In 2020, Americans for the Arts continued its commitment to our vision and planned work, while also pivoting and taking on new, urgent work like so many of our 5,000 member organizations. Here are highlights of some key areas of the new and urgent work of Americans for the Arts in 2020 that are in addition to our planned work portfolio.
Serving as a volunteer citizen in his personal capacity, Americans for the Arts President and CEO Robert L. Lynch is pleased to join the Biden-Harris transition Arts and Humanities Agency Review Team. Lynch’s work on the transition team will be done apart from his role as president and CEO of Americans for the Arts, which is a national 501(c)(3) nonprofit, nonpartisan organization. Its sister organization, the Americans for the Arts Action Fund, is a 501(c)(4) nonprofit, which supports all pro-arts candidates for political office.
A new episode of the PBS docuseries “Craft in America” focused on the arts and democracy premiered digitally this week and is available to stream now in advance of the Dec. 11 broadcast premiere. “Craft in America: DEMOCRACY” explores how the interaction between government and the arts inspires our lives, fuels the creative economy, and protects our multicultural heritage.
Americans for the Arts President and CEO Robert L. Lynch was named to the 2020 NPT Power & Influence Top 50, an annual list in its 23rd year highlighting the nonprofit sector’s top working executives for innovation and influence on the broader sector. This is the sixth year Lynch has been recognized by the publication for his leadership for Americans for the Arts. He was previously recognized in 2012, 2013, 2014, 2018, and 2019.
The $2 trillion emergency stimulus package that Congress passed this week includes $300 million in economic relief to support nonprofit cultural organizations, museums, libraries, public broadcasting, and state and local arts and humanities agencies, as well as substantial additional economic relief opportunities for independent contractors like "gig economy" workers such as actors, musicians, and artists and nonprofit organizations and small businesses, including those working in the creative economy.
Americans for the Arts has announced that in alignment with COVID-19 health recommendations and warnings issued by the Washington, DC, government, it has made the decision to cancel the National Arts Action Summit and postpone the Nancy Hanks Lecture on Arts & Public Policy, which were set to take place March 30-31 in Washington, DC. The annual advocacy event and lecture were in their 33rd year.
Americans for the Arts President and CEO Robert L. Lynch and acclaimed singer-songwriter Ben Folds today urged the House Appropriations Subcommittee on Interior, Environment, and Related Agencies to support federal funding for the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) at $170 million for fiscal year (FY) 2021, a $7.75 million increase over FY 2020 funding. With last year’s increase the largest in six years, Congress has almost restored the NEA to its funding-level highpoint of $176 million in FY 1992.
Americans for the Arts President and CEO Robert L. Lynch issued a statement following news that full funding—$704,000—was restored for the Alaska State Council on the Arts (ASCA), enabling the agency to additionally receive just over $3 million in federal and private sector funds.
Fifty years ago this week I was at Woodstock, among the “half a million strong” that Joni Mitchell sang about. I arrived in a much-mended 1963 Rambler with my girlfriend Karyl. I was 19 and it was the summer of my sophomore year in college. My brother Roger arrived separately with a bunch of his high school friends on the back of a pick-up truck held together with duct tape and band-aids. Neither of us knew the other was there. Our parents, like many other parents, didn’t learn about our trip until later, and they weren’t all that happy about it. The first news reports portrayed a chaotic, dangerous, and lawless image of the three days. The county had declared a state of emergency and reports were that the National Guard was about to be called in at any moment. Eventually, each of us would take life-changing, year-long adventures on the road—my brother on a motorcycle, me and Karyl in a VW bus. We all were English majors and were, of course, inspired by Jack Kerouac’s On the Road; but for now we had arrived at Woodstock. Even after all these many years, being at Woodstock was inspirational and significant.
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Americans for the Arts President and CEO Robert L. Lynch offered a statement in response to today's Senate’s approval of Mary Anne Carter to chair the National Endowment for the Arts for a four-year term.
Americans for the Arts President and CEO Robert L. Lynch was named to the 2019 NPT Power & Influence Top 50, an annual list in its 22nd year highlighting the nonprofit sector’s top working executives for innovation and influence on the broader sector. This is the fifth year that Lynch has been recognized by the publication for his leadership for Americans for the Arts. He was previously recognized in 2012, 2013, 2014, and 2018.
On June 18, Americans for the Arts’ President and CEO Robert L. Lynch participated on a panel hosted by The NonProfit Times that took an in-depth look at Giving USA 2019: The Annual Report on Philanthropy for the Year 2018. The report was released that morning and is the longest-running and most comprehensive report of its kind in America.
Serving on many nonprofit boards has helped me realize that for a community to be successful, it has to come together efficiently and effectively. As the city of Des Moines embarked on a commitment to the arts, I discovered that supporting the arts in addition to human and social services could strengthen the community ties that are so important to Bankers Trust Company, Iowa’s largest community bank.
Americans for the Arts President and CEO Robert L. Lynch and Marine veteran Chris Stowe testified today before the House Interior Appropriations Subcommittee, urging the committee to increase funding for the National Endowment for the Arts to no less than $167.5 million for FY 2020.
