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  • Arts Marketing Coffee Chat Series

     Contains 6 Product(s)

    Grapeseed Media and the National Arts Marketing Project, a program of Americans for the Arts, are excited to bring you a FREE, bi-monthly series of informal discussions about arts marketing. These monthly "Coffee Chats" for Marketing Directors are your opportunity to hear from arts and culture leaders who are marketing the arts in transformative and extraordinary ways to help better inform your practice.

    *Please note: Registration for this series has reached capacity. For questions, please contact ArtsU at artsu@artsusa.org.*

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    About the Arts Marketing Coffee Chat Series

    Grapeseed Media and the National Arts Marketing Project, a program of Americans for the Arts, are excited to bring you a FREE, bi-monthly series of informal discussions about arts marketing. These bi-monthly "Coffee Chats" for Marketing Directors are your opportunity to hear from arts and culture leaders who are marketing the arts in transformative and extraordinary ways to help better inform your practice.


    Please note, this series is best suited for:

    • Marketing Directors
    • Chief Marketing Officers
    • Vice Presidents of Marketing



    Coffee Chat Schedule

    2021 Arts Marketing Trends to Watch

    January 26, 2021 at 3:00 PM EST


    Reevaluating & Redefining Success

    March 23, 2021 at 3:00 PM EST


    Embedding Equity in Your Marketing Strategy

    May 25, 2021 at 3:00 PM EST


    Maintaining & Cultivating New Audiences

    July 27, 2021 at 3:00 PM EST


    Research & Data: What Do You Need?

    September 28, 2021 at 3:00 PM EST


    Save the Date - will confirm topic at a later date

    November 23, 2021 at 3:00 PM EST

    Thank you to Grapeseed Media for their support of this series.

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  • 2021 Member Briefings

     Contains 4 Product(s)

    Member Briefings are our monthly opportunity to talk to you about what’s happening now! These calls will take place once a quarter, so mark your calendars to stay up-to-date on what’s happening at Americans for the Arts and across the sector. These calls are for you, so let us know if there’s a topic you’d like to know more about by contacting membership at membership@artsusa.org.

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    2021 Member Briefings

    Member Briefings are our opportunity to talk to you about what’s happening now! These calls will take place once a quarter, so mark your calendars to stay up-to-date on what’s happening at Americans for the Arts and across the sector. These calls are for you, so let us know if there’s a topic you’d like to know more about by contacting membership at membership@artsusa.org.

    Topics will be announced approximately two weeks prior to the scheduled briefing.

    We firmly believe that our #AFTAmember network is one of our strongest resources, so after our update, we’ll open the floor up to your questions, comments, recommendations, and lessons learned – we hope you’ll take advantage of each other’s expertise!

    March 2021

    Topic: First Look At the 2021 National Arts Action Summit

    Date: March 30, 2021

    May 2021

    Topic: Details coming soon!

    Date: May 25, 2021

    September 2021

    Topic: Reopening in the Arts during COVID-19

    Date: September 21, 2021

    December 2021

    Topic: 2021 Looking Back and Looking Forward

    Date: December 14, 2021

  • How an Artist-Driven Art Project Turned into a Community Embraced Cultural Asset

     Contains 2 Component(s) Includes a Live Web Event on 05/20/2021 at 3:00 PM (EDT)

    Artists drive change and have a unique ability to create the amazing out of what seems like nothing. In this webinar we will hear from artist Heather Theresa Clark on how she conceived, developed and ultimately created “Sky Stage” an open-air public artwork that both provides space for community performances and gathering and commentary on the environment. Clark started with a vision to create an artwork out of a building in downtown Fredrick, Maryland. As she strived to make her concept a reality, she built relationships with private landowners, government officials and even a historic planning commission to repurpose what was a burned out pre-revolutionary building shell into “Sky Stage”. Through her presentation, attendees will learn how she built relationships with decision makers and the community at large, what it took to fundraise for the project and engage the local community.

    imageAbout this Webinar

    May 20th at 3:00 PM ET

    Artists drive change and have a unique ability to create the amazing out of what seems like nothing. In this webinar we will hear from artist Heather Theresa Clark on how she conceived, developed and ultimately created “Sky Stage” an open-air public artwork that both provides space for community performances and gathering and commentary on the environment. Clark started with a vision to create an artwork out of a building in downtown Fredrick, Maryland. As she strived to make her concept a reality, she built relationships with private landowners, government officials and even a historic planning commission to repurpose what was a burned out pre-revolutionary building shell into “Sky Stage”. Through her presentation, attendees will learn how she built relationships with decision makers and the community at large, what it took to fundraise for the project and engage the local community.

