ABC Leadership Program to focus on building, growing and sustaining creative communities

Whether you're just starting to think about making the arts a bigger part of your community's fabric, or you're a leader in a community that is a regional arts destination, you can get a lot from the upcoming Arts Build Communities Cultural Planning Leadership Conference.

The conference will highlight new ideas and opportunities for building, growing and sustaining creative communities.  Participants will explore best practices, learn about creative financing and other resources, and build connections with experienced and successful peers.  Participants will also get a guide with resources for building creative communities and an opportunity to get coaching to help them turn their ideas into action.

The conference will be on February 11, from 9 am to 4 pm, at Rutgers University's Edward J. Bloustein School of Planning and Public Policy in downtown New Brunswick, New Jersey.  There will be two tracks:  One for those starting out in arts-based community and economic development, and another for experienced community and cultural leaders who want to build on their success.

In the morning, participants will hear from experts and successful practitioners.  In the afternoon workshops, facilitators will help participants learn to use the tools to build their own strategies.

Here is the preliminary agenda for the event:

8:30 to 9:30: Networking breakfast and registration
9:30 to 9:45: Welcome
9:45 to 10:30: Keynote address: (Speaker to be announced)
10:30 to 10:45: Break
10:45 to noon: Breakout sessions
     Session A: Best practices for starting arts-based community and economic development
     Session B: Resources for sustaining and growing arts-based community and economic development
12 to 1: Lunch (provided)
1 to 1:30: From ideas to action: The ABC community coaching initiative
1:30 to 2:45: Workshops
     Workshop A: Planning for successful creative communities and economies
     Workshop B: Tools for growing your community's arts market
     Workshop C: Regional strategies for sustaining creative communities and economies
2:45 to 3: Break
3 to 4 pm: Takeaways and reports


Register for the conference
For more information: Deborah Schulze, 732-932-3822, x635 or schulze@eden.rutgers.edu

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Arts Build Communities Leadership Program conference: February 11, 2011

The Arts Build Communities Leadership Program is designed for civic and cultural leaders who want to be more effective in building sustainable communities and local economies through the arts.

Participants will get expert advice in building customized and more cost-effective strategies for their communities.  The Leadership Program has two parts.

It begins February 11, 2011, with an all-day conference on arts-based community development and economic development.  Experts will share their advice and experiences, and be candid about the benefits and challenges of this work.  The conference, at Rutgers University's Edward J. Bloustein School of Planning and Public Policy, is open to everyone.  The cost is $50, which includes meals and a free electronic resource guide.

The next part of the program runs from March to July 2011.  In this part of the program, community-based teams will plan custom strategies for their communities.  The teams will get technical assistance and coaching from experts in cultural planning, community and economic development, leadership and organizational development, and public policy.

All conference participants will be invited to participate in the second part of the program.  Up to 10 teams will be selected, and each team must have at least one elected official (or high-ranking public administrator) and a cultural professional.  Each team can have up to 10 members.

In September, the teams will return to Rutgers for a one-day convocation to share their experiences.  The convocation will be open to the public.

Register for the February 11 conference
Applications for the full program will be available by January 2011.
For more information, please contact Deborah Schulze at 732-932-3822, x635 or schulze@eden.rutgers.edu

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Learn how to build arts-friendly communities through Bloustein Online Continuing Education Program and Arts Build Communities.

Arts-friendly places like Santa Fe, Asheville, or Sarasota don't just happen.  They are developed and sustained by committed leaders and artists.  If you want to make your community more supportive of the arts, consider taking courses in cultural planning and development from Rutgers University’s Bloustein Online Continuing Education Program.

BOCEP Deep Learning courses can teach you skills and help you think more critically about what might work -- or won't -- in your community.   These classes are designed to be affordable to busy people.  Every course is entirely online.  There are no scheduled meetings, but you can share ideas with professionals from around the country and the world.

