TAKE ACTION TODAY OR FIND OUT HOW
ARTS PROGRAMS IN OUR COMMUNITIES
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HELP KEEP SAFE .. ACTIVE .. HEALTHY .. VIABLE .. and FUN ALIVE!
Our Studio is working on an easier way for you to voice your opinion to government about keeping arts activities alive everywhere. Why do we care about arts programs? Read More About the Arts and Find Out.
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Build arts activities into communities- Why? Arts Activities Provides us and our children with the experience of making things - more than expression, the work of making things also helps us to better make communities. In America today, we need all the improvements we can get! So get busy and learn how to make your dream through the arts.
Keep the arts alive in our schools- There are more ways to learn than just reading and writing. When you learn through the arts and crafts, you learn more rudimentary ways of actualizing your total ability.
Build better afterschool programs with the arts- This one is easy. Our days are long the whole year. The minds of children are rapid. We need safe places for all of our children to discover their full potential.
Why is Drawing Important to Our Futures- This is not easily said and I’d consider writing a book about it some day perhaps. But for today, I’ll just say, if you can’t draw a path to walk on, how would you expect to make a path to get through life.
KEEPING FINE ARTS AND CRAFTS ALIVE -find out why! The arts and crafts have been fundimental throughout the earliest history of human kind. We built great cities of the world through the practice of fine arts and crafts. We built great companies through the learning in creating fine arts and crafts. In today’s America, we need to move towards rebuilding and remembering humanities foundations and build greater communities.
TAKING ACTION CAN MEAN GREAT THINGS FOR AN ENTIRE CITY: keep our young minds creative and engaged in activities worth living and our teenagers off the streets / and our feable older minds active and happy to live longer healthy and more wonderful lives………………………………. Dance / Tai-Chi / Drawing, Paint or Sculpt, through the Eyes of Historical Perspectives-Design Something Wonderful / Learn About the World through Theatre / Find Out How to Make Music / Write Your Book or Tell A Story… See How to Keep the Arts Alive and Growing in Your World and Get Involved- It’s Easy in Todays World .. Read-On…
MAY 20th 2010 AMERICANS FOR THE ARTS / TWO MINUTES TO TAKE EASY ACTION FOR ARTS PROGRAMS WILL MAKE A DIFFERENCE IN YOUR COMMUNITY-
http://www.artsusa.org/get_involved/advocate.asp
ALSO… NEA arts research web-cast
IMPORTANT GET INVOLVED NEWS -
GET STARTED NOW WITH A COMMUNITY WE CAN HAVE - SAFE / FUN / AND FINANCIALLY CREATIVE TODAY WITH THE ARTS … JUST a CLICK AWAY July 27, 2010 Dear TRACEE: 
Yesterday, the U.S. House of Representatives passed H.Con.Res. 275, legislation designating the second week of September as “Arts in Education Week.” Authored and introduced by California Representative Jackie Speier (D-CA), this resolution is the first Congressional expression of support celebrating all the disciplines comprising arts education. This is a very positive showing of support for arts education and comes at a key time when Congress is making plans to overhaul federal education policy. Take two minutes to send a message of support for arts education to your member of Congress! The resolution seeks to support the attributes of arts education that are recognized as instrumental to developing a well-rounded education such as creativity, imagination, and cross-cultural understanding. H.Con.Res. 275 also highlights the critical link between those skills and preparing our children for gaining a competitive edge in the global economy. This is an important message for policy makers to acknowledge as they prepare to reauthorize federal education policy. To send a message to your member of Congress in support for arts education, please visit our E-Advocacy Center. As a House resolution, the bill does not require signature by the President upon its passage. You can read the resolution here. We salute Rep. Speier and the more than 101 original cosponsors for their support of arts education and for this truly special recognition of the value of culture for our country’s students. Americans for the Arts was happy to help provide assistance to Rep. Speier in this endeavor.
