The Tennessee Arts Commission’s Strategic Planning Northeast Public Meeting

 The Tennessee Arts Commission’s Strategic Planning Public Meeting

Wednesday, November 20, 2013 General Shale Brick Natural History Museum Visitor Center and Fossil Site in Gray 10:00 am until noon with networking and coffee at 9:30 a.m.

PANEL MEMBERS 

Scott Niswonger, President of the Niswonger Foundation, majority shareholder of Landair Transport, Inc., and Chairman Emeritus of Forward Air Corporation

Dennis R. Phillips, Mayor of the City of Kingsport, TN

Phil Pindzola, Director of the Public Works Administration at the City of Johnson City, TN

Richard Rose, Producing Artistic Director of the Barter Theatre in Abingdon, VA

Moderated by Ann Coulter, Principal, A. Coulter Consulting, Chattanooga

REPORT OUT

Collected responses from the round table discussion:

Question 1: How are the arts positively impacting your community? Give examples.

• Bring people from different economic, social, ethnic categories together to work on projects who would not interact together. Samples: Carousel project Kingsport and Dougherty project at ETSU—building 
• Volunteer in Jonesborough and JC—encouraging interest in moving into the community especially from retirees coming to the area from outside. More leisure time encourages additional interest in the arts. 
• Wealth of arts in the region—impressed. “Half backs”-retirees
• Need to get much better with Public relations/media impressions of the arts.
• Regional resources needed—such as A! Magazine—need more regional promotion. Must provide press with reason to write—give them new angles to promote the region
• Distinction between the arts and public art. Public art has made a difference in that people see visually that something is happening in the community. Visual arts are making a greater impact than places where you need to go—such as museums and performing arts events.
• Can arts education programs track active participation of students in relation to reduced drug use.  
• Activate community support to keep arts in school.   Take the arts to children and to their schools.  What are the barriers?  Athletics before arts?  Educate the parents about social and behavioral benefits.   
• Exposure to arts is desirable to industries hiring.
• Engage parents to help promote importance.
• A lot of arts are happening behind the scenes like arts education workshops in services for teachers. We would like to know how to promote “the behind the scenes” arts better. 
• Getting audiences is challenge. 
• We don't have a central place to connect and meet. We have lost connectivity over time.
• Tennessee arts center in Erwin. 
• From April to October ISC storytelling has a weekly performance we take people to. 
• ETSU is doing major arts initiatives and performances. 
• Years ago you had to go to Asheville to see arts, but now we can take them to people to see in here in NETN. Asheville has branded itself as a cultural center. We here in NETN are trying to do the same.  
• People travel to Heartwood in Abingdon  from Campbell County
• We don't have cities or cultural hubs so it’s important how to make arts accessible to people in rural counties. Louis Blues Festival is a regional draw. 
• Number 1 for meth and known for child abuse—arts is beginning to build pride. 
• No music instruction in our schools. 
• Technology is transforming arts in rural communities is so important to start with teacher education on why and how arts important. 
• What about an arts track in education?
•  Cultural events open up the world to people.
• Create outlets for young people.
• Small communities: try to see what they'd are doing, identify local talent, encourage through the teachers those that have talent.
• Open people’s minds up to discovery of a different positive way of being adventurous.
• Art education
•  Carousel project, on a volunteers paint their own bird on a round board and they’re put up by the community
•  Kingsport Art guild helping with artistic needs of the community and doing art shows
• Johnson City program where teachers help under privileged and have art galleries
•  Kingsport and Johnson City each have symphonies that are often free for people to see. Johnson city symphony provides a Christmas music program for students that helps introduce them to classical music
• “On the street” showing of art helps a community be aware and appreciate art
• Fund-raiser where artists did a small artwork and the audience members got to take home an piece, it helped bring awareness to the art community
• Including arts at a young age and in the home can help just overall enrich
• Bristol – Rhythm and Blues festival – 30 to 50 K visitors this last year – 10 % increase
• Economic impact – bringing in $ from outside the city
• Music festivals allied with arts and crafts – multi-disciplinary cross-pollination
• Digital perspective – the arts bring in some young people – have to get others to make the commitment to bring their skills and knowledge back
• Groundwork is being laid – profile is being raised
• Free field trips for Bristol ballet – audience development
• Storytelling – artist in residency program in Jonesborough – regular event that brings people – internationally well known – attributes very desirable
• Regardless of the Storytelling Center’s problem (past bankruptcy), festival still bringing in people and storytellers
• Guilds – storytelling – has helped revive the storytelling movement
• Different cities are branded by dominant arts voices – Bristol – country music, Jonesborough – storytelling, Kingsport – visual art – blessing and curse to have defined
• Birthplace of country music museum support for museum
• The arts have played a major role in the revitalization. Of downtown Bristol
• The arts help communities validate local culture and local /community identity
• The arts the helped become comfortable with their identity/feeling validated
• College bound students coming to higher education because of new blue grass program
• Playing instruments - pick changing kids sense of self worth

Question 2:What can we do beyond funding to get the arts to more children in your region

