The greatest month of the year is upon us - National Arts & Humanities Month!
Another “Freedom Rock” was unveiled in Wapello County, Iowa, painted by muralist Ray "Bubba" Sorenson II in a partnership between the Ottumwa Area Arts Council and local Vietnam Veterans groups. The 11.5 ton boulder has been transformed into a Vietnam Veterans Memorial for the town of Ottumwa and will lead the way for a planned Freedom Trail, linking the town's veteran tributes to one another.
It's that time again: Americans for the Arts is seeking at least 200 partners to make this Arts and Economic Prosperity Study larger and more comprehensive than ever before--and we invite YOU to be a part of it!
Consumers spend nearly $150 billion annually on entertainment and the arts. How does this breakdown to spending on the arts in your individual community?
Since 1997, Americans for the Arts has partnered annually with The United States Conference of Mayors (USCM), the official nonpartisan organization of the 1,139 US cities with populations of 30,000 or more, to honor elected officials and artists for their outstanding public leadership in the advancement of the arts. Recipients were honored on Friday, Janurary 24 at The United States Conference of Mayors’ 82nd annual winter meeting in Washington, D.C.
WASHINGTON, D.C. —Americans for the Arts, the nation’s leading nonprofit organization for advancing the arts and arts education, in partnership with The United States Conference of Mayors (USCM) presented Dubuque Mayor Roy Buol with the 2014 Public Leadership in the Arts Award for Local Arts Leadership for cities with a population of less than100,000. The award was presented today at the USCM Winter meeting in Washington, DC.
With 2013 ending, we at Americans for the Arts find ourselves grateful for so many great arts achievements this year. There are so many partners doing amazing work in towns, cities, and states across the country--and in reflecting on this work, we wanted to especially thank the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) and its staff for serving as the national lynchpin for the whole US arts field.
Americans for the Arts, the nation’s leading nonprofit organization for advancing the arts and arts education, in conjunction with The United States Conference of Mayors, will present the 2013 National Award for Congressional Arts Leadership to Senator Tom Harkin (D-IA).
Americans for the Arts, the nation’s leading nonprofit organization for advancing the arts and arts education, today announced those companies selected by the Business Committee for the Arts (BCA), a division of Americans for the Arts, as The BCA 10: Best Businesses Partnering with the Arts in America for 2013. In addition, Michael B. McCallister, chairman of the Board of Humana Inc. (Louisville, KY) will receive the 2013 BCA Leadership Award, and Northwestern Mutual (Milwaukee, WI) will be inducted into the BCA Hall of Fame. The BCA 10 Awards, BCA Leadership Award and BCA Hall of Fame will be presented by Americans for the Arts on October 2, 2013, at a black-tie gala at the Central Park Boathouse in New York City.
The U.S. Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions (HELP) Committee began marking up a draft education reauthorization bill co-authored by HELP Committee Chairman Tom Harkin (D-IA) and Ranking Member Mike Enzi (R-WY).
Americans for the Arts, in conjunction with 87 national organizations, hosted the 2013 National Arts Advocacy Day. More than 500 arts advocates from across the country held meetings with congressional offices in support of the arts. Acclaimed musician and arts educator Yo-Yo Ma delivered the 26th Annual Nancy Hanks Lecture on Arts and Public Policy at the Kennedy Center. Senator Tom Harkin (D-IA) was given the 2013 Congressional Arts Leadership Award. See highlights from the events here.
Education leaders in Congress have begun another attempt to reauthorize the Elementary & Secondary Education Act, now years past its authorized timeframe. In the Senate, education committee chairman Tom Harkin (D-IA) and ranking member Lamar Alexander (R-TN) have both introduced separate pieces of legislation that pursue divergent solutions to approaching Title I funding for disadvantaged students, teacher evaluation, student assessment and
As a part of the College, Career, and Citizenship Readiness Coalition, Americans for the Arts has signed onto a letter to Senators Harkin (D-IA) and Alexander (R-TN) in support of the language in the Strengthening America’s Schools Act (S.1094), which supports a well-rounded education.
Mayor Roy Buol of Dubuque, Iowa, accepts his Public Leadership in the Arts, Local Arts Leadership award at the US Conference of Mayors Winter Meeting in on January 24, 2014.
Linda Langston, President of the National Association of Counties, speaks at the Congressional Arts Breakfast on Tuesday, March 25, 2014.
While we were in Des Moines, my colleague, Nora, and I were able to spend some time with Americans for the Arts Business Committee for the Arts (BCA) Executive Board member John Pappajohn and his wife Mary. Mr. Pappajohn wrote a terrific article about the value of arts and business partnerships in the Des Moines Register in advance of the Iowa Arts Advocacy Caucus held in the city in August.
Come celebrate the arts! The Northeast Iowa School of Music (NISOM) will host a free reception on Friday, October 16, 2015, to celebrate the arts in the Dubuque, Iowa and Tri-State area community. The public and other local arts and humanities organizations are invited to attend this free reception at Carnegie-Stout Public Library where complimentary refreshments will be served from 5:00 to 7:00PM. Enjoy the opportunity to mix and mingle, network and celebrate with Dubuque’s art leaders and patrons.
The Northeast Iowa School of Music will host a free reception to celebrate National Arts & Humanities Month. Complimentary refreshments will be served from 5:00 to 7:00PM. Mary Luehrsen, NAMM President, will give a keynote address at 6:00PM. Advance RSVPs are greatly appreciated but walk-ins will also be welcome.
Jennifer Kulik
Emily Saunders
Randy Cohen
There is an old quote attributed to John Montagu, 4th Earl of Sandwich:
Governor Tom Vilsack was first elected Iowa’s 39th governor in 1998. Through the governor’s leadership, the state launched the Vision Iowa Program, which has had a significant positive impact on 188 communities through investments in education, as well as cultural and recreational attractions. Vision Iowa has used $270 million in state funding to attract $2 billion in total investment, creating 14,000 jobs and attracting hundreds of thousands of tourists to the state.
Lt. Governor Reynolds understand the importance of the Arts and Culture. As an officer and past Chair of NLGA, she has worked to make sure the arts are always on their conference’s agendas in a prominant way. Further, she has been a staunch supporter of Americans for the Arts and the Iowa Arts Council. Last August she was on the host committee and offered the official welcome for the Iowa ArtsVote 2016 conference. We had over 200 caucus goers attend and the Lt. Governor spoke very strongly in support of an “arts president.”
"Mayor Buol is an elected official who understands the critical importance of arts, culture and creativity in creating vibrant communities and places," said Robert L. Lynch, President and CEO of Americans for the Arts. "Since 1995, when he began his public service as a city councilman, to 2005 when he was first elected mayor, he has made funding for the arts and culture, along with other arts friendly policy initiatives, a priority of his administration."
As either the ranking member or chairman of the Appropriations subcommittee that funds education for more than two decades, Senator Tom Harkin has championed the Arts In Education program, funded through the U.S. Department of Education budget. In addition, he has raised arts education directly with Secretary of Education Arne Duncan and his predecessors Margaret Spellings and Rod Paige during Appropriations and HELP Committee hearings.
