Social Responsibility & Inclusion Archives

Jan 25

WESTAF Announces the BIPOC Artist Fund

By Natalie Scherlong GO, Grants, Social Responsibility & Inclusion, WESTAF News

WESTAF is thrilled to share the upcoming launch of the Black, Indigenous, and People of Color (BIPOC) Artist Fund, a new fund designed in partnership with WESTAF’s Leaders of Color Network that provides resources to and for BIPOC artists living and working in the 16 states and jurisdictions in the WESTAF region to advance their own artistic practice and goals. WESTAF is investing in the wellbeing and safety of BIPOC artists, cultural practitioners, and collaboratives by providing no-strings-attached funding and support. Thank you to the design team, which spans across eight different Emerging Leaders of Color cohort years, for their...

Dec 13

Love0

WESTAF Announces 2022 Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands (CNMI) American Rescue Plan Grant Recipients

By Natalie Scherlong Grants, Social Responsibility & Inclusion, WESTAF News

The Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands American Rescue Plan Fund for Organizations (CNMI ARP) is a relief grant program, supported by the National Endowment for the Arts, that provides general operating support to eligible arts and culture organizations and individual artists impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic in the Northern Mariana Islands. The program is delivered in partnership with the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands Arts Council. We are delighted to announce that WESTAF will be awarding grant funding to 32 individual artists and culture organizations across the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands (CNMI). Each of the 28...

Aug 22

Love0

National Leaders of Color Fellowship Launches with Support from United States Regional Arts Organizations

By Natalie Scherlong Programs, Social Responsibility & Inclusion, WESTAF News

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Contact: Leah Horn 720.664.2239 leah.horn@westaf.org National Leaders of Color Fellowship Launches with Support from United States Regional Arts Organizations August 31 Application Deadline for the Program Dedicated to the Advancement of BIPOC Leaders in the Arts Denver, CO, August 22, 2022—Western States Arts Federation (WESTAF) has partnered with its five United States Regional Arts Organization (USRAO) counterparts to support the National Leaders of Color Fellowship, a leadership development program for Black, Indigenous, and people of color (BIPOC) leaders committed to the advancement of cultural equity in the arts. An expansion of WESTAF’s Emerging Leaders of Color (ELC)…

Aug 01

Love0

Multiple shapes of orange, pink and green float in front of a beige background. Text reads that the six United States Regional Arts Organizations (RAOs) are currently seeking fellows

Leaders of Color Fellowship Application Now Open

By Natalie Scherlong News, Programs, Social Responsibility & Inclusion, WESTAF News

We are thrilled to announce the National Leaders of Color Fellowship (LoCF) application is now accepting applications. The LoCF is a strategic leadership development program for Black, Indigenous, and people of color (BIPOC) leaders throughout the western region who are committed to the advancement of cultural equity in the arts. Using a cohort structure, the program emphasizes experiential learning, community building, and service to the field. Since 2010, and in partnership with South Arts for the past two years, the Western States Arts Federation’s (WESTAF) Emerging Leaders of Color (ELC) program has promoted diverse, representative leadership and equity in the...

Jun 14

Love0

TourWest Impact Survey image of a person playing the saxophone

WESTAF Announces Plans for a More Accessible TourWest Program

By Ben Casalino News, Social Responsibility & Inclusion, WESTAF News

TourWest is WESTAF’s competitive grant program that has historically provided subsidies to arts and community organizations for the presentation of touring performers and literary artists within the 13-state WESTAF region. Since its inaugural year, TourWest has allocated approximately $500,000 a year in small amounts throughout the region. Through its longstanding efforts, TourWest has brought touring to a region covering nearly a quarter of the continent but holding only about 3% of the population in the 1960s. Cultural leaders in the Western states pursued a way of making tours more affordable for rural communities in addition to making them more attractive…

Nov 04

Love0

WESTAF Announces American Rescue Plan Awardees

By Natalie Scherlong Grants, Social Responsibility & Inclusion, WESTAF News

We are thrilled to announce that WESTAF will be awarding grant funding to 44 arts and culture organizations across the West, with at least two grants awarded per state at an average level of $35,000 each, as part of the American Rescue Plan Fund for Organizations (ARP). Aligning with the priorities of the National Endowment for the Arts (Arts Endowment), the WESTAF ARP program focused on applications that indicated a deep commitment to cultural equity, social justice and disrupting systemic racism through service to a host of constituencies, including rural and remote communities, Black, Indigenous and People of Color (BIPOC)...

Sep 02

Love0

WESTAF Expands its Social Responsibility and Inclusion Team

By Natalie Scherlong Social Responsibility & Inclusion, WESTAF News

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE September 2, 2021 Contact: Leah Horn 720.664.2239 leah.horn@westaf.org DENVER, CO—The Western States Arts Federation (WESTAF) is thrilled to welcome two new team members to its Social Responsibility and Inclusion (SRI) division: Ashanti McGee, grants and access manager, and Jade Elyssa Cariaga, grants and equity manager. With more than a decade of experience in the field, McGee is both an artist and arts advocate who began her arts administrative work assisting local grassroots and nonprofits with grant writing and management. She most recently served as a district representative for Nevada Congresswoman Susie Lee, focusing on outreach for Black,…

Jul 22

Love0

Denver Artist Adri Norris To Create a Mural for the Women’s Suffrage Mural Project

By Natalie Scherlong PAA, Social Responsibility & Inclusion, WESTAF News

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE July 22, 2021 Contact: Leah Horn 720.664.2239 leah.horn@westaf.org DENVER, CO—The Western States Arts Federation (WESTAF) is excited to announce that local artist Adri Norris will paint a mural or series of murals highlighting the Women’s Suffrage movement in a highly trafficked site in Denver’s Montbello neighborhood. Norris will be painting the mural(s) near the Montbello Student Campus, a place that is central to many who reside and work in the district. WESTAF commissioned the creation of the mural related to Women’s Suffrage to mark the centennial of the decades-long journey, resulting in the landmark legislation that granted…

Jan 22

Love0

WESTAF Update Notes #107 | January 2020

By Samantha Ortega CVSuite, Newsletter, PAA, Programs, Social Responsibility & Inclusion, Updates

This is the 107th in a continuing series of updates about the work of WESTAF. PAA Announces Collection-Specific Interactive Maps The Public Art Archive™ (PAA) recently launched a new interactive mapping feature for public art collections. Collection Maps make engaging with public art easier than ever by giving visitors the ability to visualize public art collections on an interactive map, navigate to specific works of art, and discover artwork details. The feature replaces the need for development of costly websites and apps that drain time and resources on public art organizations. This latest addition to PAA’s suite of products and…

Nov 18

Love3

WESTAF Update Notes #106 | November 2019

By Samantha Ortega Advocacy, CaFE, Convenings, GO, Newsletter, Social Responsibility & Inclusion, Updates

This is the 106th in a continuing series of updates about the work of WESTAF. WESTAF Board of Trustees Meet in Denver Members of WESTAF’s board of trustees met October 23-24 in Denver. The meeting opened with a dinner at the historic Brown Palace Hotel that all WESTAF staff were invited to attend in order to build and deepen authentic relationships between trustees and staff. The meeting also included a gallery session, a “science fair”-style gathering designed to strengthen trustee and staff connections as we move ahead with our 10-year strategic plan. During the hour-long session, trustees visited six…