• Must believe in education—not a pro-education emphasis in our region. Must emphasize education first and then arts must be part. Arts-in-education is cut and not successful when education is not valued. 
• Negative attitude toward education because generations have been able to survive and put food on the table without strong educational background. Large portion of population is satisfied with place
• Could we use other stepping stones such as using sports? Example is band boosters with Niswonger—bands happened because of school needs.
• Music is common denominator. Can we involve parents more?
• Not prepared to deal with the costs of education.
• How can we change the tide from STEM to STEAM?
• Children and parents become more involved in the arts when parents see that the children really flourish when they are involved. Leverage the arts with parents through the children. Get this into public view. 
• There are a lot of arts activity in the region that are not recognized as a valid arts activity. Arts are embedded into the regional culture—we need to reconcile the arts as significant part of lives in the region. The word “arts” is difficult to digest for many in the community—example: banjo player may not recognize himself/herself as an artist. If carousel project had been called art, many people would not have been involved.
• Need to move the arts from elitist activity—move from black ties to polo shirts. To many compartments in the arts and recognize all arts forms—crafts, utilitarian works, photographs, banjo playing. 
• Photography has become accessible and much more democratic.
• For the public’s part, have a percent for art so on every city project. One percent goes to the art fund.  Hotel percent might be good thing to talk about. The motor speedway tax? 
• Not a lot was talked about the historical part but it impacts the cultural so much and we are very rich here so it could be incorporated into the tourism part. 
• We could not do without TAC. Heritage Days only exists because of TAC. 
• We have so many artists of all kinds, but would like a larger stage person to come here. 
• We need additional opportunities for more artists to be on stage. 
• Arts are not a priority, but we are bringing it to the fore front.  
• We partner, but it's like pulling teeth to get people to step out of the box. How do they know they are not into the arts?  They need education and exposure.
• Arts educated kids do so much better. We just need more.
• Small county schools—we have tremendous cultural artists in this region. 
• What about a central opportunity to communicate and match artists with students and schools?
• We have JA that connects businesses with schools.
• What about connecting artists with students? 
• Start with children allowing them to be okay with their interest in arts, as opposed to just sports. Show children through exhibits and programs that they have a choice, the option. The ability to develop individually and through team work. Music performance helps kids to exhibit their own creativity, through plays and bands, poetry, etc. this is especially true in the schools.
• Most times the arts and music are the first to get cut when funding dries up. Many children's talents lie in the arts. Many families in the area pushy children toward sports and academics. The arts give children an opportunity to explore.
• The culture has changed some through schools consolidating and through diversity. The larger schools do a better job, but most funding is still prioritized to sports activity.
• Limited opportunities for the arts. Not a lot of accolades for achievement in the arts. We need to strive to seek leaders school directors etc. the leadership in interest in the arts and community. If nobody cares, the funding will not happen, however when the leadership cultivates an agenda that includes promoting, ensuring, supporting the arts. Advocates for the arts must be at every venue.
• In the past, assembly at school was an opportunity for students to get exposure to the arts, public and political activity, etc. This was such an important aspect of school, one that has been lost.\
• Liability for schools stops some activity. Students need to get out of their schools, go on field trips
• We need more activities in the afternoon. Gives culture to those attending, broadens the flow. 
• STEAM concepts very important in education, not just an emphasis on science, technology, math, etc. The arts is important too.
•  A school for performing arts would be good, other places have special performing arts schools that students have to audition to get accepted
•  Expose kids and parents even if they don't want it at the time, get acceptance that there is other things than football, open their mind to art, that it is okay to participate in arts activity, not just sports.
•  Travel from location to location. Field trips!
• Clearinghouse for arts experiences that are available for schools like what is available at ISC. It is difficult for ISC to do that outreach, but is willing to do that if it had help. 

• Western NC community colleges have artists at the colleges to provide access to that artist for the community. 
• Hard to get into the schools—need to get more children involved, get school administration on board. 
• Like the idea of distance learning to bring arts. 
• Folk life is essential and is a connector—quilter, basket-makers—and they in turn can be a connector to the arts. 
• After school, ISC is looking to develop school break camps, and other after school programs for kids. 
• The fossil site has summer camps. 
• Artists want to network and meet people and work with kids. 
• Transportation is a big problem part for rural communities. Most of the children are bused for an hour or more for school. 
• City of cultural designation—building a bridge that was a public project, but surrounded with arts activities that helped transformed that city as a city of culture.
• Quilt-trail, tying the artist with the land they come from has just developed an app.
•  Invite members of the art organizations to go into schools
• Art guilds find interested people who can help recruit and involve other people in the cause; teachers and so on
•  Inspire people more to be willing to step up to the plate and give their time in this busy world and become more active
• Working with the universities, getting student volunteers to help with art programs
•  Incorporating other types of people in art project; builders, and so on
•  Start and continue art education from an early age
• Must re-educate people – how the arts available corresponds with academic achievement
• Parents – must appreciate the arts
• Community must appreciate the arts – imagination 
• Children once exposed to the arts – they will demand or request the arts
• Arts provide positive identification for children
• Kids – provide venues & exposure
• Provide more exposure of benefits – set up a network of public artists
• Instrumental music– need a good ambassador/spokesperson – like Scott Niswonger
• Higher Education – can retrain educators to integrate the arts

Question 3: What could we do to help the arts get “a seat at the table” in all Tennessee communities?

