|
|
If you have any events to be posted, please contact Lizzie Dorman at[email protected].
|
|
|
|
State and Local News
|
|
§ In the District of Columbia, Mayor Muriel Bowser announced on August 24 the District's inaugural 202Creates, an initiative beginning in September to highlight the creative economy across Washington, DC. 202Creates will showcase the artists, makers, and entrepreneurs who contribute to the District's thriving creative industries." In her press release, Mayor Bowser stated, "Every corner of our city hosts a diversity of creative industries that employ District residents and improve our quality of life. These are the people that day in and day out contribute to the heartbeat of our creative economy and help to define who we are as a city."
The D.C. Commission on Arts and Humanities, the D.C. Office of Cable Television, Film, and Music and Entertainment are spearheading 202Creates. Events celebrating the District's creative economy will take place in all eight wards with opportunities for government officials and staff to meet with creatives. The Creative Economy Career Access Program, "an on-the-job training program for District residents seeking a sustainable careers in the creative economy," will also be formally launched during the initiative. 202Creates has not been determined as an official annual event yet but has the potential to be based on this year's performance.
§ Controversy boiled up on August 18 when a Cook County hearing officer announced that several, small music venues in Chicago owed six years of back taxes to the county because DJ sets, rock, rap, and country music did not constitute as "fine art" under the county's code and therefore were not exempt from a 3 percent county amusement tax on ticket and cover charges from shows of those genres. Under the current county code, "venues with a capacity of 750 or fewer are exempt from a 3 percent tax on cover and ticket charges so long as the admission fees are for 'live theatrical, live musical or other live cultural performances'." Live musical and cultural performances are defined as: "any of the disciplines which are commonly regarded as part of the fine arts, such as live theater, music, opera, drama, comedy, ballet, modern or traditional dance, and book or poetry readings."
One venue will be charged $200,000 in back taxes, and its law representation commented that the county was targeting venues that booked DJs in particular. Back in 2006, Chicago's Department of Revenue ruled that DJs should be classified as "live cultural performances"—as long as the sets added to or modified prerecorded material—and would be exempt from any amusement taxes. Critics saw the county's ruling as overstepping the city's previous ordinance ruling.
In response to the public outcry, County Commissioner John Fritchey announced on on August 30 that he will file an amendment to the county's amusement tax ordinance to explicitly exempt DJs and will closely mirror Chicago's ordinance. Commissioner Fritchey plans to introduce his amendment at the next county board meeting onSeptember 14. In addition, the Cook County's chief financial officer (CFO) stated that the government agency has never defined what art or music is and never collected taxes from venues on the basis of what the genres are of booked performances. The CFO also said they did not refute the hearing officer's original statement because the county government does not want to influence with court proceedings. Stay tuned for future SAANBox updates.
§ On August 24, the City of Oakland announced the appointment Roberto Bedoya as the city's first Cultural Affairs Manager. Oakland Mayor Libby Schaaf commented, "To have someone who recognizes that art is the most powerful force for holding hard conversations for envisioning the change that we want, because change is inevitable in cities."
Roberto will oversee Oakland's Cultural Affairs Unit—located in the City's Department of Economic and Workforce Development—which contains the city's public art program and cultural funding program. Previously, Roberto was the executive director for nine years at the Tucson Pima Arts Council and served on Americans for the Arts' United States Urban Arts Federation.
|
| |
|
Bulletin Board
|
|
§ SAVE THE DATE: ARTS IN EDUCATION WEEK - SEPTEMBER 11-17, 2016
Designated by Congress in 2010, House Resolution 275 designates the week beginning with the second Sunday in September as National Arts in Education Week. During this week, the field of arts education joins together in communities across the country to tell the story of the impact of the transformative power of the arts in education. We hope that you can participate:
1. Celebrate. Host celebrations across the country. Whether big or small, an existing event, or a new one. Download and use the shared logo and be sure to register your event on ArtsMeet, a national arts event calendar.
2. Advocate. Work with your elected officials and decision makers to share the value of the arts in education. Whether a mayor, principal, or U.S. Congressman, check outsample resolutions, videos, and the Arts Education Navigator – an online tool with six action steps to crafting a personal advocacy plan.
3. Participate. Share your story in the social media campaign, #BecauseOfArtsEd to bring national visibility to the issue of arts education. See below for more information. Participate in #ArtsEdChat each night at 8pm EST. Also, be sure to attend and invite friends to the Facebook Event.
Download the Participant Info Sheet or Five Ways to Partner packet for more information.
§ Did you know that Americans for the Arts offers regional workshop experiences that are customizable?
Americans for the Arts knows that every arts and culture organization and arts agency is doing more with less. Professional development and organizational capacity building may not always be a priority and costs can be a factor. Americans for the Arts hopes that through its Regional Workshop program, staff can come to you to assist you and your community on both fronts.
Workshops are available in a number of areas including, Public Art, Leadership Development, Organizational Capacity and our most popular, Arts Marketing.
