Gov. Andrew Cuomo (D-NY)

2017 Honoree - Governors Arts Leadership Award

Biography

First elected in 2010, one of Governor Cuomo’s first actions was to establish 10 Regional Economic Development Councils (REDC) to develop long-term strategic plans for economic growth for their regions. The Councils are public-private partnerships made up of local experts and stakeholders from business, academia, local government, and non-governmental organizations. As part of his commitment to the creative economy, Governor Cuomo has allocated $5 million of the total REDC funds to support arts and cultural projects each year. Further, in FY2016, Governor Cuomo approved a $5 million increase in the local assistance budget of the New York State Council on the Arts, the primary state agency that provides direct grants to arts organizations, bringing their total budget to $45,174,000.

In education, Governor Cuomo has directed the New York State Board of Regents to create a Regent’s level path for students exploring their creativity while seeking an alternative path to receiving their regent's level diploma, typically sought out by college bound students. To date, there has not been a Regents level test for the arts, only English, history, math and science.

Governor Cuomo has worked to promote New York’s cultural heritage through the Woman’s Suffrage Centennial Conference and the upcoming Erie Canal Centennial celebration. Through the governor’s work in rebuilding the New York’s economy after the great recession, he has paid special attention to the arts and culture as being part of the rebuilding process which has in turn benefited the arts, culture, and heritage industries and communities through more robust attendance and donations.

On January 1, 2017 Governor Cuomo opened the Second Avenue Subway line and unveiled the art and architectural details for three new stations that stand in stark contrast to more traditional subway stations.  The art installation cost $4.5 million, a fraction of the overall $4.45 billion for the entire project.