    In this webinar, attendees will:

    • Hear how an artists built community support for the redesign of an empty building
    • Learn how to build relationships and trust for the development of a public artwork and cultural assets
    • Understand the various elements in developing, fundraising and building a unique community arts space

    Heather Theresa Clark

    Artist

    Heather Theresa Clark utilizes art, architecture and public interventions to catalyze built environments that power themselves, cleanse themselves, transform waste, provide wildlife habitat, produce food, and enhance the lives of people. Clark comes from a background immersed in art, making, and managing large-scale projects that benefit people and the environment.  She interweaves her passion for art, building science, making, ecology, social justice, green development and planning to create projects that challenge present reality and attempt to make life more fulfilling. She has transformed a burned building shell into an open-air theater with a living sculpture; co-created the Busycle, a 15 person-pedal powered bus; and shown her artwork internationally.   Clark has been a Hamiltonian Fellow in Washington DC; the 2017 artist-in-residence at the Woods Hole Research Center, a leading climate change think tank; and the 2016 recipient of the Virginia Commission for the Arts Sculpture Fellowship Award.  She holds a Master of Science from Massachusetts Institute of Technology, School of Architecture and Planning, and a Bachelor of Science from Cornell University, summa cum laude, in Environmental Science and Community Planning, a self-designed major.

  • How to Partner with Your Local Chamber of Commerce from The pARTnership Movement - Part 1

     Contains 2 Product(s)

    Just as local arts agencies act as voices and conveners for their arts and culture communities, so do local chambers of commerce for their business communities. This three-part curriculum will guide local arts leaders on how to build strong and lasting partnerships with their local chambers of commerce to achieve shared community and economic development goals. The series and accompanying toolkits will focus attention on how local arts leaders can build business-to-business (B2B) relationships, shift thinking and actions to one of a creative business that positions one’s assets differently, and positions their local arts agency as a driving force for equitable community and economic development alongside their private sector partners.

    About the How to Partner with Your Chamber of Commerce Series

    Just as local arts agencies act as voices and conveners for their arts and culture communities, so do local chambers of commerce for their business communities. This three-part curriculum will guide local arts leaders on how to build strong and lasting partnerships with their local chambers of commerce to achieve shared community and economic development goals. The series and accompanying toolkits will focus attention on how local arts leaders can build business-to-business (B2B) relationships, shift thinking and actions to one of a creative business that positions one’s assets differently, and position their local arts agency as a driving force for equitable community and economic development alongside their private sector partners.

    This series aims to flip the conversation away from ‘business support of the arts’ to ‘how and why the arts are an essential part of business and community development strategies.’

    Arts leaders will gain the following competencies:

    • Basic understanding of the chamber of commerce landscape, their service organizations and networks, and their primary challenges and priorities. Leaders will be able to identify the various spaces businesses organize and congregate in their communities and who are the leaders in those spaces.
    • The ability to perform ongoing analysis and inventory of organizational needs and identify which business partners can provide those assets in an exchange that isn’t cash-based. Organizations will be able to identify the return on investment of their activities and apply them as a benefit in terms of solving business, civic, and social challenges.
    • Learn how to expand their networks, allowing for access to potential partnerships and circles of influence, providing opportunity for previously unrecognized potential.
    • Create visibility for their organizations through new partnerships and build trust among their community of fellow arts organizations. 
    • Provide tools to change the case for the value of what the arts organization does in a narrow sense to one of an essential community and economic development partner.  

