Americans for the Arts, the nation’s leading nonprofit organization for advancing the arts and arts education, today presented its 2017 Congressional Arts Leadership Award to Senator Lisa Murkowski (R-AK) during national Arts Advocacy Day in Washington, D.C. The award recognizes distinguished service on behalf of the arts. 

 

In her capacity as a member of the Senate Appropriations Committee and as Chairman of the Subcommittee on Interior and Related Agencies, Sen. Murkowski has consistently supported fair and reasonable funding levels for the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA). She appreciates the arts in all its forms, and has demonstrated this through support for the NEA’s partnerships with state arts agencies, and the dedicated share of NEA funding that goes to states which leverages essential investment by state legislatures. 

 

“Lisa Murkowski is a true leader in support for the arts in this country,” said Robert L. Lynch, president and CEO of Americans for the Arts. “She understands the role that the arts play in uniting communities and advancing the economy, and her dedication and hard work for the arts in the Senate is invaluable not only to her home state of Alaska but to citizens nationwide.” 

 

"Lisa Murkowski has been a friend and supporter of the arts since before her days of service in the Alaska House of Representatives. She understands both the intrinsic and instrumental benefits that the arts provide to all Americans, and especially appreciates the ways in which arts and culture make life in Alaska rewarding and prosperous,” said Benjamin Brown, chair of the Alaska State Council on the Arts. 

 

Sen. Murkowski is Alaska’s first Alaskan-born Senator and only the sixth United States Senator to serve the Last Frontier. In addition to serving as Chairman of the Interior and Environmental Subcommittee on the Senate Appropriations Committee, Sen. Murkowski is also a member of the bipartisan Senate Cultural Caucus. 

 

The Congressional Arts Leadership Award is part of a series of Public Leadership in the Arts Awards given annually by Americans for the Arts and The United States Conference of Mayors since 1997. In addition to Senator Murkowski, earlier this year other recipients of the 2017 award were: Mayor Martin Walsh of Boston with the National Award for Local Arts Leadership for cities with a population of 100,000 or more, and Mayor Satish Hiremath of Oro Valley, Arizona, with the National Award for Local Arts Leadership for cities with a population fewer than 100,000.

 

Americans for the Arts is the leading nonprofit organization for advancing the arts and arts education in America. With offices in Washington, D.C. and New York City, it has a record of more than 55 years of service. Americans for the Arts is dedicated to representing and serving local communities and creating opportunities for every American to participate in and appreciate all forms of the arts. Additional information is available at www.AmericansForTheArts.org.