Courses in cultural planning and development run from September to June. The first in the series -- Cultural Economic Development Studio -- starts September 22 and runs until October 30.  Learners will work with the arts and business communities in Somerville, NJ to explore what it will take to make the small central New Jersey town an arts destination.  Learners will work together in exploring the secrets of successful arts destinations, conduct a competitive analysis and prepare strategies for Somerville.

Participants in this and other BOCEP Deep Learning courses can learn from and share ideas with cultural and public affairs professionals.  Courses are open to everyone.

Other upcoming courses in this track include:

*Cultural Heritage Tourism Planning 

 *Leadership for Cultural Planning

 *Programming Cultural Uses

 *Cultural Community Development Studio

Each course costs $295. Sscholarships of up to $50 are available to everyone who gets this announcement.  (To get the scholarship, please use promotion code: BGBBS)  You can also earn a Bloustein Professional Certificate in Cultural Planning and Development.  (It is the only certificate of its kind offered by a school of planning and public policy.) More classes are being developed for 2011.

The Bloustein Online Continuing Education Program and Arts Build Communities work to build leadership for public affairs and urban planning in the 21st century.  BOCEP offers high quality continuing education courses in cultural planning, community and economic development, land use law, leadership and professional practice, and urban design.  Arts Build Communities conducts practical research and offers technical assistance to communities in New Jersey.  ABC works to help cultural and civic leaders make better choices in connecting the arts and community and economic development.  Both initiatives are produced by the Professional Development Institute of Rutgers University's Edward J. Bloustein School of Planning and Public Policy.

For more on our courses or programs, please visit http://www.policy.rutgers.edu/pdi or contact Programs Manager Swena Gulati at 732-932-3822, x636 or swena@rutgers.edu

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Cultural planning and development courses can help you be more influential in your community

Do you want the arts to be more supported in your community?  You have to do more than show pretty pictures and say the arts are special.  You have to show how the arts can improve quality of life and build more prosperous communities.  A Bloustein Professional Certificate in Cultural Planning and Development can help.

Part of the Bloustein Online Continuing Education Program (BOCEP), and in connection with Arts Build Communities,  our Deep Learning courses in cultural planning and development can give you the knowledge and tools to help make the arts a bigger part of your community's future.

BOCEP is offering at least four courses in arts-based economic and community development between September 2010 and July 2011.  All Deep Learning courses are online and instructor-led:

• Cultural Economic Development Studio, September 15 to October 23, 2010 
• Site Planning Analysis, November 3 to December 18, 2010, 
• Leadership for Cultural Planning, January 5 to February 12, 2011 
• Cultural Heritage Tourism Planning, February 23 to April 2, 2011

At least two more courses are in development for Spring and Summer 2011.

These courses are practical, interactive and convenient.  They are designed to help you choose better strategies for connecting the arts with community and economic development.  The courses are for busy people who don't have the time or resources to commit to many meetings, but want a lot more than they get in conferences or one-day workshops.   There are no required meetings, but you get the time and opportunity to share ideas with professionals and other smart people from around the United States.  The courses are open to anyone who has an interest in cultural planning, community planning, or economic development.

In a Deep Learning course, you learn in several ways -- engaging in online discussions with other smart professionals; getting guidance from the instructor, a seasoned professional who also leads the conversations among classmates; taking quizzes to test your learning; or in some classes, working on real projects for real clients.  In previous urban design studio courses, learners have created a form-based code for a commercial corridor in Virginia and a transit-oriented design plan for Perth Amboy, NJ.

Learners who pass at least three courses can earn a Bloustein Professional Certificate of Completion, and earn hours toward a Master Practitioner or Expert Practitioner Professional Certificate.

Every urban design course is also eligible for 14 American Institute of Certified Planners Certification Maintenance credits.

BOCEP is produced by the Professional Development Institute of Rutgers University's Edward J. Bloustein School of Planning and Public Policy.  Bloustein is one of the top schools and leading centers of planning knowledge in the United States.

