Arts Midwest

Arts Midwest is the leading regional arts organization in the nation funded by the National Endowment for the Arts, private foundations and individuals. The agency's programs not only have a positive impact on the member nine state region but expand throughout the entire nation with projects like The Big Read and Shakespeare in American Communities. I am delighted to serve on the board of this outstanding organization with an impressive and hard working staff. It's a great nonprofit headquarter in Minneapolis.

As the development officer for a library district in New York State, I have worked with Arts Midwest for four years in connection with The Big Read. I have been extremely impressed by the level of expertise demonstrated by their staff and also very appreciative of their friendliness, patience and willingness to do all they can to support a client organization such as ours.

I had the pleasure of working with Arts Midwest on The Big Read 2009. I serve as the public information officer for the Poughkeepsie Public Library District and it was my first experience with The Big Read so I definitely had a lot of questions and concerns. I found that Christine, Birdie, Angharad and the entire Arts Midwest staff to be extremely helpful and responsive. I was very impressed with how smoothly the initial Big Read Orientation event went, as there were close to 1,000 people in attendance, and it became obvious from the way we were greeted at the airport to the time we departed that a "well-oiled machine" was running the show. Their obvious enthusiasm for promoting literature through community involvement is contagious, and there was never a question too obvious or a concern too small for them, they were a wonderful partner in what turned out to be an unforgettable experience for me and the community I serve.

Arts Midwest is an outstanding organization. I have been engaged in numerous ways-- and have been personally and professionally enriched at every intersection with both their programs and their staff. Arts Midwest has given me industry connections that allowed a job transition across state lines (from Nebraska to Minnesota)to be much easier. I'm grateful for Arts Midwest and all it's programs and membership activities.

Arts Midwest provides many services to audiences, arts organizations and artists, through programs such as Arts Midwest World Fest, the Performing Arts Fund, the Midwest Arts Conference, The Big Read, the Arts Learning Exchange and many others. Services vary among programs and may include providing educational support to teachers and students; supporting arts services organizational staff through professional development; providing opportunities for regional arts and artists to step beyond where they are today. Most important is the collaborative leadership role taken by each member of the extraordinary staff at Arts Midwest in approaching their constituents, their work and new challenges. As Executive Director, David Fraher brings vision, creativity and compassion to his work and always thinks beyond...even when the next step is to confront the impact of today's economics on state arts agencies. "Beyond" keeps the focus on the new opportunities for the arts, artists and audiences. I have experienced Arts Midwest as an employee, a retiree, a volunteer and now, as a member of the board.

I was asked to join this board a few years ago. I am very inspired by this organization and what they have done for the Arts in a nine state region. I have been very impressed by the professionalism of each and every staff member. They are small in numbers but mighty in delivering great services and programs to many artists and art organizations.

We are a grantee under the Shakespeare for a New Generation program. I have found Arts Midwest responsvie, friendly, interested in all program results-not just the rave reviews. Reminders are friendly, materials very professional and timely.

We have benefitted great from Arts Midwest and their work with the Performing Arts Fund and with The Big Read Program. We have been a part of the Big Read program for four years in a row. We're hoping for a fifth.

I found out about Arts Midwest because of their annual conference. What a beautiful thing! - both the conference and my serendipitous discovery of it. It seems like an oxymoron, but Arts Midwest has this arts conference thing down to a science. They are efficient and organized. They listen to feedback and adjust as (or if) appropriate. Being my first arts conference experience, they spoiled me. Subsequent conferences hosted by similar organizations have not met the benchmarks set by Arts Midwest in terms of organization, information sharing, caliber of participants, etc. By their cooperation with and connection to both artists and presenters, I can only guess at the thousands of dollars saved by communities throughout their nine-state region. With Arts Midwest as the catalyst, fine and performing arts centers in communities large and small can bring the highest caliber of talent to their audiences. This is accomplished perhaps most immediately through the funding programs made available through AM. Also important, though less direct, are the educational workshops, seminars and round-table discussions at the conference. AM invests in career development for those willing souls who work at keeping the arts alive for the rest of the community. And then, by the showcases at the annual conference, they allow presenters to catch a 15-minute live audition by some amazingly talented artists which they might otherwise never get to see. Sure, they receive press kits all the time, and they might occasionally make a talent scouting trip to some other venue to assess one performer or performance. But the Midwest Arts Conference lets them scout dozens of performers in one extended trip. These are just the obvious strengths of Arts Midwest's annual conference. I haven't even begun to mine the wealth of knowledge and cooperative spirit that I'm sure they bring to all their other programs. I'm sure that it takes a substantial budget to maintain the programs and to retain the knowledgeable staff. But when I think of how they help the community theaters and restored opera houses and other shoestring budget places bring world-class talent to their stages, I know that the world is getting a bargain in the Arts Midwest states. Please support Arts Midwest with whatever time, effort, funding or skill you can, because especially in times like these, "the show MUST go on."

