We’re pleased to announce new partners to help us advance art as central to problem solving in our region, as well as a new commitment to ArtPlace America.

Springboard for the Arts, the Plains Art Museum and Racing Magpie will lead a reimagined Creative Community Leadership Institute (CCLI). “We are thrilled to be in partnership with Racing Magpie, the Plains Art Museum and the Bush Foundation to support and connect artists, culture bearers and community leaders across the region.” says Laura Zabel, executive director of Springboard for the Arts. CCLI was first launched by Intermedia Arts in 2002 as a leadership development opportunity for artists interested in community development and for community developers interested in integrating art into their work.

Arts Midwest will become the operating partner for our Community Creativity Cohort 2 program. Community Creativity Cohort 2 is designed to help organizations led by and serving people of color, Indigenous people and people from rural communities increase their capacity to make art and culture central to problem solving. “We are honored to work with this formidable group of community leaders who are catalyzing change and honoring their neighbors using creativity and culture,” says Erin Brueggemann,  Arts Midwest program director. “I look forward to learning from them and to helping foster a space for them to learn together, deepen their work and build friendships across our region. For Arts Midwest, this work is central to our vision of vibrant and healthy communities, and we are grateful to join them on this journey.”

Arts Midwest and Springboard for the Arts were selected from two pools of proposals submitted in response to RFPs we announced in March.

Finally, we want to congratulate Erik Takeshita on his transition from his current role as Community Creativity Portfolio Director to a loaned executive Senior Fellow at ArtPlace America as part of our continued commitment to their work in our region. Erik spent the last few years leading our Community Creativity initiative and will now bring his extensive expertise and knowledge of the region to help ArtPlace advance its mission to position arts and culture as a core sector of community planning and development.

Congratulations to our new partners and to Erik!