Americans for the Arts and the National Association of Counties (NACo) have awarded former Oakland County Commissioner Shelley Taub of Bloomfield Hills, Michigan, the Public Leadership in the Arts Award for County Arts Leadership. The award honors an elected county official who has significantly advanced the arts in the community they serve.

In Oakland County, Commissioner Taub recently championed appropriating $2 million in federal CARES Act funding to support cultural institutions such as museums, libraries, and historical societies impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic. For years she has demonstrated strong and steadfast support for the arts in Oakland County, and is a proponent of not only the cultural value of the arts, but also its economic value. She consistently led the county’s efforts to provide funding to support the Outdoor Arts Fair series, which occurs in 17 different municipalities over the summer and fall. These art fairs not only brought people together for an enjoyable event but helped to feature various areas of the county and generated additional revenues for the county. Further, she is a strong personal supporter of the Cranbrook Academy of Art, a 319-acre campus that also includes a contemporary art museum, science museum, and a PreK-12 college-preparatory school recognizing that students with a strong arts education make more innovative and creative employees. 

Commissioner Taub taught elementary school for 30 years. She served on the Oakland County Commission from 1993 until 2002, in the Michigan House of Representatives from 2002 to 2006, and again on the Oakland County Commission from 2009 to 2020. Commissioner Taub was a member of the NACo Arts and Culture Commission from 2009 to 2020 and was the chair in 2019–2020. As chair, she continued to expand the breath and mission of the NACo Arts and Culture Commission to be more relevant to the broader NACo membership by bringing a focus to arts in health, education, and economic development.

“Commissioner Taub is a dedicated leader with an exemplary record of supporting and embracing the arts in Oakland County. The arts are alive like never before thanks to her. This award not only recognizes Commissioner Taub’s support of the arts and culture in Oakland County, but also nationally as chair of the NACo Arts and Culture Commission. I applaud her for the commitment and leadership she brings to her work making her worthy of this recognition,” said Brigadier General Nolen Bivens, Interim President and CEO of Americans for the Arts.