State arts agencies are increasingly cultivating partnerships with their state departments of natural resources. These cross-sector collaborations can promote public access to the arts and employment opportunities for artists while also boosting public enjoyment of park lands. Arts in the parks programs strengthen the connections between natural and cultural resources, encouraging both healthier living and…
State arts agencies (SAAs) and regional arts organizations (RAOs) have a strong desire to support the creative lives and occupations of their constituents as well as the health of any given creative industry. Programming and grants across Kansas and Wyoming, and a national jazz initiative led by South Arts, showcase the variety of strategies used…
Arts and culture partnerships can help public health programs achieve their goals with higher levels of participation and efficiency. In an effort to utilize the value of arts to educate communities and build confidence in both COVID-19 and influenza vaccines, the CDC Foundation, a nonprofit that is mobilizing the philanthropic efforts of the Centers for…
For many years, the Wyoming Arts Council has awarded annual fellowships that recognize visual, literary and performing artists. That portfolio is now expanding to include the Native Art Fellowship. This program, new in 2021, is designed to raise the visibility and support the artistry of Native artists in Wyoming. This effort was inspired in part…
The Wyoming Arts Council, the Wyoming State Library and Lifetime Arts have entered into a unique collaboration to advance creative aging. The new initiative will support the design and delivery of programs specifically designed to meet the needs of older adults. In-depth training programs, slated to commence in 2021, will be offered to teaching artists…
The Wyoming Arts Council’s (WAC) Health and Wellness through the Arts program connects artists, arts organizations, and health service providers to deliver creative opportunities to constituents managing a decline in health, living with a temporary or permanent physical, emotional or cognitive disability, or seeking to improve overall well-being and quality of life. WAC conducted a…
Through a long-standing partnership with the University of Wyoming’s Fine Arts Outreach program, the Wyoming Arts Council (WAC) helps bring the performing arts to untraditional venues across a large, rural state—and to people who may not otherwise have access to creative experiences. WAC’s financial, advisory and promotional support of the Art in Unlikely Places project…
In celebration of Wyoming’s 125th anniversary of statehood, the Wyoming Arts Council (WAC) is partnering with the Wyoming Humanities Council (WHC) to promote arts and humanities events across the state. In 2014, Governor Matt Mead and the legislature asked state agencies what they could do in recognition of the anniversary, and WAC and WHC decided…
Education policy is a complex tapestry in America, consisting of a dynamic mixture of federal, state and local resources and regulations. Within this multilayered system, many important decisions affecting the quality and availability of arts education are made at the state level. This year, a number of state legislatures introduced bills affecting arts education. Some…
Naming grant programs is an exercise in promotion and reflection for state arts agencies, but it also can be a means of constituency engagement. When the Wyoming Arts Council (WAC) had a new grant program to name as well as two existing programs to rename, it decided to crowdsource the christenings. Through its Facebook page,…