Help us continue this important work by becoming an official member of the Arts Action Fund. If you are not already a member play your part by joining the Arts Action Fund today—it’s free and simple.
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February 2, 2010 Dear Tracee and Other Interested Parties: The Administration released yesterday the FY 2011 budget request to Congress which includes the nation’s cultural agencies and programs, including the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA), National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH), Institute for Museums and Library Services (IMLS), and the Department of Education’s Arts in Education program. Write your members of Congress and tell them to support funding for these cultural agencies. As Americans for the Arts President & CEO Robert Lynch noted in a press statement, “The Administration’s FY 2011 budget request of $161.3 million for the National Endowment for the Arts—while just a fraction of the $6.3 billion of direct expenditures for all arts nonprofits in the United States—is unfortunately a $6 million decrease from what Congress appropriated for FY 2010. Also, the consolidation of the Arts in Education (AIE) program within the Department of Education’s new ‘Effective Teaching and Learning for Well-Rounded Education’ category puts us at unease and could lead to a diminished focus on arts education.” On Arts Advocacy Day last year, artists Wynton Marsalis, Linda Ronstadt, and Josh Groban joined Americans for the Arts and more than 550 arts advocates from around the country to testify on Capitol Hill and to meet with congressional leaders to request $200 million for the NEA and $53 million for arts education. These requests are just some of the legislative priorities that the nonprofit arts community will be making again during Arts Advocacy Day 2010 on April 12-13, 2010. A breakdown of the president’s FY 2011 budget request is as follows: Federally Funded Arts ProgramFY 2010 Enacted
Appropriations
(in millions)FY 2011 President’s
Budget Request
(in millions)National Endowment for the Arts$167.5$161.3National Endowment for the Humanities$167.5$161.3Institute of Museum and Library Services$282.2*$265.5U.S. Dept. of Education’s Arts in Education$40$0**
* Includes $16.3 million in congressional earmarks.** The Arts in Education program has been consolidated with six non-arts programs. It is unclear in the president’s budget proposal at what level grants in arts education will be supported.
Next Steps
As you know, the president’s budget is the first step in the appropriations process. While it serves as an important framework, Congress has the power to set its own priorities and change these funding levels. That’s where you come in. Arts advocates can make their voices heard by writing their members of Congress, urging them to support funding for arts and culture through the NEA and to voice concern about the loss of focus for arts in education programs. We have provided you with customizable letters on both these issues, as well as several talking points to help you craft your message. We recommend you add your own thoughts and stories about why the arts are important to you and your community. Help us continue this important work by becoming an official member of the Arts Action Fund. If you are not already a member play your part by joining the Arts Action Fund today — it’s free and simple.
Click to remove your name from receiving e-mails regarding arts advocacy
1000 Vermont Avenue NW
6th Floor
Washington DC . 20005
T 202.371.2830
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www.AmericansForTheArts.org
www.ArtsActionFund.org
CALIFORNIA / TAKE ACTION / OR LOSE YOUR
GREAT PROGRAMS IN THE ARTS THAT CAN HELP ADULTS STAY ACTIVE & HELP CHILDREN
AND YOUTH TO DREAM and STAY OFF THE STREETS!: read this letter and find it easy to take action for your communities or communities that will some how affect america in ways that you can’t imagine! acting today and into the future of the United States of America is easier than you think- get started today and invest in America’s future everywhere! just click to get involved!
Opportunities
Events
Arts for LA is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit arts advocacy organization working to foster a healthy environment in which arts and culture may thrive and be accessible to all in Los Angeles.
Visit www.artsforla.org to learn more.
February 10, 2010
Greetings TRACEE:
Thanks to your efforts, the Campaign to retain the City of Los Angeles Department of Cultural Affairs’ TOT allocation was a success.
Over 5,000 letters were generated to City Council members from their stakeholders. An additional 100 advocates attended last Wednesday’s city council meeting, in which 30 impassioned speakers voiced the value of arts and culture to the city and the communities they serve.
