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WESTAF News

Sep 14
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US Regional Arts Organizations Welcome Shannon Daut as National Director

By Articles, News, WESTAF News
The United States Regional Arts Organization (US RAOs) has announced the appointment of Shannon Daut as the US RAO Collective’s first ever National Director. The US RAOs are a national collective of six, place-based, nonprofit arts service organizations that strengthen America’s infrastructure by increasing access to creativity for all. The six RAOs are Arts Midwest, Mid-America Arts Alliance, Mid Atlantic Arts, New England Foundation for the Arts, South Arts, and WESTAF (Western States Arts Federation), with a combined  reach that spans across state, national, and international borders. "We are thrilled to welcome Shannon Daut as the National Director of the...
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Sep 11
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2023-24 National Leaders of Color Fellowship Application Launching Soon

By Articles, News, Social Responsibility & Inclusion, WESTAF News
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Contact: Leah Horn 720.664.2239 leah.horn@westaf.org   Second Round of National Leaders of Color Fellowship to Launch with Support from United States Regional Arts Organizations Application Opens September 18 for Unique  Eight-Month Leadership Development Experience Denver, CO, September 11, 2023—Western States Arts Federation (WESTAF) has partnered with its five United States Regional Arts Organization (USRAO) counterparts in continued support for the National Leaders of Color Fellowship, a transformative leadership development experience curated by WESTAF in order to establish multicultural leadership in the creative and cultural sector. By partnering with the other RAOs (Arts Midwest, Mid-America Arts Alliance, Mid...
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Jun 20
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Exciting News: WESTAF Welcomes Expanded Social Responsibility and Inclusion Team

By Social Responsibility & Inclusion, Staff, WESTAF News
WESTAF’s Social Responsibility and Inclusion (SRI) team is growing! Led by Director of Social Responsibility Anika Tené, the expanded team will support existing equity work in the region as well as new initiatives, including new technical assistance grant programs, deeper investment in the Leaders of Color Network, and the development of equity-centered tools and resources to further the work of WESTAF-region states and jurisdictions. In the coming months, the expanded team will unveil new approaches and philosophies around their work and share the different ways for the region to engage with them. Josh Ellis, Grants and Inclusion Manager With a...
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Jun 05
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New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Foundation: A Story of Arts, Culture, and Opportunity placed on a red and blue square with a picture of the Jazz Fest in the background.

New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Foundation: A Story of Arts, Culture, and Opportunity

By CaFE, GO, Grants, Technology, WESTAF News, ZAPP
The New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Foundation is a multi-faceted organization that spearheads music education, community engagement, and cultural preservation in Louisiana. Most famously, the Foundation owns and operates the New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival, a renowned annual showcase of musical performances, arts and crafts marketplaces, and local culinary delights. With an impressive attendance of over 460,000 individuals spanning seven days in April and May, the festival invigorates New Orleans, transforming it into a dynamic hub of cultural expression. The festival’s proceeds also play a pivotal role in funding the Foundation's wide range of programs, which encompass music education,...
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Apr 24
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WESTAF Announces BIPOC Artist Fund Awardees

By Grants, Social Responsibility & Inclusion, Special Projects, WESTAF News
WESTAF is delighted to share the awardees of the Black, Indigenous, and People of Color (BIPOC) Artist Fund! These artists represent a range of disciplines, from visual to performing arts, and we are thrilled to support their creativity and contributions to the cultural landscape of the Western region. Our team of reviewers identified 18 awardees (from a pool of more than 450 applications!), with one awardee per state and jurisdiction receiving an average of $10,000 per artist. Made possible through WESTAF's MacKenzie Scott gift, the fund will include four virtual group coaching sessions to build on the plans awardees shared...
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Jan 30
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WESTAF State Arts Agency Innovation Fund Announcement Featured Image

WESTAF Announces the State Arts Agency Innovation Fund

By Advocacy, Policy, Programs, WESTAF News
WESTAF is thrilled to share the launch of WESTAF’s State Arts Agency Innovation Fund. In an ongoing effort to inspire innovative and transformative practices within the 13-member state arts agencies in the West, the Fund aims to support state arts agency efforts to enhance their service to individuals, families, and communities and the arts and cultural industries in their states in ways that were previously difficult to achieve.  WESTAF has committed an initial $500,000 investment from the $8 million MacKenzie Scott and Dan Jewett gift received in 2021.The Fund has been structured to offer support to the transformative work of...
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Jan 25
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WESTAF BIPOC Artist Fund Announcement

WESTAF Announces the BIPOC Artist Fund

By 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...
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Jan 23
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WESTAF Announces the Launch of the Public Art Archive’s New Engagement Portal

By PAA, Programs, Special Projects, WESTAF News
WESTAF is thrilled to announce the launch of the reimagined and expanded Public Art Archive™ (PAA) website! Designed by Bilberrry, a full service digital agency and product studio behind websites such as David's Bridal and GoFundMe.org, the new site provides an immersive public art experience to better facilitate sustained public engagement with cultural assets across communities. Visitors are greeted with an optimized visual experience on the new home screen, drawing users in from the moment they land on the site. Discover the multitude of artworks spanning lived experience, geographic boundary, subject matter, and worktype in this centralized resource where street...
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Dec 13
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CNMI American Rescue Plan Grant Recipients

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

By 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...
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