GIA Blog

Cleveland School District Seeking to Fill Two Arts Positions to Support District-Wide Arts Plan
Posted on August 28, 2014 by Steve

Cleveland arts funders and the Cleveland Metropolitan School District have partnered to develop a district-wide arts plan, which includes the immediate hiring of two new district positions supporting arts education K-12.

One position, with the title of Plan Manager, will be internally focused, responsible for crafting and implementing a comprehensive district-wide arts education policy. The other, Partnership Manager, will focus externally on finding the best ways to work with Cleveland’s arts community to benefit our children. The CMSD will also create a working group of representatives from both the district and the arts community to assure success of this work.

Member Spotlight on Anonymous Was A Woman
Posted on August 28, 2014 by SuJ'n

During the month of September, GIA's photo banner features artists and projects supported by Anonymous Was a Woman. 

The Anonymous Was A Woman (AWAW) Award celebrates its 20th anniversary in 2015. Created to spotlight women artists over 40, the Award recognizes women of demonstrated talent and accomplishment but who are still under the radar. AWAW winners have significantly contributed to their field, while continuing to grow and pursue their work. To date 191 women have won the unrestricted $25,000 Award. Art in America dubbed it “The Demure Award.”

Jim McDonald Named GIA Deputy Director, Director of Programs
Posted on August 25, 2014 by Steve

Grantmakers in the Arts welcomes Jim McDonald as its new deputy director/director of programs. McDonald will work with current GIA deputy director/director of programs, Tommer Peterson, beginning September 29, 2014, and will officially take over the position January 1, 2015. Peterson will retire at the end of 2014 after serving GIA in several capacities over the past fourteen years.

“Jim McDonald’s career represents the diverse nature of GIA’s membership serving arts organizations and individual artists with a proven commitment to our core values,” stated Janet Brown, President & CEO. “Trained as a visual artist, McDonald has worked for arts nonprofits as well as corporate, public, and private funders. As a funder, he developed portfolios intentionally serving small and mid-sized organizations, major institutions, artists, arts groups, and communities of color. We look forward to what he will bring to the GIA team.”

Why the Ice Bucket Challenge Is Not Good for Philanthropy
Posted on August 25, 2014 by Steve

From Jacqueline Herrera, co-founder, Kitechild:

Like any smart business, we don’t reach out to people for a one-time handout. We like to think that people want to have a lifelong relationship with the causes dear to their heart, and over time be able to see how their support has funded progress and changed others’ lives.

There are two ways in which the Ice Bucket Challenge is a brilliant campaign for ALS:

St. Paul Ballet Growing by Small Leaps
Posted on August 21, 2014 by Steve

By Maja Beckstrom at twincities.com:

The growth of St. Paul Ballet is a story of small leaps. A little more than a year ago, the company and school faced debt and considered cutting back on performances and even closing its doors. It reorganized as an artist-led organization, with dancers taking on administrative roles. Heading into the 2014-15 season, it looks like the dancers' dedication has paid off.
Sacramento Philharmonic, Opera Cancel Fall Season
Posted on August 21, 2014 by Steve

By Edward Ortiz, writing for the Sacramento Bee:

For the first time in its 17-year history, the Sacramento Philharmonic will not present any concerts during the fall season, and it remains unclear whether its musicians will return to the stage in the spring of 2015. The Sacramento Opera has also decided not to stage performances in the fall. The decision follows months of financial uncertainty for the Sacramento Region Performing Arts Alliance, the organization formed last year when the philharmonic merged with the Sacramento Opera.
Merging Art and Business in the College Curriculum
Posted on August 21, 2014 by Steve

John M. Eger, blogging on Huffington Post:

This week San Diego State University is launching a Music Entrepreneurship and Business Degree Program, which, according to the university, “is believed to be the first of its kind in the country.” Developed as a partnership between SDSU’s College of Professional Studies and Fine Arts and the College of Business Administration, the program embeds 15 units of entrepreneurship classes ranging from the Fundamentals of Entrepreneurship to Creativity and Innovation, Social Entrepreneurship and Entrepreneurial Finance, in addition to business course electives.
Arts Funding on November Ballot in L.A.
Posted on August 21, 2014 by Steve

From Mike Boehm at the Los Angeles Times:

Among the decisions voters will face on the Nov. 4 ballot (in L.A. County) is whether to absorb $23 in annual per-parcel property taxes over the next 30 years for improvements to parks and cultural facilities within them as well as recreational facilities, beaches and wildlife areas. If the required two-thirds supermajority says yes, the county would have $53 million each year to spend for all those purposes combined. In L.A. County, most of the key publicly owned or funded arts venues are in county, municipal or state parks, all of which would be eligible for the funding.
What Are Critics For?
Posted on August 21, 2014 by Steve

From Suzy Evans at Theatre Communications Group:

With the closing of the USC Annenberg/Getty Arts Journalism Program earlier this year, the O’Neill is now one of the only professional-development avenues for working critics. Some entities — like the Goodman Theatre, which has a young critics’ program for girls, and the Kennedy Center American College Theatre Festival, whose winners are given spots at the O’Neill — host education-based initiatives for aspiring journalists.
Philanthropy in a Time of Polarization
Posted on August 20, 2014 by Steve

From Heather Hurlburt, Mark Schmitt, and Steven Teles, writing for Philanthropy News Digest:

Institutional philanthropy, by law and by tradition, has had an indirect and often awkward connection to the policy process. For the most part, foundations don’t lobby directly for legislation, and they are prohibited from engaging in the kind of political activity — such as campaign spending — that gives other players leverage in policy making. Instead, leaders in philanthropy have pursued a vision of social change that rests on a set of long-held assumptions: that strong ideas and persuasive research, coupled with broad public support and validation by elites, will motivate elected officials; that policy proposals designed to reflect the ideological preferences of both major parties, or the poll-tested preferences of centrist voters, can provide a basis for insider bargaining; and that policy entrepreneurs who operate both inside and outside legislative bodies can act as advocates, sources of ideas and information, and mediators.