DeVos Institute launches capacity building intensive in San Jose
February 04, 2015
SAN JOSE, CALIF. – The DeVos Institute of Arts Management at the University of Maryland has announced a two-year arts management training and consultancy program for 20 arts and culture organizations in the San José area.
Over the next two years, the Institute will provide intensive training in long-term artistic planning, board development and engagement, marketing, fundraising, and strategic planning.
The project will offer intensive, one-on-one consultation to local cultural organization board members and executives to assist with such complex capacity building projects as joint ventures, mergers, succession planning, capital campaigns, and real estate expansion.
The Capacity Building: Greater San José project kicks off with a group seminar by DeVos Institute President Brett Egan on Monday, February 9.
“San José is a priority for us because it’s an emblem of the ‘new America,’” said Egan. “What’s happening in San José and Santa Clara County—the convergence of cultures, traditions, opportunities, and technologies—is exhilarating and worth national attention. We’ll be working with local leaders to build on the foundations they have developed over decades and that have played a part in the ascent of San José as a cultural capital. We look forward to teaming with MACLA, the City of San José, and our funding partners to elevate what is learned through this program to the national stage.”
The DeVos Institute has a record of accomplishment leading successful capacity building initiatives in Chicago, Detroit, Grand Rapids, Miami, New York, Orlando, and Portland, in addition to its work with more than 1,000 organizations throughout the United States and around the world.
“We are so pleased to begin our work with the cultural sector in one of the nation’s most dynamic regions,” said DeVos Institute Chairman Michael M. Kaiser. “We want to help ensure that the diverse arts organizations in Greater San José are well-positioned to serve their community over the coming decades.”
The San José arts management training program aims at long-term sustainability as the region’s cultural landscape evolves. Organizations will be paired with an advisor from the DeVos Institute who will provide ongoing consultation tailored to local realities. Classes are offered online and in- person group seminars.
The 20 participating organizations are:
- Anne and Mark’s Art Party
- Ballet San José
- Bay Area Glass Institute
- Chinese Performing Arts of America
- City Lights Theater Company of San José
- El Teatro Campesino
- History San José
- Montalvo Arts Center
- Opera Cultura
- Opera San José
- Palo Alto Art Center/Palo Alto Art Center Foundation
- San José Chamber Orchestra
- San José Institute of Contemporary Art
- San José Jazz
- San José Stage Company
- The Research Foundation of San José State University
- The Tabard Theatre Company
- Triton Museum of Art
- Vivace Youth Chorus of San José
- ZERO1: The Art & Technology Network
Capacity Building: Greater San José is made possible with the support of the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation, the City of San José Office of Cultural Affairs, The William and Flora Hewlett Foundation, American Express Foundation, and the Castellano Family Foundation. Organizing support for Capacity Building: Greater San José is provided by MACLA/Movimiento de Arte y Cultura Latino Americana.
“We have seen firsthand the changes the DeVos Institute can foster in a community. In Miami and Detroit, this program has helped cultural institutions grow by leaps and bounds. We’re excited to see how San José organizations use this curriculum to enhance their work," said Dennis Scholl, Vice President of Arts for the Knight Foundation.
“San José is home to an extraordinarily vibrant arts community,” said Kerry Adams Hapner, Director of the City of San José Office of Cultural Affairs. “Our organizations are incredibly diverse, but many share common challenges, including the need to broaden their philanthropic support and focus on strategic and artistic planning. This initiative will help to support the long-term sustainability of the arts community that helps to define San José as a truly remarkable city.”
“American Express is proud to support opportunities for leaders of nonprofit organizations to expand their leadership skills,” said Timothy J. McClimon, President, American Express Foundation. “Greater San José is home to an exciting, diverse arts community, and we are so pleased to partner with the DeVos Institute to empower staff and board members of cultural organizations there to build a strong future for the region’s vibrant arts sector.”
“The Castellano Family Foundation is very pleased to be one of the funding partners in establishing the DeVos Institute Capacity Building program in Silicon Valley,” said Carmen Castellano, President of the Castellano Family Foundation. “This vigorous two-year program provides one-on-one in-depth consulting and training in fundraising, marketing, artistic and strategic planning, and board development. These skills will be of tremendous benefit to our local arts group. Congratulations to the organizations selected to participate in this dynamic arts management training program.”
About the DeVos Institute of Arts Management at the University of Maryland
The DeVos Institute of Arts Management provides training, consultation, and implementation support for arts managers and their boards. It operates on the premise that while much is spent to train artists, too little is spent to support the managers and boards who keep those artists at work. At the same time, rapid changes in technology, demographics, government policy, and the economy have complicated the job of the manager and volunteer trustees.
The DeVos Institute has served more than 1,000 organizations from over 80 countries since Michael M. Kaiser founded it during his tenure as President of the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts in Washington, D.C. The Institute has designed its services to assist a wide range of institutions, from traditional performing and presenting organizations, museums and galleries, arts schools and libraries, to botanical gardens, glass-making studios, public art trusts, and non-profit cinemas, to name a few.
The DeVos Institute transferred its activities and offices from the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts to the University of Maryland in September 2014. The move enables the Institute to expand its global training and consulting programs, enhance its fellowships for North American and international arts managers within the context of a major educational institution, and create a Master’s program that leverages both University and Institute resources. http://www.provost.umd.edu/devosinstitute/
About the City of San José Office of Cultural Affairs
The Office of Cultural Affairs is the City’s lead agency for supporting and promoting the development of a rich arts and cultural environment for this diverse city's nearly one million residents, its workers who live in neighboring communities, and its many visitors. It fosters cultural development through cultural funding programs, cultural workforce development, specials event services, and public art. For more information visit www.sanjoseculture.org.
About the City of San José
From its founding in 1777 as California's first city, San José has been a leader, driven by its spirit of innovation. Today, San José is the largest city in Northern California and the Capital of Silicon Valley—the world's leading center of innovation. The city, the 10th largest in the U.S., is committed to remaining a top- ranked place to do business, to work and to live. For more information, visit www.sanjoseca.gov.
MEDIA CONTACTS
Joseph Heitz, Director, External Relations; DeVos Institute of Arts Management
(301) 314-0957; jeheitz@devosinstitute.net
Cara Douglas, Senior Business Communications Manager, City of San José
(559) 349-8085; cara.douglas@sanjoseca.gov