Throughout 2017, we will be using the alphabet as a novel way to unpack the many concepts of arts administration. Please join in. Thank you to the following arts administrators for adding ideas to the project:

• Ashley Thorndike-Youssef, Now Next Dance
• Fernando Maneca, BAX | Brooklyn Arts Exchange
• Hillary Kooistra, Abraham.In.Motion
• Kathryn Humphreys, Hubbard Street Chicago
• Katie Kruger, Shawl-Anderson Dance Center
• Liz Hitchcock Lisle, Shotgun Players
• Phyllis Haskell Tims, University of Utah (retired)
• Rebecca A. Ferrell, University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign
• Sarah Crowell, Destiny Arts Center
• Tammy Cheney, Lines Ballet

Arts administration relates to work at dance centers, arts councils, arts education programs, companies, and college programs. Please read on to explore the many and varied topics within arts administration. While not every topic applies to every setting, we hope that you will still find one or two ideas in the post that are useful and applicable to your particular setting. Please feel free to add ideas and links in the comments section below.

The letter G:

• Guidestar website
• Goal setting
• Grants, grant writing, and grants panels
• Guest artists
• Guidance

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Let's unpack, consider, and reflect upon each one of these words. Even before reading further, you might want to take the list of 5 ideas here and simply journal for your organization. What do these words and phrases mean to you at your organization?

Guidestar website

Whether doing some research on comparable organizations for work or on the job search yourself, the website Guidestar.org is a great resource for tax information for non-profits. Most importantly, you will see each organization's operating size (ie budget size).

Guidestar.org

Goal Setting

For yourself and all of your employees, quarterly and annual goal setting – in writing and discussed in a meeting – articulates our priorities, gets the team working together, and provides focus and motivation. Many arts organizations can easily go week after week mired in business details, so keeping a macro focus is ever-important.

What are your goals for this summer?

Grants, Grant Writing, and Grants Panels

For your school, department, company, or organization…..how much of your income is dependent on grants? Does this money support specific projects or the general operating of the organization?

Grant writing for all artists and administrators – like the act of choreographing and teaching as well – takes time, practice, support, mentoring….and more time and practice. Bringing a mindset like you do for choreographing and performing – into your grant writing work – is so valuable. Grant writing is about brainstorming, writing, editing, receiving feedback, questioning, tinkering, and risk taking.

If you ever have the opportunity, sitting on a grant panel in your community can be a highly educational experience. Being a part of a group that is actively discussing why and why not to fund certain projects and programs will ultimately improve your writing in the future.

Last, there is always homework to be done related to your grant writing at your work. Whenever you can, carefully read postcards, programs at shows, and other organizations' websites. Closely read (and take note of) which foundations and grants support their work. Do you see any new names?

Guest Artists

Whether running a dance center, college program, or theater…guest artists will bring in new ideas and new perspectives through classes, workshops, performances, creating new work, panels, and discussions. Guest artists connect us with new voices from our community as well as artists from around the U.S. and from around the world.

Careful brainstorming and planning will articulate for you and the artist alike about goals, expectations, commitments, and logistics like transportation, food, and housing.

In the book Dance From the Campus to the Real World (and Back Again), there are several valuable essays and checklists about residencies. Dance/USA published this paperback book in 2005, and now it is available online for free as a large PDF. Check out Jacqueline Davis's essay "Dance Residencies 101: A Guide to Planning for the World of Possibilities" (pages 19-28). There is also a "Residency Planning Checklist and Questionnaire" (pages 29-37).

Guidance for You

Last, when you are seeking guidance for your own work and own job position, who do you turn to both locally and nationally? Who can you have coffee with, or pick up the phone to contact tomorrow? Take a few minutes to list your current network of colleagues.

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The Letter A: Advertising, Advisory Committee/Advisory Board, advocacy, AEP email list, alumni, artist services vs serving artists, artists, arts administration masters degree programs, ArtsEdSearch, assessment, and audiences

The Letter B: Balancing, Board of Directors, board meetings, boardsource.org, booking, bookkeeping, books related to arts administration, brown bag lunch series for arts administrators, budgets, burnout, and business plan

The Letter C: Chairing a dance department, collaboration, colleagues, college level administration, committees, communication skills, community outreach, comparable organizations, Compasspoint trainings, compliance, conferences, conflict management, consensus building, consistent communication, consultants, contracts, Critical Friends Group, Critical Response Method, The Cycle by Michael M. Kaiser, and work as creative challenge

The Letter D: Dance/USA, Darren Walker, data, dealing with difficult people, decisionmaking process, delegating , development work, documenting conflict, and donors/donations/donation letters

The Letter E: Expenses, endowment, engagement, evaluations, educational programming/education department, Education Directors, employment law, and email plan

The Letter F: Fundraising plan, financial procedures, field trips, founders, faculty and staff appreciation, flexible work schedules and hours, fiscal sponsorship, “Filling the Buckets” protocol from Critical Friends Group, financial terms, and Facebook

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