The motion was put into file. We have been told that means it is a polite way of saying it will quietly go away. For how long is a question we are still trying to get answered. This great news is tempered by the fact that we have a long road ahead of us and the City is faced with very difficult decisions.
The positive outcome of our collective efforts affirms our belief that advocacy is a collaboration. Although the battle is far from over, over this past week we saw firsthand just how strong, when united, our voice can be.
We’ve created an “anatomy of a campaign” story on our site to help inform you how we, along with our partners, responded to the crisis. Please contribute to the story and share it far and wide. Let’s inspire and build more advocates for the arts in Los Angeles. It’s time to roll up our sleeves and get ready to face the next challenges head on!
This past week we saw firsthand just how strong, when united, our voice can be. Our victory is in mobilizing a groundswell of support to maintain DCA’s only dedicated revenue stream. We know that the DCA, like every other city department, is going to face mid-year cuts. Our goal is to ensure the cuts are proportional to other city departments.
While we are indeed celebrating a victory, our voice is still vital to maintaining support for arts countywide. Take two minutes to thank members of the City Council for listening to the public and maintaining the dedicated funding stream for the Department of Cultural Affairs. Then, show your support for elementary arts teachers and send your school board member a note urging them to maintain their commitment to arts education. You can find contact information for your School Board members on your district’s website. if you live or work in Culver City, click here to thank the School Board for maintaining the Arts Coordinator position. If you live or work in the LAUSD district, please take action on the current campaign to maintain elementary arts teacher positions.
Your continued participation in these efforts is crucial to ensuring that the City of Los Angeles maintains its commitment to arts and culture in this difficult financial time.
Onward!
Danielle Brazell
Executive Director
Update: Department of Cultural Affairs Proposed Mid-Year Cuts
Yesterday, the Arts, Parks and Aging Committee accepted DCA’s proposal to apply a 10% mid-year cut to 09 grants that have not been paid out.
The Department’s General Manger, Olga Garay, made the case that a 10% cut across the board cut was more equitable and cost effective than renegotiating each grant contract. The 10% mid-year cut will amount to approximately $200k in savings for the City. The Committee also gave DCA the authority to identify the additional $300k needed to fulfill the CAO’s recommendation that DCA implement a $500k cut. However, later that morning City Council removed the $300k requirement.
To learn more and read Olga Garay’s statement, please click here.
Culver City School Preserves Arts Coordinator Position
We learned earlier this week that the general funds allocation for the Culver City Unified School District Arts Consultant position was slated for elimination in the 2010-11 budget. After hearing testimony organized by the Culver City Arts Ed Advocacy Team at Tuesday’s board meeting, we are excited to announce that the CCUSD Board of Education unanimously voted to remove the position from the proposed expenditure reduction list.
If you live, work or go to school in Culver City, please click here to send a personalized thank-you note to the CCUSD Board of Education members.
Click here to learn more about the Board’s decision and the Culver City Arts Ed Advocacy Team.
LAUSD Advocacy Center: The Campaign Continues
We have nearly reached our goal of 700 letters sent to the LAUSD school board to speak in favor of maintaining elementary arts teacher positions. If you haven’t sent a letter and you live, work or attend school in LAUSD, please visit www.artsforla.org/groups/lausd.
Also, don’t miss Principal Stephanie Harris’ remarks on the importance of arts education, presented to the LAUSD School Board on January 19th and published as a blog on Arts for LA.
Click here to take action now.
Guest Blog: Will this “Reality Check” Bounce?
The second in a series of arts education guest blogs by Sandy Seufert, Manager of Teaching Artist Development at the Music Center.
Despite news of nascent economic recovery, teaching artists and other professionals in arts education might be wondering if and when the future will look brighter. Later this year? Next year? Before the world ends in 2012?