    Register on this page for Part 1 of the series. Registration for Parts 2 & 3 will be published on separate pages.

    About Part 1: Local Arts Agencies & Chambers of Commerce - The Very Basics

    Part 1 of this series will establish a foundational knowledge of local chambers of commerce, the networks in which they operate and that serve them, how to navigate a traditional business environment, and basic activations a local arts agency can undertake to establish a partnership. Participants will hear from chamber and arts leaders and gain perspective on chamber priorities and challenges and learn to identify the various chamber and economic development entities in their communities. Participants are encouraged to use the toolkit as complimentary learning, and participate in a live discussion with presenters once completing the 3-part on-demand webinar series. 

    Included in this package:

    • The 3-part on-demand webinars will be available at the end of the month - registrants will be notified
    • The Live Conversation will take place on May 19, 2021, at 3:00 PM ET

    About Parts 2 & 3 (coming in late 2021 and 2022)

    Part 2: Connecting Social Impact to Arts and Chambers Partnerships

    In part 2, participants will take the foundational knowledge gained and basic activations from the first series and expand beyond their role as arts leaders into the role of community and economic development partner. Participants will learn about how to identify their own work and assets with their full community and creative ecosystem and begin to leverage new connections and relationships inside the chamber to address social impact and community issues. Participants will gain fluency in the Arts & Economic Prosperity studies, as well as learn how to use other creative economy research to make their case to their chamber and economic development counterparts. Participants are encouraged to use the toolkit as complimentary learning, and participate in a live discussion with presenters once completing the 3-part on-demand webinar series. Part 2 will become available in the fall of 2021.

    Part 3: Supporting and Advancing Inclusive Creative Economies with Your Chamber of Commerce

    Further building on parts 1 and 2 of the How to Partner with Your Chamber of Commerce Series, participants will consider what they can do in their communities alongside their chambers after building trust and mutual respect. How can local arts leaders navigate policy, politics, resource distribution, access to capital and economic development opportunities as equal players with their chamber partners? This module will also discuss centering equity and equitable economic development, and solidarity economy principals into the chamber space. Participants are encouraged to use the toolkit as complimentary learning, and participate in a live discussion with presenters once completing the 3-part on-demand webinar series. Part 3 will become available in late spring 2022.

  • Local Arts Agencies & Chambers of Commerce - The Very Basics Live Discussion

     Contains 1 Component(s) Includes a Live Web Event on 05/19/2021 at 3:00 PM (EDT)

    Interested in learning the basics about local chambers of commerce, their priorities and challenges, and some simple steps a local arts leader can take to establish a partnership with them? Participate in this 1-hour live conversation to learn about the broad chamber landscape and what initial activations you can do to begin a relationship with your chamber. This live session is designed to complement the How to Partner with Your Chamber of Commerce Series 101 Module which includes 3 on-demand webinars. We recommend you review the first three sessions and download the digital toolkit prior to participating in the live session, though the discussion is open and available to all.

    imageAbout this Webinar

    May 19, 2021 @ 3:00 PM ET

    Interested in learning the basics about local chambers of commerce, their priorities and challenges, and some simple steps a local arts leader can take to establish a partnership with them? Participate in this 1-hour, free, live conversation to learn about the broad chamber landscape and what initial activations you can do to begin a relationship with your chamber. This live session is designed to complement the How to Partner with Your Chamber of Commerce Series - Part 1 which includes 3 on-demand webinars. We recommend you review the first three sessions and download the digital toolkit prior to participating in the live session, though the discussion is open and available to all. 

  • Marketing Your Virtual Venue Now and Into the Future

     Contains 2 Component(s) Includes a Live Web Event on 05/18/2021 at 3:00 PM (EDT)

    Organizations of all genres and sizes have recently innovated to bring their work to the digital space, but how will these new offerings factor into your marketing strategies as you plan for re-opening? In this session, we’ll explore case studies of digital programming marketing successes from the last year, the impact they can have on audiences now and in the future, and how some organizations are thinking about the role of digital programming in a new, hybrid world.

    imageAbout this Webinar

    May 18 at 3:00 PM ET

    Organizations of all genres and sizes have recently innovated to bring their work to the digital space, but how will these new offerings factor into your marketing strategies as you plan for re-opening? In this session, we’ll explore case studies of digital programming marketing successes from the last year, the impact they can have on audiences now and in the future, and how some organizations are thinking about the role of digital programming in a new, hybrid world.

