Member News and NASAA Resources

Next NASAA Learning Series Session: The Value of Creative Economies

Join NASAA and experts from the National Endowment for the Arts and the Arts, Entrepreneurship & Innovation Lab at Indiana University Indianapolis to hear the latest facts illustrating how cultural production drives economic growth and strengthens economic resiliency. In this NASAA 2024 Learning Series session, Resilience and Growth: The Value of Creative Economies, taking place on April 30 from 3:00-4:00 p.m. Eastern, we’ll dig into just-released data from the Arts and Cultural Production Satellite Account, published by the U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis, and discuss the findings from Arts and Creativity Drive Economies and Build Resilience, a new report commissioned by NASAA. Register here.

56 Years, 56 Strong: Celebrate With Us

It’s NASAA’s 56th birthday year—a very special year given that the reason we exist is to strengthen our country’s 56 state and jurisdictional arts agencies. Get in on the celebration by checking out our 56 Years, 56 Strong web page. You’ll see a link to a “kudoboard” where you can share stories, photos, videos and shout-outs about our incredible community, past and present! You’ll also see that one of our birthday wishes is to get 56 NEW donors—one new donor from every state and jurisdiction. Will you help us? If you haven’t given to NASAA before, now’s the time! Check the page frequently to see your colleagues’ stories and watch the map get filled in. We look forward to celebrating with you all year long! Thank you!

FEMA Fact Sheet on Arts & Culture and Resilience in Disasters

Recently released from the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), the Fact Sheet on Art & Culture Helping People before, during and after Disasters describes several FEMA grant programs that assist arts and culture organizations, communities, and state, local, tribal and territorial governments in mitigating and recovering from disasters. It includes best practices in partnering with arts and culture organizations to advance life-sustaining work to support communities affected by disasters. The fact sheet offers considerations for building partnerships and supporting impactful art or cultural projects to build preparedness and mitigate future hazards.

Now Accepting Nominations: NASAA 2024 Leadership Awards

Nominate the excellent work and leadership of your agency for the 2024 NASAA Leadership Awards!

NASAA’s two Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Awards recognize an individual and a state arts agency or regional arts organization that demonstrate a robust commitment to supporting and advancing the work and values of diversity, equity and inclusion.

The Distinguished Public Service Award honors the exemplary service of a state arts agency or regional arts organization council leader/board member, while the Luminary Award for Transformative Executive Leadership (a.k.a. the Luminary Award) recognizes the significant contributions of an executive director.

Nominations are due by Wednesday, May 22. Please visit the 2024 NASAA Leadership Awards nominations page for more information.

Play to Your Strengths

Many people think that being hard on themselves will help them improve, but research does not support this belief. The reality is that having a harsh inner critic increases procrastination and rumination, drains our energy, and robs us of perspective—often steering us toward self-protective strategies that may not serve us well. In Tools to Thrive from Positive Psychology Practitioners, Leah Smart highlights the evidence based VIA Character Assessment and how using our strengths with intention can help boost satisfaction in core areas of our lives. In terms of managing that inner critic more skillfully, Four Ways to Constructively Criticize Yourself offers some useful strategies from the field of social psychology to help us come to better understanding of our inevitable failures, and be able to move forward in positive ways.

Mindfulness meditation can be a great way to see patterns of thought and strengthen self-compassion, both of which are key components of change and growth. To support state arts agency staff and council members’ leadership and well-being, NASAA offers short meditations three times a week. Chief Advancement Officer Laura Smith, a certified meditation teacher, leads these 15-minute Zoom sessions (camera-free), and all are welcome to attend. Reach out to Laura via email or phone at 202-347-7066 for more info or to be added to the email list.

Strengthening Your Case

We know that every year you need to show decision makers why public support for the arts matters. That’s why NASAA works so hard to give you the data, research and tools you need to make a convincing case. Just take a look at this edition of NASAA Notes—from the updated Creative Economy State Profiles, highlighted in this issue, to new research NASAA commissioned that shows how the arts drive state economies, NASAA is an authoritative source you can turn to. The need for NASAA’s advocacy resources is ongoing and growing every year. Your support helps us keep up with that need and continue to provide up-to-date, relevant and trustworthy data. Please give to NASAA today. Thank you!