Invitation: CA Joint Committee on the Arts
On behalf of Senator Current Price, you are invited to a hearing of the Joint Committee on the Arts on “The Creative Economy as a Jobs Engine in California” on Friday, February 26th at 9:30am at the Museum of Design Art & Architecture Gallery (otherwise known as MODAA or the SPF:a Gallery), 8609 Washington Blvd. Culver City, CA 90232.
Click here to RSVP via EventBrite.
Click here to access a PDF with more information.
Update on Arts Education Advocacy Teams
One of Arts for LA’s programs this year, in partnership with Arts for All, has been piloting an advocacy training program in five Arts for All school districts: Burbank, Culver City, Paramount, Montebello, and Santa Monica-Malibu.
Over the last few weeks, school districts across the state have begun releasing their proposed budget cuts, and unfortunately but not surprisingly, the arts are in danger. The advocacy teams are moving fast to mobilize their communities to demonstrate their support for arts education, and to make the case that in our creative economy arts education is a way out of this fiscal crisis.
Read on for more details on what the teams are doing…
Arts for LA Welcomes Three New Board Members
We are proud to welcome Ayuko Babu, Tim Dang and Cynthia Harnish to the Arts for LA Board. For complete Board and staff bios, please visit artsforla.org/about/board_staff.
Ayuko Babu is the Executive Director/Co-Founder of the Pan African Film Festival. Mr. Babu is an international legal, cultural and political consultant specializing in African affairs. In addition to the Pan African Film Festival, Mr. Babu currently serves as a Director on the Board of the Palais de la Culture in Abidjan, Ivory Coast. Notably, he has worked as a consultant to Bishop H.H. Brookins, of the African Methodist Episcopal Church and Mr. Dick Griffey, President of the African Development Public Investment Corporation and SOLAR Records.
Tim Dang has been artistic director of East West Players since 1993 and affiliated with the organization since 1980 in various capacities. Under his leadership, East West Players moved from a 99-seat black box theater to the professional 240-seat mid-size David Henry Hwang Theater in 1998. East West Players hosted the first National Asian American Theatre Festival, The Next Big Bang, in 2006. The organization has garnered numerous awards for artistic achievement and community services raising its national profile and impacting the voice of the Asian American experience.
Cynthia Harnisch is the President and CEO of Inner-City Arts, a learning oasis in the heart of Skid Row where professional artists teach students in a real studio environment. Founded in 1989, Inner-City Arts works in partnership with the Los Angeles Unified School District to bring elementary and middle school students to the campus during the school day for instruction in the visual and performing arts. High school students participate in after-school and Saturday programs. Inner-City Arts serves over 8,000 of the city’s most at-risk students each year at no cost to the students. Prior to being with Inner-City Arts, Cynthia was vice president of the Autry National Center for 12 years.
Join Today: Become an Arts for LA Member
Arts for LA’s individual and organizational members are the key to the success of arts advocacy campaigns. Please consider becoming a member and investing in this important work. We serve the greater Los Angeles County region, providing information, technology and direct advocacy to support the arts and cultural sector. Join us!
Become an organizational member.
Our mission is to foster a healthy environment in which arts and culture may thrive and be accessible to all in Los Angeles. Individual membership is just $25; Organizational membership is on a sliding scale to accommodate organizations of all sizes and budgets.
Please consider becoming an Arts for LA member today! Visit www.artsforla.org/members to see the names and logos of all of our Organizational members.
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go to: americans for the arts / join the city development programs / visit www.traceeandcompany.com for more news and activism online
you don’t have to be an artist to understand how the arts can help
communities all over the world!
Sent by: New York Foundation for the Arts
Reply to the sender 
SAVE THE ARTS CAMAPAIGN UPDATE
We have written to you previously about the Governor’s plan to cut the New York State Council on the Arts (NYSCA) budget by 40% and we want to thank all of you who have written to and called your legislators. NYSCA is the glue which holds the state’s rich cultural community together and such a cut would be devastating. It would be devastating for NYFA and for museums, theatre and dance companies, film and literary festivals, after-school and education programs and other cultural initiatives and institutions throughout the state. The email below outlines a number of actions you can take not only as an artist, but as a taxpayer.
