Grantmakers in the Arts

by Steve

Writer Eboni Senai Hawkins posts on ARTSblog about the current work of Marc Bamuthi Smith and Theaster Gates:

I am stunned at the synergy in practices between Bamuthi (artist/educator and director of performing arts at Yerba Buena Center for the Arts) and Theaster (artist/urban planner and director of arts and public life at the University of Chicago). For both Bamuthi and Theaster, the “relationship economy” is intrinsic to their work. As I become immersed in Emerging Leaders Network – Chicago (ELN) and the city as a whole, I’ve observed three areas highlighted by rbGb, activated in ELN and others, and rich with opportunities for greater impact in the arts.
by Steve

A ten-year study of arts education in public schools was released on April 2 from the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES). Arts Education in Public Elementary and Secondary Schools: 1999-2000 and 2009-10 presents selected findings from a congressionally mandated study with data collected through seven Fast Response Survey System surveys during the 2009-10 school year. Comparisons with data from the 1999–2000 FRSS arts education study are included where applicable. Here are some responses to the study from the Arts Ed community

by Steve in Arts Education

The report Arts Education in Public Elementary and Secondary Schools: 1999-2000 and 2009-10 was released Monday, April 2 from the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES). The report presents selected findings from a congressionally mandated study on arts education in public K–12 schools. The data were collected through seven Fast Response Survey System surveys during the 2009-10 school year.

by Janet

There comes a point when our professional lives are informed not just by statistics, consultants or wise mentors but also by plain common sense based on personal knowledge and experience. The survey released April 2 by the Department of Education has my common sense antenna about ready to explode. Just one example: 94% of all American elementary schools offer music programs. Really? What does that mean?

by Steve

The National Endowment for the Arts announces a new literature review, Audience Impact Study Literature Review. This literature review is one of the NEA's latest efforts to conduct and commission research that examines evidence of the value and impactof the arts in other domains of American life, such as education, health and well-being, community livability, and economic prosperity.

by Steve

From Alice Korngold at Fast Company:

The Nonprofit Finance Fund (NFF) 2012 State of the Sector Survey fourth annual survey of nonprofits nationwide was released on Monday, showing responses from 4,607 nonprofits. Nonprofits have been reporting a steady rise in demand for services over the course of the survey’s four years, with 85% reporting an increase in 2011, compared to 67% of nonprofits in 2009. Financially, however, the picture continues to decline. Only 43% of nonprofits have more than three months of cash reserves, and only 56% broke even at year end.
by Steve

From the Culture Monster blog at the Los Aneles Times:

Google Art Project, which launched last year with virtual tours and digitized artworks from 17 museums, has added 134 new museums to its site, including four from California.

Initially, no museums from the state were included in the project; now the Getty Museum, the L.A. County Museum of Art, the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art, and the De Young Museum in San Francisco are participating.

by Steve

Barry Hessenius has advice for using Kickstarter:

Kickstarter is enormously appealing if you want to raise money for a single project and do it relatively quickly. Yet, just having a good idea and / or a worthy cause isn't necessarily enough to succeed. Like any appeal for funding, you can increase your odds of success by listening to the sound advice of those who have successfully used the platform.

Read the full post.