Foundation Grants
Community Vital Signs
About Us
City of Oakland Continues Innovative Cultural Strategists-In-Government Program for Third Cycle
Foundation: San Francisco Foundation
"Here in Oakland, artists really try to reflect the pulse of the people," says Kev Choice.
That's one reason the city of Oakland, Calif., is hiring six new cultural strategists to help solve some of the city's biggest problems, including school absenteeism, public safety, and cultural legacy in a shifting city, the San Francisco Chronicle reports.
The "Cultural Strategists in Government" program, a joint effort by the California Arts Council and San Francisco Foundation, will place the strategists in city departments and the offices of elected officials from 2021 to 2023.
"These projects represent a unique approach to civic engagement through collaborative efforts to address issues that include school absenteeism, public safety, and cultural legacy in a shifting city," says Roberto Bedoya, who leads the program.
The strategists will "bring new perspectives to how the City addresses some of the civic challenges we face," Bedoya says.
"The Cultural Strategists will foster a sense of belonging among our diverse and vibrant community that supports our lives together as Oaklanders," adds Choice.
The six new strategists are: Elo Almaraz working with the office of Councilmember Fortunato Bas, District 2Rashida Chase working with the office of Fife, District 3Charles Johnson working with the office of the Mayor
Read the Entire Article
Selected Foundation News
A customized collection of news from foundations from around the Web.
Pedestrians in West Hartford, Conn., will soon be able to cross more easily thanks to a $697,000 state grant. The Hartford Courant reports that the money from the Department of Transportation's...more
"I tried to get half and half the other day. I had to walk four city blocks, just to get a quart of half and half so I could have coffee. So to even get food around here is difficult," David...more
People of color make up about 20% of Spokane County, Wash., but they own about 8% of the county's businesses, reports the Spokesman-Review. That's why the Spokane Workforce Council is...more
More than 3,000 kids in Aberdeen, Scotland, sang "Northern Lights of Old Aberdeen" in front of thousands of family and friends over the weekend as part of the city's annual "Big Sing" event, the BBC...more
North Carolina's Cape Hatteras Secondary School has named its top students for the 2023-24 school term. Here are the top 10, per the Daily News: Zion Aiken: Math Iadette Harris: English IZander...more
Massachusetts' Fitchburg State University is adding two new majors this fallone in creative arts therapies and one in creative arts enterprisemaking it the first public institution in the state to...more
The New Brunswick Teachers Association is asking teachers and voters in the Canadian province to take a survey ahead of the next provincial election in September, the CBC reports. "We've seen a...more
Frances Bronet, president of New York's Pratt Institute, has been named chair of the Association of Independent Colleges of Art and Design, a group "dedicated to strengthening creative institutions,...more
The Oklahoma Arts Council has released its annual list of grant requests, and it's a doozy. This year's list includes a call for artists to "bring the arts to other statewide organizations," as...more
Northern Illinois University is looking for a full-time assistant coach for its men's basketball team, the Chicago Tribune reports. The ideal candidate will have at least three years' experience...more
Social Entrepreneurship
Spotlight
Social Enterprises Push Disabled Performers to the Spotlight
The Festival of Inclusive Arts, organized by the Arts with the Disabled Association, gives disabled performers a chance to shine.