NYFA is here to help. It you can make it to our office at 20 Jay Street in DUMBO Brooklyn, we have postcards available and you can stop by, fill them out, and we will take care of the rest. Wherever you live, we can also help you find the information for your local officials, simply email your zip code to us at ssherman@nyfa.org and we will get you the information. Then you can just print and mail the postcards below.
We will be posting the Save the Arts logo on our Facebook page and urge you and your Facebook friends to do the same.
Hopefully, by working together, we can make out voices heard.
Thank you and thanks also to Judy Weiner and NYS Arts for providing the vital tools below.
Michael Royce
Executive Director
New York Foundation for the Arts
SAVE THE ARTS starts MAY 20 and continues until we have a state budget.
Here are examples of what YOU can do:
- Send the SAVE THE ARTS logo to your constituent organizations and artists so they can take action. Of course, take action yourself.
- Download and Print out the SAVE THE ARTS IN MY COMMUNITY postcard. Ask your constituents to do the same.
click image and use it on your website and social networking pages
Distribute the postcards at every performance, exhibition, class, reading, meeting, to your board and to your staff. Then mail the postcards to the appropriate legislators.
- Download and customize the press release so it describes what your organization will be doing to demonstrate the impact of the 40% cut.
- Post the SAVE THE ARTS logos to your facebook page.
- Facebook and Tweet the 40% cut message.
- Continue to send emails to your legislators and to the leadership in Albany, Assemblyman Silver and Senator Sampson.
We already have more than 16,000 emails in their inboxes. BUT we must keep up the pressure. So forward the email to everyone you know.
Our campaign strategies were developed in collaboration with your colleagues, NYS ARTS’ Regional Captain Network. The Regional Captain in your area will answer questions and help coordinate media coverage in your region. Here is the quick overview of the budget numbers: The Governor’s proposal slashes the NYSCA grants budget from $41.6 million to $25.2 million, making it the largest state agency cut. He also proposes a 12% cut to state operations, reducing it from $5.29 million to $4.84 million.
We are told that there is little or no movement on the budget in Albany, although we are already almost two months past the budget deadline…..and the state continues to operate on weekly continuing resolutions. If the legislature does not approve those weekly resolutions, then the state government grinds to a halt. Chaos reigns.
Judy
Judith K. Weiner
Executive Director
NYS Arts
About the : DO THIS PROJECT- I’m sorry that New York is also having difficulty in the arts with a 40% cut in arts funding across the board. Please tell all that you know how the arts can save communities and teach people better ways in the world. The arts is not just about making pretty pictures it’s about creating quality in all of our lives and interacting in a great social enviornment into your old age. Let’s keep America viable and support the arts everyway. Calling your state representitive today and into the future keeps arts alive in our communities. Don’t cut your performances- or your ideas- make them well know and count as artist can teach all people why the arts are essential to our lives and that we need people to pick up a phone today! TRACEE PICKETT
MORE IN CA
E-Blast: Arts Advocacy UpdatesFrom:
Arts for LA (advocate@artsforla.org) Sent:Fri 5/28/10 11:05 PMTo: tracee10@traceeandcompany.com
Events
City Council Meeting on Mural Policies, 6/1
City Council Discussion of Lease Subsidy Issue, 6/1 Arts for All Coaches Training Program, 6/8
June 8th Primary Election: Pollworkers Needed
Don’t forget to VOTE in the California Primary and Local Election on June 8, 2010.
Register to vote and find your polling place at lavote.net.
Opportunities
Call to Artists: South Health Center RFQ
JOB: Theatre Manager, Artworks
Nominate Arts Educators for the Bravo Awards
JOB: Director of Development, A Place Called Home
JOB: Edu. and Community Programs Coordinator, LA Opera
AKFA Community Grants in Venice, CA
Traditional Arts Funding for 2011
For more jobs & opportunities, click here to visit the Community Forums.
