Rhode Island: Arts & Culture Research Network

To better understand and leverage the role of the arts in economic development and other public policies, the Rhode Island State Council on the Arts (RISCA) recently launched the Arts & Culture Research Network. The primary goal of the new initiative, which RISCA is coleading with The Collaborative—a research- and policy-focused partnership of Rhode Island’s 11 public and private colleges and universities—is to inform and facilitate effective public investment in the arts. In particular, the Arts & Culture Research Network will develop a set of metrics to assess the return on investment of RISCA’s new State Cultural Facilities Grant, a product of the $35 million Creative and Cultural Economy Bond issue, which Rhode Island voters approved in 2014. It also will explore synergies between the arts and other policy priorities, including education, health care, and environmental and community-development issues. The Arts & Culture Research Network will hold its initial convening this winter, bringing together researchers hailing from various disciplines and universities to lay the foundation for a community of academics committed to arts and culture research in Rhode Island. To learn more, contact RISCA Executive Director Randy Rosenbaum.