    In this webinar, attendees will:

    • Learn about case studies of digital programming marketing successes from the last year
    • Explore the impact that digital programming can have on audiences now and in the future
    • Understand how some organizations are thinking about the role of digital programming in a new, hybrid world

    Americans for the Arts is providing the arts and culture field with this and other COVID-19 webinars and resources at no charge to you. Please consider supporting our ability to deliver this important work with a donation by clicking HERE. 

    We also encourage you to become a member with us for access to even more webinars and other resources, please visit www.americansforthearts.org/membership for more information.

    Jess Igro

    Consultant

    Capacity Interactive

    Jess Isgro is a Consultant at Capacity Interactive, where she works with a variety of arts and cultural organizations on digital marketing strategy and implementation. She has presented at industry conferences and professional development events to help organizations hone their social content creation skills. Prior to being at Capacity Interactive, she spent time at organizations including Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts, Jazz at Lincoln Center, and 21C Media Group. She earned her Master of Arts in Arts Administration from Columbia University and her Bachelor of Music in Music Education from Bucknell University.

  • Creating Technological Access to Public Art Collections During the COVID-19 Pandemic

     Contains 2 Component(s) Includes a Live Web Event on 05/06/2021 at 3:00 PM (EDT)

    As the COVID-19 pandemic crashed into society, many local arts agencies and municipalities looked for ways to continue to engage their audiences through public art. This movement towards access has been building over the 21st century, and the quick evolution to more technology to address access issues was pushed by social distancing and public health requirements. Local arts agencies and public art programs across the country quickly turned to their public art collections to develop socially distant activities to both provide engagement opportunities for their communities and promote public health and safety regulations. The use of technology, such as mapping tools, QR codes and web-based exhibitions came online to help give newly quarantined residents access to these collections in ways that were new and needed. This webinar will dive into ways to leverage different technologies to increase access to your public art collection for during the ongoing pandemic and beyond.

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    About this Webinar 

    May 6 at 3:00 PM ET

    As the COVID-19 pandemic crashed into society, many local arts agencies and municipalities looked for ways to continue to engage their audiences through public art. This movement towards access has been building over the 21st century, and the quick evolution to more technology to address access issues was pushed by social distancing and public health requirements. Local arts agencies and public art programs across the country quickly turned to their public art collections to develop socially distant activities to both provide engagement opportunities for their communities and promote public health and safety regulations. The use of technology, such as mapping tools, QR codes and web-based exhibitions came online to help give newly quarantined residents access to these collections in ways that were new and needed. This webinar will dive into ways to leverage different technologies to increase access to your public art collection for during the ongoing pandemic and beyond.

    During this webinar, participants will:

    • Understand different technology-based methods for connecting audiences with public art
    • Learn how to use mapping tools, QR codes, and online exhibitions to provide broader access to public art collections
    • Gain knowledge of which technology-based access tools will best suit their needs

    ArtsU Support Available

    We are pleased to be able to offer registration support for those to attend this activity, click here to learn more and sign up to receive support!

    Elysian McNiff Koglmeier

    Head of Growth

    Artwork Archive

    Elysian McNiff Koglmeier is Head of Growth for Artwork Archive, an online art inventory management system for artists, collectors and organizations. She leads partnerships, communications and writes content for the company's blog—http://www.artworkarchive.com/blog.  

    Growing up with a father as an art therapist and a mother who dedicated her career to art education, Elysian has always been passionate about the creative process and the importance of empowering artists and cultural institutions. She has pursued this passion both in the public and private sector. She started her career in museums (Middlebury College Museum of Art and the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston), ran New England Foundation for the Arts' public art program, served as curator for Brown University and RISD, and contributed to publications such as Art Business News and Public Art Review. A move out west brought her to Craftsy (now Bluprint) in Denver where she produced online art classes and managed partnerships for a startup that created online educational opportunities for enthusiastic makers. 