• Marketing, promotion, public relations, economic impact.
• Do we need to identify what tables we need to be part of?
•  Arts must be recognized as part of the economic discussion of the region.
•  Show economic and educational advantages of the arts and what it really means to a community. 
• Need “fifty” people in the government groups.
• No members of general assembly, city commissions, chamber of commerce attending the meeting—we need elected officials as part of the conversation. Business people are recognizing value of the arts in communities. Sell concept of public arts to recruiting physicians, businesses, health care, etc. 
• Business Journal—largest employer in region—MSHA. Need to partner more with health care.
• Describing the arts in economic as important—get the businesses/others to use our language. Economic impact is important, but arts drive culture of region as well. Once phone line is open, we need to get message across that the arts are more than entertainment. 
• First impressions are very significant—corridors into the region are important—
•  Arts are important for building community
• Must remain aware of competition between groups for the same audience. Is there a way to build a central clearing house for the arts for the regional organizations. Tri-cities regional marketing. 
• Schedule time with local elected officials to make personal connections and present reasonable project agendas with ROI expressed and solutions to real community problems.  Talk specifics about social issues in the community.
• Create a task force with parents and governments to help advocate for the arts.
• When someone from far away speaks on behalf of our programs and gives their stamp of approval, it makes such a difference of getting officials to listen. 
•  Arts things are going on but coming from small select people. Never request from general population. Need to survey general public and impression.
• This is great meeting today and hasn't happen very much here. This is great and surprised to see the turnout and the people here, including business people and others. 
• No common space where people can get together. Other places artist decommissioned old industrial sites, warehouses into arts spaces. 
• TAC needs to advocate and educate local leaders on the importance of the arts to education and economic development. 
• TAC needs to use local arts assets and organizations to help tell the story of value of the arts. 
• Convening people is so important 
• Bring in education people here would have been very important. 
• How about a meeting with the schools? Scott Niswonger started personally and expanded into the schools. 
• TAC to have panels to get these different members to the table. NC had the artists, community colleges, handmade in America and then had a connector that connected the artist with the schools. 
• Can't leverage Memphis, but let's use each other. Greeneville to help and connect with Greeneville. We need the Commission to help us connect with each other. 
• Wow, Nashville recognizes what we are doing and it is good. We need to extend and help each other. 
• Help us understand examples of why important and what is working. 
• How to encourage private investment and support in this region? 
• Development and support a private network of support for this region. 
• Can TAC help with this? Here at the fossil site imaginative contemplation is art. Who tells the public this? 
• Remote art, murals on buildings downtown and in rural communities will help. Success breeds success. 
• Seat at the table needs to include young people. 
• Social meeting, the idea of art is important for arts sake. 
• A child, a film maker can be the public face of the arts. 
• Once a month publish "ink" in Kingsport times news student's talking about movies, etc.
• Diversity draws out talent from people that may be hidden. People want to be a part of a downtown that has lots of activity.
• We need TAC to train politicians to understand the need for arts and arts education. I can increase tourism. Create a group to market the region and each city, coordinate events. Promote it. This is a warm and giving area. Excellent retirement destination.
• Tourism industry important. State tourism board needs to open up the " good old boy" system and go beyond stereotypes of East Tennessee. Advertisements that promote the area. Community that would schedule events in a coordinated way, to allow people to travel and go to multiple events over a few days.
• These things are far flung. Through the art commission and the Washington county redevelopment the focus should be on attracting people to develop empty buildings. This region is approachable by huge populations in surrounding area.
• We should not beat ourselves up. There are plenty of people here that are interested in the arts. Such great feedback from people. The community is amazing. We have to create outlets, even if individually. There is incredible feedback and support in the area.
• There is a lot of help and support from people.
• Start creating outlets and you would be surprised how much it can grow.
• One member expressed surprise in this meeting, and happiness, this person is new to the area. She is impressed with the support of the arts in this area, and the hope it brings for the future.
• More prime time promotion of events and cultural assists.
• Squeaky wheel gets the grease
• Art guilds start attending government meetings also encourage individuals to become active
• Improve salesmanship of your artistic program or group
• Document and record how art improves children’s lives when you do programs with kids
• Promote programs with youth
• Kingsport had mayor get business leaders connected with the arts – leadership
• Gave credibility to Birthplace of Country Music
• Helped get the % for arts passed
• Ability to get funder involved
• Artists need help connecting their vocations with community issues
• Arts information – ads – showing that the arts are for all people
• Need evidence and research to better advocate for the arts
• When arts groups fail, worry about what the public perception is 
• Lots of people with talents who could be part – need training
• Board education & training – same people – need bigger pool
• Many teachers feel that they don’t have the time for STS
• Representatives of TAC should visit and speak – impactful
• Difficult website (TAC) – need to redone – better resources
• Film office – we need one in NETN – tax incentives – other areas are collapsing
• Have to honor local creators – encourage industry to use local talent
• Need help to leverage support – information and representation by TAC