Page 58 - APAP - Inside Arts - Conference 2020

and other underserved communities are a big issue for us, and we are working very hard on outreach.
The APAP|NYC conference always addresses some element of creativity.
Could you talk a bit about creativity in the field?
As long as there are people, there will always be creativity. The arts will always endure. One of the things I discovered when I started here more than two years ago was that few people know what we actually do. Even fewer people know about our footprint across the nation. We have taken a much stronger approach to branding and marketing. So rather than hiding
in the corner, I think we should be shouting from the mountaintops on so many of our programs.
Where do you see the arts falling into the course of
a person’s day?
In my own personal life, arts are a necessity. My daughter is dyslexic. She goes to a school where they integrate the arts into the teaching method so for the most part she learns visually. So I can never consider the arts a luxury. I will always consider them a necessity.
You don’t come out of a traditional arts background. What do you bring to this position precisely because you don’t come out of the arts?
I bring the passion for my own child. I am someone who has seen the
arts change a life. And that’s pretty powerful. I also bring a pragmatic business background. I can look and see that we do great work, and no one
knows about it. I have a background in marketing and communications.
So communicating what we do,
what our footprint is, our spread of good works is crucial to a job like
this that is always on the edge of the political fight. I also understand that maintaining the confidence of our federal partners – the administration, Congress – is extremely important.
What would you like the people in the audience to know about you that they might not know from your talking points or your bio?
I think arts affect us in ways we don’t even recognize. Arts are a part of who weareandofwhatwedo.WhenI think of our art therapy programs for our military men and women recovering from traumatic brain injuries – that is part of their clinical treatment. When I see one of our grants that has been used to help those with disabilities shine and be a star, that is significantly important.
56 INSIDE ARTS CONFERENCE 2020