Implementing the New Century Community Program: An Evaluation of the First Round of Funding is the first of a two-part report that discusses the implementation and evaluation of The New Century Community Program (NCCP), a partnership of seven state cultural agencies working together through the Maine Cultural Affairs Council to provide a large-scale arts and cultural development program to Maines communities. This report evaluates how the initial funding for the program was used and whether the funding helped to realize the anticipated public benefits. Case studies from the New

This article suggests concepts for assessing the catalytic potential of cultural facilities and recommends design features to maximize the catalytic impact of these facilities.

This document was developed to assist the public sector in developing public art policies.

In any policy arena, the crafting of appropriate and effective policy depends on the quality of the information infrastructure that is available to the participants in that arena. Such an information infrastructure does not develop on its own accord. Rather, it is designed, developed, and managed as a critical element in policy formation and implementation. This should be no less true in cultural policy than in other policy arenas.

This article looks at the impact of ethnic group history on perceptions of civic engagement and argues that, instead of there being 1 civic culture in the , there are a variety of civic subcultures.

This call to action from AAMs Museums & Community Initiative challenges museums to pursue their potential as active, visible players in community life.

This text explores a number of artist's philosophical perspectives and methodologies for dealing with ecological issues in the natural environment.

This evaluation report from the Culture Builds Communities Project reviews a four-year comprehensive community grant program. The goals of this program were to both increase participation in the arts and to foster community building through the arts and culture.

What do the prospects for arts and culture policy look like at the local and community level? In this paper, the authors explore the boundary crossings that are often necessary when dealing with the arts outside the formal or institutional realm. They address this dichotomy by suggesting that informal arts practice may have a significant role to play in the development of policies that value arts and culture building, and that ignorance of the place of informal arts in America hinders a more democratic direction for a cultural policy.

What is the proper role of the president and the federal government in formulating policy for arts and culture at the national and state level? In this essay, the author, the former deputy assistant to President Clinton and adviser to the first lady on the millennium, reflects on her experiences in these posts and offers her thoughts on the future of the executive branch in opening policy doors for creative voices in America.