Mauvais Sort came to Traverse City ,Michigan. They had workshops for students of all abilities. But the way they explained their music and the instruments they played was awesome to hear. The students that I brought to hear Mauvais Sort were quite disabled.. and the joy that these students got from listening to the music and the presentations was wonderful.Some students satill ask about them. The Midwest Art organization is the best kept secret for enriching lives. Whoever thought of this was a genius. Music and Art make life worth living.

Arts Midwest is a well-run organization which provides valuable programming and support to presenters, artists and agents throughout the region. I have attended the Midwest Arts Conference nearly every September since 2004. The conference is an excellent opportunity for professional development, networking and connecting with artists and agents for future performances. Quad City Arts has received Performing Arts Fund grants from Arts Midwest for more than 10 years. This program helps us reach students of all ages and backgrounds through educational outreach performances by professional artists. We've also been a host site for the Midwest World Fest - an excellent opportunity to bring in international performing artists our rural and urban communities may otherwise never see. Arts Midwest staff is always friendly, knowledgable and energetic - we look forward to our continued partnerships in the future.

The 2009 Midwest Arts Conference was one of my first encounters with Arts Midwest. However, I quickly learned how so much of what Arts Midwest does has great impact on my life in many realms: as a student of the arts, an arts patron, and a future arts administrator. The Arts Midwest staff took me under their wings and provided me with a wealth of knowledge and support. They truly have one of the hardest working teams of any arts organization I have encountered, and showed me that through working hard, asking questions, and having a little fun, I can achieve my goals in Arts Administration. The programming and support they provide is so valuable and helps not only organizations, but individuals like myself, achieve their goals.

As the Executive Director of the North Dakota Council on the Arts I see first hand what an impact Arts Midwest makes across the region. Specifically, Arts Midwest World Fest allows rural communities to participate in rich global arts experiences, experiences that would normally be far too costly for rural North Dakota to afford. Arts Midwest is well recognized regionally, nationally and internationally for its work with global projects, specifically music and literature. The NEA has repeatedly relied on Arts Midwest to manage national programs such as Shakespeare in America and The Big Read. The leadership of David Fraher and Susan Chandler is without equal. Their partnership is outstanding and has resulted in an organization and staff that the entire region is proud of.

I realize that five stars means "far exceeds expectations" but after working with Arts Midwest for more than five years I came to expect nothing less than exemplary execution of any and all projects. As the former Director of Communications at the National Endowment for the Arts, I can attest first-hand to the professionalism, dedication, and expertise of Arts Midwest. We could not have asked for a better partner in multiple artistic programs of artistic excellence with democratic reach that benefited all corners of the country.

Arts Midwest is one of the best organizations I have ever experienced. Under the outstanding leadership of David Fraher, Executive Director, and his excellent staff, Arts Midwest manages many important national and regional initiatives. I have worked directly with David and the staff as a board member and am impressed with the ability of the organization to meet the challenges of numerous arts initiatives and manage them effectively. They have expanded ArtsMidwestWorldFest, which I initiated before turning it over to Arts Midwest. It has become a model for cultural exchange that enables underserved Midwestern communities to interact with young, inspiring, international artists in student workshops and performances; community outreach activities; and public performances. Shakespeare in America and the Big Read, two superb national initiates of the NEA, are managed by Arts Midwest. Other arts organizations would benefit from looking at Arts Midwest as a role model.