    She received her BA in History from Middlebury College and her MA in Public Humanities from Brown University. 

  • Using Creative Placemaking to Lay the Groundwork for Lasting Community Change

     Contains 2 Component(s) Recorded On: 04/29/2021

    Since 2011, the National Endowment for the Arts has supported over 600 creative placemaking projects across the country through the Our Town grant program. In these projects, local governments and cultural organizations partner to find new ways that arts, culture, and design can help drive local change, with an aim to ultimately sustain the integration of arts, culture, and design into local strategies for strengthening communities. How do project leaders think about sustaining and scaling project success at the outset? And how do they know they’re succeeding? This panel will feature the perspectives of two unique local creative placemaking projects, in a discussion about how creative placemaking work can help establish new and lasting ways of working toward community goals, with arts and culture in the mix.

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    About this Webinar

    April 29th at 3:00 PM ET

    Since 2011, the National Endowment for the Arts has supported over 600 creative placemaking projects across the country through the Our Town grant program. In these projects, local governments and cultural organizations partner to find new ways that arts, culture, and design can help drive local change, with an aim to ultimately sustain the integration of arts, culture, and design into local strategies for strengthening communities. How do project leaders think about sustaining and scaling project success at the outset? And how do they know they’re succeeding? This panel will feature the perspectives of two unique local creative placemaking projects, in a discussion about how creative placemaking work can help establish new and lasting ways of working toward community goals, with arts and culture in the mix.

    In this webinar, attendees will:

    • Hear how the National Endowment for the Arts Our Town program has provided support for creative placemaking initiatives and tracked change in communities across the country;
    • Learn how two different communities utilized creative placemaking practices to establish new and lasting ways to address community goals; Understand through case studies how to leverage arts and culture in your communities to address community goals.

    Katherine Bray-Simons

    Our Town Specialist

    National Endowment for the Arts

    Katherine Bray-Simons is a grants specialist at the National Endowment for the Arts, where she manages Our Town, the agency’s creative placemaking portfolio. Katherine also helps to manage the Arts Endowment’s Creative Placemaking Technical Assistance Program, and contributed to a program evaluation of the Our Town portfolio and strategy. Katherine holds master’s degrees in Urban Planning and Public Art Curatorial Practice from the University of Southern California.

    Crystal Johnson

    City Manager

    City of Granite Falls

    I started with the City of Granite Falls in 2016. Prior to this, I was the City Manager for the City of Dawson MN for almost four years. I have a BA in Public Administration/Political Science from Southwest State University and a Master’s in Public Administration from Hamline University.  

    Jennifer Hughes

    Director, Design and Creative Placemaking

    National Endowment for the Arts

    Jen Hughes was appointed director of Design and Creative Placemaking for the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) in April 2018, having served as acting director since June 2017. In this position, she oversees grant portfolios that support the design and creative placemaking fields, as well as leadership initiatives that include the Mayors’ Institute on City Design and the Citizens’ Institute on Rural Design.

    Since 2011, Hughes has fulfilled multiple roles as design specialist and community solutions specialist at the NEA, playing a significant role in shaping the agency’s creative placemaking and social impact design investments. At the NEA, she has managed federal, philanthropic and local relationships to strategically integrate arts, culture, and design into comprehensive community development plans. Via collaborations with the NEA Office of Research, she has helped to drive an evaluation agenda to assess the impacts of arts and culture on American communities. She has been the arts and cultural liaison for notable federal initiatives such as White House Council for Strong Cities Strong Communities, Promise Zones, and Rebuild by Design competition. Hughes has presented on more than 40 public panels on the topics of design and creative placemaking, and was invited to represent the United States at the Edinburgh Festivals International Delegate Programme.

