What shifts in equitable grant making equities are you thinking about? What shifts are you trying to make? What’s working? And what isn’t working? What obstacles around grant making are specific to the Folk and Traditional Arts? In what ways can the Folk and Traditional Arts serve as a bridge in equity work?
This virtual workshop (1) provides opportunities to share stories of grant-making process changes that seek to promote equity, (2) provides space for attendees to discuss opportunities for equity-based changes, and (3) learn about resources for supporting equity in grant-making processes within the folk and traditional arts programs.
This workshop also will include an overview of Funding Choice Points: A Grant-making Reflection Tool for State Arts Agencies, a toolkit that helps state arts agencies to make funding more accessible and avoid unintended bias in their grant-making systems. Funding Choice Points examines the full grant cycle—from program design and eligibility criteria to adjudication and reporting. We’ll be the first state arts agency peer group to explore a brand new edition, slated for release early January 2024! Kelly Barsdate from NASAA will introduce us to this timely resource, which offers a wide assortment of ideas for state arts agencies seeking to reduce barriers to arts funding.
Kelly Barsdate is the Chief Program and Planning Officer at the National Assembly of State Arts Agencies (NASAA). She has more than 30 years of experience advising government arts agencies on grant-making policy, strategic planning and program evaluation. Kelly oversees NASAA’s state technical assistance services and executive leadership programs. She has led partnerships with Grant-makers in the Arts, E.A. Michelson Philanthropy, the National Governors Association, the National Conference of State Legislatures, the National Endowment for the Arts, the National Alliance of Community Economic Development Associations and ArtPlace America, among others. Kelly sits on the advisory board of the Center for Cultural Affairs at Indiana University and is a consulting editor of the peer-reviewed Journal of Arts Management, Law, and Society. Born and raised in rural Alaska, Kelly holds an Executive Certificate of Facilitation from Georgetown University, a Change Leader certification from the State of Utah and an English degree from Oberlin College. She’s an avid amateur naturalist and devoted bird nerd.