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As you may know from GIA’s previous webinar “New Horizons in Arts Education: The Student Support and Academic Enrichment program,” the Student Support and Academic Enrichment (SSAE) program, authorized under Title IV, Part-A of the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA) established flexible formula grants to support the following three areas of activities – well-rounded educational opportunities, which include the arts as defined by ESSA; safe and healthy students; and effective use of technology.

A consortium consisting of several GIA members including The National Endowment for the Arts and several private foundations have created a grant program to support economic revitalization through the arts.  ArtPlace America announced its first round of grants today. 

GIA received news that Wesley Montgomery, Chief Operating Officer at National Performance Network, died early Tuesday morning, May 24, in New Orleans.

A celebration of Wesley's life will take place at 1:00 PM on Saturday, May 28, 2011 at Ashé Cultural Arts Center, 1712 Oretha Castle Haley Boulevard in New Orleans. A donation has been made to establish an annual NPN Mentorship & Leadership award in Wesley Montgomery's name. Contributions can be made in support of this award, payable to the National Performance Network.

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(4-15-2011) Related to yesterday's post on the tax code overhaul is Liz Skinner's story in Investment News, in which she reports an uptick in charitable donations inspired by the December 2010 tax deal (extending the Bush-era tax cuts) and the potential limits (28% of the dollars donated) on charitable deductions under President Obama's proposed plan.

Read the article here.

(4-14-2011) President Obama's deficit reduction strategy includes a plan to convert mortgage interest and charitable contribution deductions into limited tax credits.

Richard Rubin, writing for Bloomberg does a thorough job of capturing the complexity of the tax debate here.

(4-13-2011) The William and Flora Hewlett Foundation has awarded $3.5 million to establish the California Education Policy Fund, an initiative created to support innovative organizations working to reform education policy throughout the state with an emphasis on underserved students, the Foundation announced today.

(4-13-2011) Jim Copenhaver, Senior Partner, JC Enterprises, will assume the role of Interim President/CEO for the Association of Performing Arts Presenters (APAP) effective July 1, 2011, if a permanent replacement has not yet been named. Jim will begin working with outgoing President/CEO Sandra Gibson and the staff to ensure a smooth transition. After June 30, Sandra will move into a new role as Special Executive through September to further assist with the transition.

(4-13-2011) The John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation, in partnership with Arts Alliance Illinois, the Goodman Theatre, the National Endowment for the Arts, and the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, invite you to The Arts and Culture in Action, a discussion about how the arts contribute to the development of a thriving region.

(4-13-2011) From AFTA Arts Action News:

The House Appropriations Committee publicly released the final budget agreement for FY 2011 negotiated by President Obama with House and Senate leaders, which includes $155 million in funding for the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA). This represents a cut of $12.5 million from the FY 2010 enacted level of $167.5 million, which is significantly better than the previous House-approved level of $124.4 million.