    Lizbeth Rivera-Estrada

    Comadre

    Parque Padrinos

    Lizbeth Rivera-Estrada is an undocumented, first-generation, low-income student at Wenatchee Valley College a fellow with the Alliance for a Just Society, and one of the founders and Madrinas of Parque Padrinos, a park stewardship group in Wenatchee, Washington. They were born in Nayarit, Mexico, and immigrated here as a child with their family. She has lived in North Central Washington since then and has been involved in her community as an advocate and organizer around issues such as immigration, education, and access to resources.

    Twitter: @Lzbtre

    Ashley Hanson

    Executive Director

    Department of Public Transformation

    Ashley is the founder of PlaceBase Productions, a theater company that creates original, site-specific musicals celebrating small town life and the founder of the Department of Public Transformation, an artist-led organization that collaborates with local leaders in rural areas to develop creative strategies for community connection and civic participation. She was recently named a 2018 Obama Foundation Fellow and a 2019 Bush Fellow for her work with rural communities. She believes deeply in the power of play and exclamation points!

  • Putting the Local Arts Agency Dashboard to Work for You

     Contains 2 Component(s) Recorded On: 04/21/2021

    As the national service organization for local arts agencies (LAAs), Americans for the Arts conducts annual surveys of the field and makes the data available via its searchable online Local Arts Agency Dashboard. Join this lively session to explore how to put the data to work for you in program development, driving advocacy, improving operations, and how to match it up with other arts data to message your arts story.

    imageAbout this Webinar

    As the national service organization for local arts agencies (LAAs), Americans for the Arts conducts annual surveys of the field and makes the data available via its searchable online Local Arts Agency Dashboard. Join this lively free session to explore how to put the data to work for you in program development, driving advocacy, improving operations, and how to match it up with other arts data to message your arts story.  

    Learning Objectives:

    • Attendees will learn about AFTA’s Local Arts Agency Dashboard and how to use it to answer questions, drive advocacy, and find information-driven solutions to problems.

    This project is supported in part by the National Endowment for the Arts.

    National Endowment for the Arts Logo

    Randy Cohen

    Vice President of Research

    Americans for the Arts

    Randy Cohen is Vice President of Research at Americans for the Arts—the national advocacy organization for the arts—where he has been empowering arts advocates since 1991. Randy stands out as a noted expert in the field of arts funding, research, and using the arts to address community development issues. He publishes Americans Speak Out About the Arts, the nation’s largest public opinion study about the arts, and produces the two premier economic studies of the arts—Arts & Economic Prosperity, the national economic impact study of nonprofit arts organizations and their audiences; and Creative Industries, a mapping study of the nation’s 675,000 arts businesses and their employees. His 10 Reasons to Support the Arts blog received the Gold Award from the Association of Media & Publishing—their top honor for best blog post of the year. Randy led the development of The National Arts Index, the annual measure of the health and vitality of arts in the U.S. and the National Arts Policy Roundtable, an annual convening of leaders who focus on the advancement of American culture—launched in partnership with Robert Redford and the Sundance Institute. In the late 1990’s, Randy collaborated with the President’s Committee on the Arts and the Humanities to create Coming Up Taller, the White House report on arts programs for youth-at-risk; and the U.S. Department of Justice to produce the YouthARTS Project, the first national study to statistically document the impact of arts programs on at-risk youth. A sought-after speaker, Randy has given speeches in all 50 states, and regularly appears in the news media—including the Wall Street Journal, The New York Times, and on C-SPAN, CNN, CNBC, and NPR.
     
    Randy has been a policy specialist for the National Endowment for the Arts, founded the San Diego Theatre for Young Audiences, and worked in medical research for Stanford University and Scripps Clinic and Research Foundation. His board work includes the League of Historic American Theaters. Randy is a past Chairman of the Takoma Park Arts & Humanities Commission, during which time the Commission completed a cultural plan, established the city’s Poet Laureate and public art programs, and led the development of a million-dollar conversion of the city council chambers into a performing arts space.

    Twitter: @artsinfoguy

    Ruby Lopez Harper

    Vice President, Equity and Local Arts Engagement

    Americans for the Arts

    Mexican, Mother, Wife, Dancer, Photographer, Poet and Social Justice Warrior.

