On the Web: www.AmericansForTheArts.org/BCA     By E-mail: [email protected]

	Aetna, Inc., healthcare company, will receive the 2016 BCA Hall of Fame Award, which recognizes companies that have exhibited exceptional long-term vision, leadership, and commitment to developing alliances in the arts. Aetna, Inc. was a BCA 10: Best Businesses Partnering with the Artshonoree in 2011.
	Robert Buchsbaum, Chief Executive of Blick Art Materials, will receive the 2016 BCA Leadership Award, which recognizes an individual for his/her extraordinary vision, leadership, and commitment to supporting the arts and for encouraging other businesses to follow in his/her lead.

• Badger Meter in the Wisconsin Arts Board
• Dealer.com in Broadway Worldwide
• Dunlap Codding in The Journal Record
• Johnson & Johnson in New Jersey Stage

• Learn more about BCA Executive Board Member Barry Sternlicht and why he considers himself an artist.  
• See a fresh example of corporate volunteers in the arts when Samsung employees show off their creative skills.  
• Find out how Google partners with artists to bring a bit of the magic from the inside of our data centers to the outside.

Americans for the Arts News

Explore the 2016 Annual Convention Highlights
Last month, Americans for the Arts held our 2016 Annual Convention in Boston. If you missed out this year or just want to keep reliving the Convention weekend, check out the highlights and resources for you and your organization on our Convention wrap-up page. During her opening keynote, Rena DeSisto, International CSR and Global Arts & Culture Executive at Bank of America, gave great comments about the importance of the arts and why a bank sponsors the arts, “For Bank of America, supporting the arts is a big part of our ESG (environmental, social, and corporate governance) program.  We believe that the arts matter.”  Watch her speech and the opening plenary: The Arts and Engaged Citizenship.  

Bob Lynch’s Huffington Post Column: “For the Love of It: Lifelong Joy Through the Arts” 
“Summer is a time when many Americans make an effort to ease into a slower pace and reset their focus on personal passions that make them feel most alive—like the arts. Their chosen profession may have everything to do with the arts, or very little, but with a bit more leisure time they may find themselves pulling out a paint set, playing the guitar, or writing poetry. These amateur—from the Latin root meaning “to love”—artists do what they do for the sheer enjoyment of it. For me, that love is music.” Read the full post here.

“Diversity Makes Us Smarter” by BCA Executive Board Chair Edgar Smith
On May 4, 2016, a collection of arts and business leaders from the BCA Executive Board and other friends of Americans for the Arts convened at The Conference Board’s office in midtown Manhattan for a discussion with Americans for the Arts on cultural equity and the arts, and the role that business leaders play in advocating for both the role of arts and the need for diversity in all aspects of the creative and business worlds. Read more from the BCA Executive Board Chair. 

2016 National Arts Marketing Project Conference
Members of Americans for the Arts are invited to apply for scholarships to attend this year’s National Arts Marketing Project (NAMP) Conference in Austin, TX, November 11–14, 2016. Attendees gain access to innovative marketing research and audience engagement strategies through a series of panel discussions and workshops. Visit the National Arts Marketing Project for details. 

Facts and Figures

2015 Was America’s Most-Generous Year Ever
Giving USA just released their 2015 report. It examines giving from corporations, foundations and individuals. Some highlights include a 7% increase to the arts as part of the most generous year ever. Read the full article.