press room
For Immediate Release
04/20/2005Contact:
Virginia Anagnos
Goodman Media International for Americans for the Arts
212.576.2700 ext. 222
MetLife Foundation and Americans for the Arts Announce a New Program of National Arts Forums to Take Place
NEW YORK, NY—April 20, 2005: MetLife Foundation and Americans for the Arts announced the creation of a new program of National Arts Forums, designed to address current and pressing issues affecting arts organizations across the country. The forums will be held throughout 2005 in Atlanta, Boston, Charlotte, Chicago, Denver, Hartford, Houston, Indianapolis, Miami, New York, Philadelphia, Phoenix, Pittsburgh, Portland, Providence, St. Louis, Saint Paul, San Francisco, and Washington, DC.
The MetLife Foundation National Arts Forums represent the largest collaboration to date between the foundation and Americans for the Arts, which recently merged with Arts & Business Council Inc. MetLife had previously sponsored a more limited number of forums through Arts & Business Council.
“This initiative is designed to focus attention on issues important to arts groups across the country,” said Sibyl Jacobson, president and CEO of MetLife Foundation.
Key topics to be explored in the 2005 National Arts Forums include shifting demographics, workplace giving, the transfer of wealth, and communications and marketing. Forums will be produced by affiliate members of the Arts & Business Council of Americans for the Arts. Summaries from each participating city will be posted on the Americans for the Arts website, www.AmericansForTheArts.org, in an interactive section that will encourage continued dialogue on the forum topics.
“This is an exciting new series that will offer great insights into cultural policy and 21st-century implementation issues for those actively involved in the arts community,” said Robert L. Lynch, president and CEO of Americans for the Arts. “We appreciate greatly MetLife Foundation's generous support.”
“MetLife Foundation's support for this series is exactly the kind of increased involvement from the business community that we hoped the merger would make possible,” said Gary P. Steuer, executive director of the Arts & Business Council of Americans for the Arts. “With this initiative, we are off to an exciting programmatic start.”
MetLife Foundation was established in 1976 by MetLife to carry on its longstanding tradition of corporate contributions and community involvement. Grants are made to support health, educational, civic and cultural organizations and programs. Recognizing the vital role the arts play in building healthy communities, MetLife Foundation contributes to arts and cultural organizations across the United States, with an emphasis on increasing opportunities for young people, reaching broader audiences through inclusive programming, and making arts more accessible for all people. For more information about the Foundation, please visit its Web site at www.metlife.org.
Americans for the Arts is the nation's leading nonprofit organization for advancing the arts in America. With more than 40 years of service, it is dedicated to representing and serving local communities and creating opportunities for every American to participate in and appreciate all forms of the arts. The Arts & Business Council of Americans for the Arts promotes partnerships between the arts and business. In addition to the MetLife Foundation National Arts Forum Series, it operates Business Volunteers for the Arts®, the National Arts Marketing Project, and a 14-city national affiliate network. For more information, visit www.AmericansForTheArts.org.