    Ruby is the Vice President, Equity and Local Arts Engagement for Americans for the Arts. Her portfolio includes external equity strategies and field education, leadership development, local arts advancement, and cohort building for the local arts agency field, arts and culture administrators, and arts marketers. She is the chief architect of the National Arts Marketing Project Conference. She was selected as a 2019 Arizona State University Practices for Change Fellow. She was recognized as an 2019 Inspirational Woman (Arts Advocate) by “And I Thought” Women in Literature. She is a steering committee member for the National Coalition on Arts Preparedness and Emergency Response, serves as Chair of the Gard Foundation, serves on the board for the Arts and Humanities Council of Montgomery County (Grants Committee/Advocacy Committee) and serves on the WETA Community Advisory Council.

    Ruby’s work has focused on equitable access, grantmaking, supporting individual artists, community development, economic development, cultural tourism, marketing and public art. She draws on a varied background that includes corporate affairs, community relations, volunteerism, employee engagement, marketing and communications, and business administration. She served on the Emerging Leaders Council for Americans for the Arts, was the primary contact for the Arts and Economic Impact Study for Central Ohio and recently served as a mentor with Arts Administrators of Color DMV. She is a 2017 National Association of Latino Arts and Cultures Advocacy Leadership Institute Fellow, Class of 2017 American Express Leadership Academy Alum and Class of 2010 Next Generation of Leaders Fellowship program. 

    Isaac Fitzsimmons

    Research & Evaluation Manager

    Americans for the Arts

    Eager to lend his skills to advance the arts, Isaac has held multiple positions since arriving at Americans for the Arts in 2016, including Research Associate, Membership Data Associate, Data Analytics & Insights Coordinator, and most recently, Research & Evaluation Manager.
    A lifetime dabbler in multiple art forms, Isaac majored in psychology by day and wrote and performed sketch comedy by night at the College of Wooster in Ohio. While completing his M.Ed. in Educational Psychology at the University of Washington he helped administer a grant from NIH centered on training teachers to use neuroscience principles in their classrooms.


    For fun he enjoys supporting his soccer team, Manchester City, and butchering songs on the banjo, piano, and ukulele. He’s also a writer of young adult fiction. His debut novel comes out summer 2021.

    Suzan Jenkins

    Chief Executive Officer

    Arts & Humanities Council of Montgomery County

    Suzan E. Jenkins is a leader in the non-profit arts and culture sector having served in executive positions at the Rhythm and Blues Foundation, the Smithsonian Institution and the Recording Industry Association of America.

    A Peabody Award winning producer of the radio series Let the Good Times Roll for Public Radio International, Jenkins has been recognized for her leadership and entrepreneurial endeavors, including by the Gazette of Politics and Business, Women Business Leaders of Maryland, Jazz Alliance International, the Mid-Atlantic Jazz Festival and Glen Echo Park Partnership for Arts and Culture. As co-founder of the Nonprofit Energy Alliance, Jenkins is the recipient of Washingtonian Magazine’s Green Giant Award. 

    Jenkins serves on the Boards of Maryland Citizens for the Arts and Nonprofit Montgomery; as a mentor for Women of Color in the Arts; on the Montgomery County MD Remembrance and Reconciliation Commission; on the Community Advisory Council of WETA and on the American University Arts Management Advisory Council. Jenkins has been a fellow of National Arts Strategies: Chief Executive Program and a former Board member of DataArts, previously known as the Cultural Data Project. Jenkins is an Executive Coach and holds an Honorary Degree in Public Service from Montgomery College, MD; a BS in Psychology and Management, and an MBA from the University of Maryland.

