President of the American Express Foundation and Americans for the Arts' board member Tim McClimon (pictured) accepts his Nonprofit Times Power & Influence Top 50 award. Bob Lynch, Americans for the Arts' President and CEO, also received the honor. Presented at the 16th annual Nonprofit Times Power & Influence Top 50 Gala this September, the award celebrates executives who are moving and shaping the nonprofit world and paving a sustainable future for the sector.

Liesel Fenner, Americans for the Arts’ public art program manager, was a guest on WAMU’s Kojo Nnamdi Show on September 26.

The show discussed public art’s role in placemaking and community building. She appeared alongside Angela Anderson Adams, public art administrator for Arlington Economic Development, and Roger Lewis, architect, “Shaping the City” columnist at Washington Post, and Professor Emeritus of Architecture at the University of Maryland College Park.

Americans for the Arts is honored to be selected as a recipient of Houston-based Laura and John Arnold Foundation's grant supporting a project called The Giving Library, an online resource created by the Arnold Foundation to help philanthropists make informed decisions about their contributions to nonprofit organizations.
 

United Arts Funds (UAFs) are private organizations that raise money in a combined effort, much like United Way, to broaden support for the arts. There are 59 UAFs nationwide, a decrease from 2003 when there were 66. Americans for the Arts' 2012-13 UAF Statistical Research and Revenue Trends provides the most currently available campaign totals for the nation's United Arts Funds. The 50 UAFs that participated reported aggregate FY2012 campaign totals of 97.5 million.

The significance of arts and culture to American life makes the vitality of the arts a matter of pressing interest. After all, the nation's nonprofit arts and culture organizations generates billions in economic activity every year. Further, the arts contribute not only to aesthetics and creativity, but also to prosperity, innovation, and social capital. Because it is important to understand the breadth, depth, and character of this industry, Americans for the Arts created the National Arts Index. And today, Americans for the Arts issued the Index’s latest findings.

Business Committee for the Arts (BCA), a division of Americans for the Arts, announces the selection of Joseph C. Dilg, Managing Partner of Vinson & Elkins LLP, to serve as chairman of BCA'€™s Executive Board. The BCA Executive Board is a 14-member group of corporate leaders who provide leadership and expertise on key BCA initiatives including messaging, advocacy, and strategic alliances within the private-sector community. He succeeds J.

This week, The Arts. Ask for More. PSA campaign'€™s Brahms Breakfast PSA will be running on the MTV 44 ½ screen located in Times Square. This is a fantastic way to get the word out to the public about the importance of arts education in kids'€™ lives. If you find yourself in Times Square this week, stop for a moment and look for the ad which will be playing at :10, :20, :30, :40 minutes after the hour every hour. The MTV 44 ½ screen is directly across from the MTV studios.

Today, Americans for the Arts and The United States Conference of Mayors presented the 2010 Public Leadership in the Arts Awards to Oregon Governor Ted Kulongoski, Honolulu Mayor Mufi Hannemann, and musician Michael Feinstein. The awards honor elected officials and artists that have demonstrated outstanding leadership in the advancement of the arts.
 

Americans for the Arts today announced the National Arts Index at a press conference held at the National Press Club and kicking-off its 50th anniversary year. The National Arts Index is the first study designed to measure the health and vitality of the arts industries in the United States. The National Arts Index is composed of 76 national-level research indicators produced by the federal government and private research organizations.

Americans for the Arts is pleased to announce that Chicago-based Joyce Foundation has renewed its support for Americans for the Arts' Professional Development Fund for Emerging Arts Leaders of Color. A total of five Joyce Fellows from the Great Lakes region (Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Minnesota, Ohio, and Wisconsin) will be selected to participate in this program.

Today the White House released President Obama's budget recommendations for FY 2011. Below is a statement from Robert L. Lynch, president and CEO of Americans for the Arts on arts and arts education funding in the budget:

 As a way to celebrate the successes of the past 50 years in the arts field, Americans for the Arts has collected Green Papers from a variety of national arts service organizations and peer groups representing more than 20 different perspectives and disciplines. These Green Papers are short, easy to read, visions of the future meant to inspire a nationwide dialogue on the future of the arts.

All this week on ARTSblog, the Private Sector Initiatives team at Americans for the Arts is leading a special blog salon. Follow the Private Sector Blog Salon from March 8-12 as more than twenty leaders from across the country discuss issues related to private sector giving and the arts.

The National Lieutenant Governors Association recognized the 50th Anniversary of Americans for the Arts at the group’s recent meeting in Washington, DC. Americans for the Arts and the NGLA are strategic partners and present the Lieutenant Governor Arts annually as part of the Public Leadership in the Arts Awards series.

In photo from L to R: Jay Dick, Americans for the Arts; Wisconsin Lt. Gov. Barbara Lawton; Dorothy McSweeny, Americans for the Arts Board of Director; and Virginia Lt. Gov. Bill Bolling

Americans for the Arts commends Congress on passing comprehensive health care reform legislation. This bill ensures that the nation'€™s artists and arts workers will now receive increased access to the health coverage they deserve. The final legislation included major reform policies supported by Americans for the Arts and its national health care coalition of 20 other arts organizations.

Mayor Joseph P. Riley
Jr. Nancy Hanks Lecture on Arts and Public Policy
Concert Hall
The John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts
Monday, April 12, 2010

This year's Nancy Hanks Lecture on Arts and Public Policy will feature Mayor Joseph P. Riley, Jr., of Charleston, SC, and founder of the Mayors'€™ Institute on City Design. Please reserve your free tickets by Wednesday, April 7, 2010.