Blog Posts for Arts Education

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.


Michael del Vecchio

Innovative Practice and New Models for Arts Nonprofits & the Web (from Arts Watch)

Posted by Michael del Vecchio, May 06, 2009 1 comment


Michael del Vecchio

Personally speaking, since beginning my work with Americans for the Arts in 2003 as a then-project-associate-now-project-manager for Animating Democracy, I have maintained that the internet, for all its power and glory, is largely an untapped resource for non-profit organizations. It cannot be denied that organizations everywhere have stepped up to host websites, start blogs, launch listservs and more (in fact, having recently signed on to Twitter myself, I’ve been thrilled to see that the names of some of my colleagues have their own accounts they post to on behalf of their organizations). Still, there is endless untapped potential for engaging communities and getting the message out. So, when a colleague passed on the Museums and the Web 2009 “Best of the Web” awards, I was tickled pink. The awarded sites represent organizations trying new and different programs and partnerships which explore the (known) boundaries of the web, and offer great perspective for anyone looking to ‘boldly go where no site has gone before’.

First, a bit of background, Museums and the Web 2009 “Best of the Web” Awards are hosted by Archives and Museum Informatics, a Canada-based partnership of David Bearman and Jennifer Trant, “respected researchers and theorists in museum informatics specifically, and cultural informatics more broadly”. In addition to the “Best of the Web” awards, Archives and Museum Informatics hosts conferences, consulting, publishing, and training for cultural heritage professionals. The 2009 awards were recently presented at their conference in Indianapolis, April 15-18, and they are designed to ‘recognize achievement in heritage website design’, and selected by a distinguished committee of museum professionals.

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Diane B. Ruggiero

Overrated Career?

Posted by Diane B. Ruggiero, May 04, 2009 4 comments


Diane B. Ruggiero

I recently received my latest issue of US News & World Report.  The focus of the May issue is “Jobs for the Future” and in the article “Choosing the Career Path Less Traveled: Many jobs look great on the big screen.  Here are some that pay off in real life” one of the top “Overrated Careers” is “nonprofit manager”.  Ouch.

Here’s what it says:

Many people want a career in which they can “make a difference.” For many, that means a career helping manage a nonprofit organization that works, for example, on environmental issues, children’s rights, or antipoverty campaigns.  But many of your supervisees end up being volunteers, who, on average, tend to be less competent and reliable than paid employees.  Also, much of the job often involves fundraising, which many people dislike.  Plus, you’re usually expected to be so dedicated to the cause that you’re willing to work long hours for little pay.  Despite all that, nonprofit management jobs that pay a good salary are difficult to find, especially now in our low economy – people donate less in tough times.

Other careers listed include: architect, professor, farmer, and police officer.  For the complete list, click here.  A slight irony – fundraiser was listed as one of the 30 best careers for 2009!

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