Yesterday, the U.S. House of Representatives passed H.Con.Res. 275, legislation designating the second week of September as “Arts in Education Week.” Authored and introduced by California Representative Jackie Speier (D-CA), this resolution is the first Congressional expression of support celebrating all the disciplines comprising arts education. This is a very positive showing of support for arts education and comes at a key time when Congress is making plans to overhaul federal education policy. 
  
The resolution seeks to support the attributes of arts education that are recognized as instrumental to developing a well-rounded education such as creativity, imagination, and cross-cultural understanding. H.Con.Res. 275 also highlights the critical link between those skills and preparing our children for gaining a competitive edge in the global economy. This is an important message for policy makers to acknowledge as they prepare to reauthorize federal education policy. To send a message to your member of Congress in support for arts education, please visit our E-Advocacy Center.

As a House resolution, the bill does not require signature by the President upon its passage. You can read the resolution here.

Americans for the Arts is planning an Arts Education Blog Salon for the celebratory week. The Americans for the Arts Action Fund’s 50 States 50 Days initiative will also be a way underway during this time. Resources on the Arts Action Fund website help arts advocates to use their arts institutions at home to convey their message about the arts in a setting that reinforces themes of economic development; jobs in the arts; arts education; and partnerships between artists, institutions, and local policymakers.

We realize that September 12 is right around the corner, so please get the word out to make the first Arts in Education Week a successful one!

For contact details and applications click here

Americans for the Arts is back on MTV’s 44 ½ to find out why the arts matter to you! The Why Arts Matter Video Contest call for proposals ad will be running on the MTV 44 ½ screen located in Times Square from Monday, July 19 through Sunday, July 25. Those of you in New York City can see the ad being playing :10, :20, :30, :40 minutes after the hour every hour. The MTV 44 ½ screen is directly across from the MTV studios.

Why Arts Matter Video Contest is created in honor of the 50th Anniversary of Americans for the Arts. Join us in celebrating the arts in America by creating a video that tells “Why the Arts Matter” to you!

To find read about contest rules and submission details please visit the Why Arts Matter Video Contest website.

For contact details and applications click here

The National Endowment for the Humanities and the Humanities Department of the National Autonomous University of Mexico (Coordinación de Humanidades de la Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México [UNAM]) are cooperating to foster the exchange of information and advance research in the humanities. NEH is inviting applications for scholarly conferences through the Collaborative Research program. United States nonprofit institutions and organizations are encouraged to apply for funding for a conference that aims to further humanities scholarship and includes participation by scholars from the United States and UNAM. Participants may also include other scholars from Mexico and other countries who are conducting research pertinent to the topic. A conference application, for example, may focus on the current status of research in a particular humanities field or fields that are of interest to a wide scholarly audience or focus on a single issue of binational scholarly concern.

For contact details and applications click here

Americans for the Arts is back on MTV’s 44 ½ to find out why the arts matter to you! The Why Arts Matter Video Contest call for proposals ad will be running on the MTV 44 ½ screen located in Times Square from Monday, July 19 through Sunday, July 25. Those of you in New York City can see the ad being playing :10, :20, :30, :40 minutes after the hour every hour. The MTV 44 ½ screen is directly across from the MTV studios.

Why Arts Matter Video Contest is created in honor of the 50th Anniversary of Americans for the Arts. Join us in celebrating the arts in America by creating a video that tells “Why the Arts Matter” to you!

To find read about contest rules and submission details please visit the Why Arts Matter Video Contest website.

For contact details and applications click here

The National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH) today announced $897,000 in grants for five international digital humanities projects, in partnership with the German Research Foundation (Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft, DFG), which contributed approximately $772,000.

For contact details and applications click here

For contact details and applications click here

The web version of the new NEA ARTS is posted. The issue focuses on the arts in Washington, DC

For contact details and applications click here

75 not-for-profits,including arts and cultural organizations, libraries, and universities,will receive grants totaling $1 million to host Big Read projects between September 2010 and June 2011.

For contact details and applications click here

Robert L. Lynch, president and CEO of Americans for the Arts, interviewed Redford at an event on June 24 at the Philadelphia Theater Company presented by the Arts & Business Council of Greater Philadelphia (an affiliate of the Greater Philadelphia Chamber of Commerce) and professional services company Towers Watson. Redford spoke about his childhood, his business experiences and the importance of creativity in business.

For contact details and applications click here

On July 7, 2010, the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) and by the U.S. Housing and Urban Development Department (HUD) held a joint webinar and announced two new funding opportunities for the arts community. NEA Chairman Rocco Landesman has been spearheading negotiations with multiple federal agencies to broaden their grant guidelines to include components for arts and culture. Local arts agencies are encouraged to work with their city and county governments to apply for these new funding opportunities to create more livable communities through the arts. The two new opportunities are the Sustainable Communities Regional Planning Grant and a combination of the Transportation Investment Generating Economic Recovery program and the Sustainable Community Challenge Grant program.

The webinar covered both new funding opportunities, highlighting where nonprofit arts groups can participate. Access the full PowerPoint now, and check back at www.hud.gov/webcasts in the coming days for the full webinar. Additionally, you can read HUD’s press release.

APPLICATION DEADLINE: The pre-application deadline is July 26, 2010 and full applications are due August 23, 2010.

Click here for the full synopsis.

For contact details and applications click here