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If you have any events to be posted, please contact Lizzie Dorman at[email protected].
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State and Local News
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Federal
The U.S. Department of Education (DOE)'s deadline for public comments to its proposed regulations for the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA) on the implementation stage of state plans, state report cards, and state accountability systems passed on August 1. As a result, the DOE received more than 21,000 comments to its regulations proposal.
Americans for the Arts joined with 51 other national and state arts and arts education organizations to submit joint comments to weigh in on the DOE's proposed ESSA regulations, including the complete omission of the arts in the department's designation of "well-rounded" subjects of learning. This conflicts with the law, which specifically included the arts within the definition of well-rounded education. The DOE will now review the public comments and work to finalize the regulations.
Since the 2016-2017 school year is a transition period, arts education advocates are working with their state education leaders to make sure that the arts are a part of their state's planning process. Once state policy is set, local advocacy will be needed to advocate for arts education access and opportunities at the school district and school levels.
For more information, take a look at Americans for the Arts' digital hub for ESSA resources.
State
Good news for North Carolina arts supporters! The North Carolina Arts Council recently announced that all 100 counties in the state will receive state funding for arts programs. Signed into law on July 14, the fiscal year 2016-2017 state budget will increase the funding to the arts council's Grassroots Arts Program by an additional $500,000. North Carolina Governor Pat McCrory stated, "This funding will further support the arts, which are a catalyst for economic development, tourism and overall quality of life in North Carolina. The work of local arts councils helps make North Carolina global destination where people want to live, work and visit."
Local
§ Boston Mayor Martin J. Walsh announced on August 4 the launch of The Opportunity Fund—a new grant program to support artists in "activities that help them share their work with the public or teach others, continue their professional development, and hone their skills." The pilot program was initially proposed when the Boston Creates Cultural plan was released on June 17. Mayor Walsh commented, "When we launched Boston's cultural plan, we talked about finding ways to enable artists to create and showcase their best and most innovative work. There is a tremendous amount of creativity in Boston and the Opportunity Fund is one way we can help them find the resources they need to thrive."
Individual artists living or working in Boston can apply for grants up to $1,000 on a monthly basis on the first of every month; $10,000 will be made available to grantees each month. In addition, teachers can apply to help fund cultural field trips. Officials also noted that as the Opportunity Fund program is underway the guidelines will likely evolve.
§ Great news for local public art in California! The Palo Alto and Santa Ana City Councils approved both cities' first public arts master plans on August 15 and August 16, respectively.
With more than 400 citizens' input, Palo Alto's plan "aims to increase awareness of the [public] art program and artists, increase accessibility to the arts, and explore partnerships and funding for program development" and calls for the creation of a mural policy, a gift policy, and updating the deaccession policy.
Compiled by consulting firm Cultural Planning Group, Santa Ana's new 10-year master plan outlines 8 goals that include: creating a "robust infrastructure for the arts, giving artists the support they need to sustain their work, and taking cultural programming into the community, engaging all the city's residents." In addition, the plan proposes an Arts Future Leadership Task Force, affordable artist housing for artists, and more citywide festivals
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ARTicle
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The Kentucky Arts Council, in support by a grant of $51,000 from the U.S. Department of Agriculture, is launching a pilot program to integrate arts into farmers' markets. Focusing on Ohio and Owsley counties, the one-year project's goals are "to provide new markets for artists to sell their work; increase sales for all vendors at the two farmers markets; introduce new products that will draw more customers; build relationships in the two counties between residents, local farmers and artists; provide opportunities for residents to learn about the working lives of farmers and artists; develop appreciation for small local businesses; and increase local and regional tourism. At the end of the project, the arts council will produce a guide for Kentucky communities to implement similar programs at their local farmers markets." The program will also provide training sessions in Owsley and Ohio counties to promote cooperation between the art and agriculture communities and may include business skills development skills.
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Bulletin Board
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§ Register Today: the 2016 Fall SAAN meeting will be in Grand Rapids, MI onSeptember 15-17, 2016.
The SAAN meeting will be collocated with the State Policy Pilot Program and theNational Assembly of State Arts Agencies (NASAA)'s Assembly 2016. Also of note is that the SAAN meeting will take place during ArtPrize's Preview Week. Please note that if you are a member of the State Policy Pilot Program, your meeting will extend toSunday, September 18.
Please click here to register. The meeting's registration deadline will be on Monday, August 22.
For Americans for the Arts hotel room block information, please click here. Please contact Lizzie Dorman ([email protected]) for any questions.
§ 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).
§ Check out Americans for the Arts' Public Opinion Poll!New research provides an in-depth look at the perceptions and attitudes about the arts in the United States. This Americans for the Arts and Ipsos Public Affairs survey of more than 3,000 American adults over the age of 18 in December 2015 provides current insight on topics including support for arts education and government arts funding, personal engagement in the arts, the personal benefits and well-being that come from engaging in the arts, and if/how those benefits extend more broadly to the community.
Explore the information to better understand how your neighbors and community members feels about the arts. Use what you learn from the public opinion poll for advocacy and storytelling, and share these discoveries through your websites, publications, and social media.
§ Registration for the National Arts Marketing Project Conference is open! Join us in Austin, TX for "Fueling Change" to find out where the change is heading and learn the strategies and tactics for adapting to meet the demand.
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Tech Talk
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ArtsU Learning Opportunities
§ Arts Advocacy Best Practices with Stan Rosenberg: How to Talk to Elected Officials
Wednesday, August 24 at 3:00 pm ET
Effective arts advocacy requires building strong relationships with decision makers who can champion the arts in your community.
Join Massachusetts Senate President Stan Rosenberg as he guides arts advocates and supporters through his best practices and recommendations on how to effectively engage with elected officials and their staff.
In this webinar, Arts Advocates and supporters will learn the best language and approaches from Massachusetts Senate President Stan Rosenberg that they can apply in engaging and building relationships with their own elected officials and staff.#talkingwithelecteds.
§ 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.
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Call for Spotlight Submissions
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The SAANBox invites its readers to submit recommendations for future SAANBox Spotlight profiles!
We invite you to recommend an individual or program that does noteworthy work in arts and/or arts education advocacy at the state or local level to be highlighted in the SAANBox.
Please send all submissions to Lizzie Dorman at [email protected]. With your recommendations, please include a contact name and email address of the nominated individual and/or program for follow-up.
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