Americans for the Arts invites all Americans to celebrate October as National Arts & Humanities Month (NAHM). Towns and communities across the country are hosting special events that capture the spirit that the arts and humanities bring to everyday life. 

Stephen Colbert announced that he would fund every single request made by South Carolina public school teachers on the website DonorsChoose.org. The total donation clocked in at $800,000 and covered almost 1,000 projects at more than 375 schools.

The Arts Partnership of Greater Spartanburg recently received a significant grant from Bloomberg Philanthropies to execute a public art project with a purpose as part of Bloomberg’s Public Art Challenge.

South Carolina arts advocates were shocked on June 30 when Governor Nikki Haley announced that she would veto 87 budget items—among the vetoes was #21 which would eliminate $1 million in new, recurring funds for grantmaking in arts education from the South Carolina Arts Commission’s budget.

Two weeks after the mass shooting at Emanuel African Methodist Episcopal Church in Charleston, South Carolina, artists nationwide are using their craft to address the killings, honor the victims, and call for systematic change. Art forms ranging from murals, paintings, and spoken word to public installations and dance performances are helping Charleston— and the rest of America—unite in the wake of the June 17^th massacre. 

Livability.com has just identified the top 10 best downtowns in America. Here is the list:

1.Pittsburgh, PA
2.Minneapolis, MN
3.Indianapolis, IN
4.Greenville, SC
5.Salt Lake City, UT
6.Alexandria, VA
7.Fargo, ND
8.Lincoln, NE
9.Somerville, MA
10.Evanston, IL

In developing the list Livability.com used the following criteria:

Today, Bloomberg Philanthropies announced 12 finalist cities in the running to receive up to $1 million each as part of the Public Art Challenge, a new program aimed at supporting temporary public art projects that engage communities, enhance creativity, and enrich the vibrancy of cities. Americans for the Arts president and CEO Robert L. Lynch applauds Bloomberg Philanthropies and comments on the news. 

Register today for the 2015 Annual Convention, taking place June 12–14, 2015 in Chicago!

The conference will take place at the Chicago Sheraton, with more than 40 breakouts, three keynotes, three preconferences, two Workshop Intensives, a dozen ARTventure Tours, and an opening reception at the Museum of Contemporary Art! 

Get the conversation about encouraging creativity and ensuring arts education in your community with a new series of videos by Americans for the Arts. These videos convey the stories behind importance of arts education, as told by children whose lives have been postiviely impacted by the arts. 

In 2014, South Carolina ratified legislation for the creation of cultural districts, and it was signed into law by Governor Nikki Haley. The legislation authorizes the S.C. Arts Commission to grant official state designation to cultural districts. The goals of this program are the following:

In September, we held a call for nominations for our Network Councils. Now it's time for you, our members, to cast your vote to determine which nominees will be elected to the following four Americans for the Arts' Network Councils.

Americans for the Arts is pleased to share an article that was published in National Conference of State Legislatures (NCSL)’s Fall 2014 issue of "State Legislatures.” In collaboration with Americans for the Arts staff, NSCL featured an article on Arts in Education with a special call-out box for Americans for the Arts. Please click here to read the full article, “Art Smart,” by Sarah Shelton.

WASHINGTON, D.C.—Americans for the Arts, the leading organization for advancing the arts and arts education in America, announces its annual National Arts Awards honorees. The awards recognize artists and arts leaders who exhibit exemplary national leadership and whose work demonstrates extraordinary achievement. They are individuals who share a common belief in the power of the arts and arts education to enrich individual lives and communities alike.

This year’s National Arts awards recipients are: