Americans for the Arts will present the Americans for the Arts Annual Leadership Awards at the 2016 Annual Convention in Boston on Friday, June 17, 2016 from 12:00 p.m. to 2:15 p.m. These awards recognize the achievements of individuals and organizations committed to enriching their communities through the arts. 

 

Michael Spring, Director of the Miami-Dade County Department of Cultural Affairs, will be honored with the Selina Roberts Ottum Award. Presented jointly by Americans for the Arts and the National Endowment for the Arts for the past 26 years, the Selina Roberts Ottum Award recognizes outstanding contributions in the local arts agency field. 

 

As director of the Miami-Dade County Department of Cultural Affairs, Spring is responsible for supervision of a public arts agency with an annual budget of more than $33 million. In 2014, he was appointed to serve as a Senior Advisor for the County’s Cultural Affairs and Recreation portfolio, including oversight of the arts, parks, and libraries. Over the more than thirty years that he has served the Department of Cultural Affairs, Spring has helped build Miami-Dade County’s cultural community into a more than a $1 billion annual industry comprised of more than 1,000 non-profit cultural groups and thousands of artists.

 

Spring has a B.A. from the University of Miami and earned an M.A. in painting from New York University, involving studies in Venice, Italy. He continues to paint and develop his interests as a visual artist. 

 

More information on the 2016 Americans for the Annual Leadership Awards can be found in the press release.  

 

Stay tuned for more Leadership Award honoree highlights this week!