  • Exploring Inclusive Creative Economy Definitions & Concepts Part 2

     Contains 2 Component(s) Recorded On: 04/20/2021

    This session is the second of a two-part webinar to explore foundational concepts and definitions related to what an ‘inclusive creative economy’ means when it comes to talking about economy systems. This program will primarily focus on the term “Solidarity Economy,” and its linkages to other movements towards a more just and inclusive economy, such as “New Economy,” “Just Transition,” “Restorative Economics,” and “Regenerative Economy.” We’ll discuss why these terms and systems are relevant to local arts leaders, offer examples of how they come to life in the work of developing inclusive creative economies, and provide space for discussion and questions.

    imageAbout this Webinar

    This session is the second of a two-part webinar to explore foundational concepts and definitions related to what an ‘inclusive creative economy’ means when it comes to talking about economy systems. This program will primarily focus on the term “Solidarity Economy,” and its linkages to other movements towards a more just and inclusive economy, such as “New Economy,” “Just Transition,” “Restorative Economics,” and “Regenerative Economy.” We’ll discuss why these terms and systems are relevant to local arts leaders, offer examples of how they come to life in the work of developing inclusive creative economies, and provide space for discussion and questions.

    In this session, attendees will:

    • Explore concepts and terms related to an inclusive creative economy and what those terms mean in different contexts.
    • Hear some examples of projects that have brought the terms to life.
    • Discuss ideas for incorporating or building on the terms in their own communities, and what barriers might exist. 

    To read more about the full scope of this initiative read a recent blog Introducing Americans for the Arts’ Inclusive Creative Economy Plan 

    ABOUT THIS TWO-PART WEBINAR

    Understanding and creating shared language is critical if we are to do our work thoughtfully and with intention. Talking about the “creative economy” can mean many things to people. As Americans for the Arts launches a multi-year effort to support the continued development of local creative economies, we begin with the basics of exploring the language we use and how it can translate across communities. These two-part webinars will delve into foundational concepts and definitions related to what an ‘inclusive creative economy’ means when it comes to talking about individuals, institutions, and economic systems. These programs will focus on a few terms, offer examples of how they can be applied, how other organizations and practitioners may use different language in different contexts, and provide space for discussion and questions. In this two-part webinar, practitioners will gain knowledge of equity-based terms and concepts for the purpose of working as informed community partners in the development of their local inclusive creative economy. 

    Register for Part 1 Here

    Natalia Linares

    Communications Organizer

    New Economy Coalition

    Nati grew up on the island of Shaolin, also known as Staten Island, New York City — close to both the world’s largest garbage dump and the oldest continuously inhabited free Black community in the United States. She’s the child of Cuban and Colombian immigrants who landed in Queens in the late 1960s, benefited from low-cost public college and raised her with a love of learning, exploration and music. As a mami, she strives to raise a son who can resist the patriarchy to become a full human being and embrace life’s contradictions. She comes to the solidarity economy movement after a decade witnessing inequities in the music and media industry while working with diasporadical and misrepresented artists. Nati tells the stories of people resisting Capitalism and building new systems, especially those creating a culture of revolution.

    Caroline Woolard

    Artist

    Caroline Woolard is an artist who, in making her art, becomes an economic critic, social justice facilitator, media maker, and sculptor. Since the financial crisis of 2007-8, Woolard has catalyzed barter communities, minted local currencies, founded an arts-policy think tank, and created sculptural interventions in office spaces. Woolard has inspired a generation of artists who wish to create self-organized, collaborative, online platforms alongside sculptural objects and installations. Her work has been commissioned by and exhibited in major national and international museums including MoMA, the Whitney Museum, and Creative Time. Woolard’s work has been featured twice on New York Close Up (2014, 2016), a digital film series produced by Art21 and broadcast on PBS. 

    She was the 2018–20 inaugural Walentas Fellow at Moore College of Art and Design and the inaugural 2019–20 Artist in Residence for INDEX at the Rose Museum, and a 2020-2021 Fellow at the Center for Cultural Innovation. Caroline Woolard is Assistant Professor at the University of Hartford, teaching in BFA and in the Nomad/9 Interdisciplinary MFA program. Woolard is the co-author of three books: Making and Being (Pioneer Works, 2019), a book for educators about interdisciplinary collaboration, co-authored with Susan Jahoda; Art, Engagement, Economy (onomatopee, 2020) a book about managing socially-engaged and public art projects; and TRADE SCHOOL: 2009-2019, a book about peer learning that Woolard catalyzed in thirty cities internationally over a decade.