

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Tommer Peterson

Bring on Adventure and Expertise

Posted by Tommer Peterson, Apr 05, 2010 1 comment


Tommer Peterson

How did I end up writing for this blog salon? Do my friends at Americans for the Arts know how old I am? I am going to hang up my GIA hat for a moment, and write from my perspective as a long-time advisor and current board president of the Washington Ensemble Theater in Seattle. I have been working with this group for roughly five years, and most of the artists involved are in their 20’s or early 30s.

What have I learned?  Folks are coming out of MA programs in acting, theater design, and directing graduate without receiving much training in basic business, finance, or management skills. But, on the other hand, they are absolutely fearless about jumping in and making up what is needed from scratch. This is both a blessing and a curse.  Along with administrative innovation comes glacial progress at basic management tasks, and a legion of artists becoming burnt out from endless tasks done inefficiently. If this company is representative of the field, there is a lot of time and energy wasted reinventing wheels. Multiply this by hundreds of comparable small theaters and you have colossal waste.

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Mr. Ian David Moss

This Is How You Do It: Leading By Changing Incentives

Posted by Mr. Ian David Moss, Apr 05, 2010 0 comments


Mr. Ian David Moss

In October 2009, I attended a panel put together by the Hewlett Foundation's Marc Vogl at the Grantmakers in the Arts Conference on new models and emerging leaders in the arts. Afterwards, Marc offered to send me, like everyone else who attended the panel, a copy of the Focus Group on Next Generation Leadership report by Barry Hessenius. The report is wonderful (disclosure: I participated in one of said focus groups during my internship at Hewlett in summer 2008), but since I had already read it, my attention was drawn instead to something else Marc included in the package: an excerpt from the most recent application for funding from the Hewlett Foundation that specifically asks grantseekers to address emerging leader issues.

For context, everyone should understand that Hewlett is a major funder of the performing arts in the San Francisco Bay Area. Nearly every player in the region either receives grants from Hewlett or aspires to. So the Performing Arts Program team's decision to put this in the application means that a lot of people will be filling it out. And just what questions will they be answering? Well, here's a sample:

Have you provided formal feedback about job performance to all of your employees in the last 12 months (for example, through performance evaluations, a discussion on meeting job expectations, etc.)?

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Mr. Michael W. Bigley

Take a Chance on Me

Posted by Mr. Michael W. Bigley, Apr 05, 2010 2 comments


Mr. Michael W. Bigley

Michael Bigley

We’ve all been through the process of job applications. Finding the job that feels just right and sending in that perfect resume and cover letter, hoping that the organization takes the chance. I was fortunate that, at 23 years old, someone took a leap of faith in hiring a very green arts education staffer and let me develop the program to become head of that department four years later. It’s the “breaking in” that is difficult, and equally as difficult is continuing to show your value within an organization.

Whether you are currently job searching or already working for a nonprofit , emerging professionals need to consider a couple of actions to position themselves for advancement:

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Letitia Fernandez Ivins

Feeling Out Fundraising

Posted by Letitia Fernandez Ivins, Apr 05, 2010 2 comments


Letitia Fernandez Ivins

Letitia F. Ivins

When the Emerging Arts Leaders/Los Angeles (EAL/LA) network submitted its initial annual plan and budget to the Irvine Foundation in the spring of 2009, the ask was a modest $8,000. The Irvine Foundation then queried: What we would do with $75,000 over three years? Say what?! With twinkling eyes and pants of excitement, we drafted our formal proposal around this funding amount. Honored by the request and smitten by the Foundation’s vision and progressive funding priority, the core group of EAL/LA members working on the proposal didn’t question the ramifications (mostly positive, some provocative) of envisioning our program around this new funding stream. This would be the first grant received by the network, so the first time this organic, budget-less network conceived a sustainable infrastructure.

While the other California Emerging Leader networks have officially received funding, EAL/LA awaits approval by a fiscal sponsor (Community Partners www.communitypartners.org – fingers crossed!) For Community Partners, a successful fiscal sponsor has a development plan. While it’s important for any nonprofit to strive for diverse funding, I wonder if EAL/LA’s investment in development efforts, will impede the members’ ability to execute the programs that are at the network’s core: professional development, social networking events and advocacy?

How do we chart a realistic growth pattern and ensure sustainability without straying from our critical programs for the sake of pursuing new funding?

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Joshua Russell

Emerging Leaders Are the Key to Attracting New Audiences

Posted by Joshua Russell, Apr 05, 2010 2 comments


Joshua Russell

Josh Russell

One of the most common challenges among arts and culture organizations that we work with in Silicon Valley is, "how can we reach out and engage younger audiences?"

It's a very important question and one that every organization should be considering. As we all know, audiences, arts leaders and donors are not getting younger. Recognizing the issue is the first step but the solution might literally be just a few steps from where you are reading this now.

I believe the biggest untapped market for engaging a younger audience is the younger, emerging leader that's working for your arts organization. How can somebody who is not in the age group of the audience you are trying to reach know what that audience cares about and how they make their entertainment decisions? You can't - and even if you've read studies and reports, they don't tell the whole story.

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