Examples of topics and interest areas are:
- Training artists to work in public art
- Emotional Intelligence and Leadership Effectiveness
- Leveraging local assets
- Audience development
- Public art contracts and legal issues
- Social Media
- Planning for public art in rural communities
- Email marketing
- Design & Strategic Thinking for Arts Leaders
- Building a Diverse Board
- Developing Programs to Reach New Audiences
- Measuring the impact of your community investments
- Cultural Tourism and Destination Marketing
Don't see a topic? No problem, Americans for the Arts can build a custom experience for you. All Americans for the Arts members will receive 10% off their first Regional Workshop.
Contact Ruby Lopez Harper for more information ([email protected]; 202.371.2830, x2079).
§ Register for FUELING CHANGE #2016 - 16th Annual National Arts Marketing Project (NAMP) Conference in Austin, Texas from November 11-14, 2016
Across the nation, arts organizations and the communities they serve are in a constant state of evolution. As arts marketers, how do we successfully maintain organizational relevance while building sustainability in our rapidly changing world? How can we meet change with a responsive, creative, and flexible approach? How can we capitalize on change to fuel inventive and unconventional thinking, forward-thinking solutions, and a willingness to experiment?
With continuous shifting trends in the landscape of arts marketing and audience engagement, arts organizations must go beyond "embracing" change. Instead, we need to desire change, seek it out, work for it, and invest in it; we need to Fuel the Change.
Exciting results await for arts organizations that fuel change within their organizations and communities. Join 650+ arts marketers in Austin this November to find out where the change is heading and learn the strategies and tactics for adapting to meet the demand.
§ Are you looking for more opportunities for your staff to connect with peers and learn more about trends and challenges?
Look no further than Americans for the Arts' newly launched County Arts Network and well-established Local Arts Network. Each network has a dedicated Listserv where arts and culture professionals working in the field can connect with peers and share best practices or what's happening in their communities or constituent communities. County Coordinators and Community Development Coordinators can sign up for the Local Arts Network Newsletter to access noteworthy local and county news.
Members can manage subscriptions from their accounts or you can contact Ruby Lopez Harper ([email protected]), Director of Local Arts Services for more information.
|
| |
| |
|
Tech Talk
|
|
ArtsU Learning Opportunities
§ The on-demand recording of Massachusetts Senate President Stan Rosenberg webinar, "How to Talk to Elected Officials" is now available on ArtsU. The copy of Sen. Rosenberg's slide deck can be found here.
§ BCA 10 Businesses in Action 2016
Wednesday, September 7 at 3:00 pm ET
Each year the BCA 10 honors ten businesses that have been exceptional partners with the arts. These companies set the standard of excellence and serve as role models for other businesses to follow. Hear directly from 2016 honorees–Dogfish Head Brewery, Austin Energy, and Johnson & Johnson–about why they partner with the arts and learn how to create successful partnerships with the businesses in your community.
Join Americans for the Arts on Wednesday, September 7 at 3:00 pm Eastern and learn how businesses are partnering with arts programs to fuel community development and determine the best tools, talking points, and approaches for starting conversations with businesses in your community. Click here to register.
§ Virtual Conversation: Cultural Tourism - Funding, Measurements and Why
Thursday, September 8 at 3:00 pm ET
Cultural Tourism is an effective strategy for communities to strengthen their local economy and a part of making their city a cultural destination.
Building on the conversation at the Americans for the Arts Annual Convention in Boston, join us for an informative and lively discussion around the impact of cultural tourism and how to evaluate efforts. Jonathon Glus, President and CEO of Houston Arts Alliance and Sheri Chaney Jones, President and Founder of Measurement Resources Company, will share their insight and experience and answer your questions about funding and evaluating cultural tourism programs.
Speakers: Jonathon Glus, President and CEO, Houston Arts Alliance and Sheri Chaney Jones, President & Founder, Measurement Resources Company
Moderator: Ruby Lopez Harper, Director of Local Arts Services, Americans for the Arts
|
| |
| |
|
Spotlight: California Alliance for Arts Education's Student Voices
|
|
The SAANBox is proud to featureSAAN member California Alliance for Arts Education's program, "Student Voices" in this issue's Spotlight.
Each year, the California Alliance for Arts Education invites students to take part in a video advocacy campaign that offers a real-world opportunity to author content, communicate creatively and practice civic engagement. California's Local Control Funding Formula (LCFF) guarantees students a voice in planning and budgeting for their school district. Through the Alliance's Student Voices Campaign, middle and high school students capture their vision for their school in 2-minute videos and share them with their local school board.
Last year with support from the California Arts Council, the Alliance created a Teacher's Guide, so that the campaign can be used as project-based learning for grades 7-12 in arts and non-arts classrooms. They also launched the Student Leadership Lab to identify, document and share examples of effective student leadership training and student-led advocacy.
This year was a high water mark for the Campaign, with students acting as social media ambassadors, advocacy workshop leaders, and impacting their district's annual planning and budgeting process. Students in Delano successfully lobbied their school to expand its arts program and are now serving on the hiring committee for new arts teachers. San Jose students educated their community about issues facing transgender youth and secured two gender neutral bathrooms for their high school.
To watch student videos and learn more about the campaign visithttp://studentvoicescampaign.org/ or contact Sibyl O'Malley who oversees the program for the Alliance.
Photo credit: Chris Duffey
|
| |
| |
|
SAANBox Note
|
|
Due to upcoming work and personal travel of staff, the SAANBox will be on a brief hiatus and will return on September 30, 2016.
|
| |
| |
|