Arts for LA is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit arts advocacy organization working to foster a healthy environment in which arts and culture may thrive and be accessible to all in Los Angeles.
Visit artsforla.org to learn more.
May 28, 2010
Greetings tracee:
Whew! Take a deep breath, advocates.
We’re on the home stretch of “advocacy season,” the period from around January to June when County, city and school district budgets are debated, revised and passed. This year, there is no shortage of opportunities to get involved, from the Nonprofit Lease Subsidy issue pending in LA City Council to the ongoing Campaign for Arts Education in LAUSD. Our focus this year has been to retain cultural infrastructure: the programs, funding and resources currently in place
The fruits of our collective efforts are paying off. Since January, over 9,300 advocates have taken action and voiced support of arts and arts education in the region alone! An additional 150 have provided public testimony and made calls to policymakers urging them to maintain support for arts and arts education in Los Angeles County. This collective action has successfully maintained arts coordinator positions in local school districts, grant funding in the City of Los Angeles and the beloved Los Angeles County Arts Internship Program.
In the coming months, Arts for LA will be upgrading our advocacy tools and bringing them to communities throughout the County. I look forward to continuing our work together to increase support for arts and culture throughout the Los Angeles region!
Onward!
Danielle Brazell
Executive Director
Nonprofit Lease Subsidy Issue in City Council June 1
The LA City Council proposes elimination of the Nonprofit Lease Subsidy program that provides nearly 100 nonprofits (including 25+ arts & culture nonprofits) with very low leases in exchange for significant community contributions. The proposal is on the agenda for the Tuesday, June 1st Council meeting.
Measure E: $15 Million to Arts Education
With the June 8th election just around the corner, Arts for LA is pleased to announce its endorsement of Measure E. At the top of Superintendent Cortines’ list of programs to be saved is the elementary arts program. Approximately $15 million of Measure E’s annual $92.5 million will be allocated to fully restore the 174 arts and music teachers that have been pink-slipped.
Update on City of LA Cultural Centers
The City is moving forward with their plan to seek nonprofit partners for cultural centers throughout the City of Los Angeles that are currently city-operated.
Arts for LA makes every effort to align our collective advocacy with partners working to advance the arts and arts education n the State of California. The Arts for LA Policy Committee meets regularly to review and recommend policy positions in alignment with the Arts for LA policy platform. The Committee has recommended positions on AB 2446, AB 2610, AB 1777 and SB 1076.
Learn more.
Candidates for CA State Superintendent: Where do they stand on arts?
The California Alliance for Arts Education surveyed the candidates running for Superintendent of Public Instruction in the primary election on June 8, 2010. Read their responses at artsed411.org/educate/guide2.aspx.
You can read each candidate’s campaign statement here, in the online voter guide.
LAUSD Arts Education Budget Updates
The Campaign to Save Arts Education in LAUSD has reached a critical juncture. On March 15th, over 230 elementary arts teachers and arts specialists in dance, theatre, music, and visual arts received Reduction in Force notices, (aka, a Pink Slip). Learn more.
More than 1,000 local advocates have sent a letter to the LAUSD School Board speaking out for continued funding of elementary arts education. Haven’t sent your letter? Click here to send it now.
The Chrysalis Blog: Working Through Grad School
Considering graduate school? Here are suggestions from Arts for LA staffer Camille Schenkkan and a few fellow students for staying sane while working and going to school. Reasonably sane, that is.
Join Today: Become an Arts for LA Member
Arts for LA’s individual and organizational members are the key to the success of arts advocacy campaigns. Join us today.
Become an organizational member.
Individual membership starts at just $25; Organizational membership is on a sliding scale to accommodate organizations of all sizes and budgets.
Visit www.artsforla.org/members to see the names and logos of all of our Organizational members.
