An Encore for Cleveland Artists

Heard of Encore Cleveland? It's an effort to to channel the time, energy and talents of experienced Clevelanders into solving community challenges and filling unmet needs. Encore Cleveland opportunities abound in many areas, from entrepreneurship and education to arts and culture.Take the Encore Artists program at Benjamin Rose Institute...

Why mastery-based arts education matters

We believe every child in Greater Cleveland should have access to enriching, immersive arts programming. Cleveland is a city renowned for its world-class arts and cultural resources, but children in low-income neighborhoods don’t necessarily have access to the wellspring of artistic talent in our city. We’re working to change...

Poems for these times

The tension around the upcoming election is really getting to me.  As I often do when anxious, I search through my favorite poems, looking for wisdom or solace or inspiration.  So it was that I came across the following three poems.  The first, by Denise Levertov, says a lot about how I hope our next president feels about the/our/my...

Summer of Purpose: Iris Kleinman

The lights dimmed. The curtain drew back. A spotlight appeared. Two legs, two feet, and then…a flurry of furious tapping, twirling and jumping! I had never seen anything so precise and fantastic come from a person’s feet before. This was only the opening of Dorrance Dance’s performance at Cleveland Public Theatre, and my first...

Cool Grand Rapids

About the title of the blog - later. First ... Last week the Global Cleveland Summit provided a terrific forum for brainstorming ideas about how Cleveland can create an environment and message of welcome and opportunity to the world, and a culture of optimism among locals. I did not get a chance to sample all the sessions offered...

Anisfield-Wolf Book Awards

Opening Minds. Challenging Minds. The Anisfield-Wolf Book Awards recognize books that have made important contributions to our understanding of racism and our appreciation of the rich diversity of human cultures. 2017 honorees with Anisfield-Wolf Jury Chair Henry Louis Gates Jr. (right), juror Rita Dove (center), and Cleveland...

Revisiting the ImagiNation

In December 2007, the Cleveland Foundation hosted a meeting of the Arts Education Partnership (AEP), a non-political think thank and consortium of organizations supporting the arts in learning. At that meeting, AEP rolled out a major frame-changing concept: to create the ImagiNation – a nationwide, grassroots movement to create public...

How I Spent My Summer: Cory Isler

As I throw myself head first into the nonprofit arts sector for a summer internship at the Cleveland Orchestra, I find myself flooded with questions. Initially, the questions are manageable, easily conquered: Where do I park? Should I wear a tie? How many times will I get lost until I find my way to the education office? The further I...

Big Job Ahead for Cleveland’s Newest Arts Leader

Last week a number of arts community members gathered to welcome Karen Gahl-Mills, the newly named executive director of Cuyahoga Arts and Culture (CAC) – our county funding agency for the arts.  And for once we didn’t have to warn an incoming executive to prepare for the Cleveland winter.  Ms. Gahl-Mills spent a bit of her teen...