For more information on urban design or any other Deep Learning courses, please visit the Bloustein Online Continuing Education Program or contact Program Manager Swena Gulati by email or at 732-932-3822, x636.

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Bloustein Online courses that can be useful to cultural and creative economy professionals

Want to help develop an arts district in your community?  How about a plan to better connect the arts with quality of life in your municipality? Or maybe you're interested in making your community a more attractive and better place to live, work and play?

The Bloustein Online Continuing Education Program has courses that might interest you:


*Retail Market Analysis -- May 26 to July 3: If you want to convince businesspeople, economic development professionals or business-minded elected officials to support the arts in a commercial area, you will be more successful if you understand how retailers make decisions about where to locate.  This course is taught Deborah Brett, a nationally-known real estate market expert.

*Cultural Community Development Studio -- May 26 to July 3: Working to benefit the old mining town of Bisbee, Arizona, this course will develop a strategy for connecting the growing arts environment there with quality of life issues.  In other words, how can the arts support community development in Bisbee?  All members on the class will work on the project, hear from experts in creative community building, and get feedback on their work from an official in Bisbee.  No travel necessary -- you can complete the course from anywhere on the Internet.  The instructor, Rhonda Phillips, is an Arizona State University professor with expertise in economic and community development. Her book Concept Marketing for Communities is a great resource for cultural heritage tourism.  (Picture: Sam*Poe Gallery in Bisbee, Arizona. http://www.sampoegallery.com/)

*Urban Design Studio -- May 26 to July 3:  The Urban Design Studio will prepare a design plan for the area around the NJ Transit station in Perth Amboy, NJ.  Perth Amboy is a historic waterfront community with a growing arts community.  If you're interested in architecture, public art, or connecting the arts with community planning, this will be a fun and informative class.  The instructor is Matt Wanamaker, an urban designer, architect and planner with Brown & Keener in Philadelphia. (Image: Illustration of Perth Amboy street from CanalPhotos gallery. http://www.canalphotos.com/index.html)


If you think an online course is just a webinar or a glorified PowerPoint presentation, a BOCEP course will surprise you.  Our courses are convenient, interactive and affordable.  You can complete them from anywhere you can get Internet access.  There are no scheduled meetings, you can participate in the class at your convenience.  You can share ideas through discussion forums and webconferences with other smart and interesting people from around the world.  You get the time to learn at a comfortable pace, test your skills, then come back and share your experiences, or learn from others.  BOCEP offers a new experience in online education.

The basic course fee is $295, but a limited number of scholarships of up to $145 are available for all of these courses.  To find out what scholarships are still avaiable, please contact Professional Development Institute Program Manager Swena Gulati by email or at 732-932-3822, x636. Or you can subscribe to the Professional Development Institute newsletter.

Learn more about the Bloustein Online Continuing Education Program.

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ABC to offer cultural planning leadership program in Fall 2010

Through an innovative new Arts Build Communities program, civic and cultural leaders around the United States can work together to develop the creative economy in their communities.

The program, tentatively titled Leadership for Sustainable Cultural Planning, is scheduled to run from September 2010 through February 2011. 

Here's how the program will work: Participants, who will be teams of civic and cultural leaders, will come to Rutgers University in September to learn from experts about policies and regulations that have worked to support cultural development.  Participants will spend the next few months determining what would work best in their communities.  They will be mentored by experts in cultural planning, community development and economic development.  In February, participants come back together at Rutgers to share what they learned -- and offer advice for other leaders.

The program is still being developed, and more information will be available soon.  If you would like to learn more or get updates, please subscribe to the ABC electronic mailing list.

Other questions or comments?  Please contact Leonardo Vazquez, Director, Professional Development Institute, at 732-932-3822, x711 or by email.

Arts Build Communities is produced by the Professional Development Institute of Rutgers University's Edward J. Bloustein School of Planning and Public Policy.

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New ABC report explores what works in building community support for the arts

Why are the arts supported and nurtured in some New Jersey communities, but not in others?  Dozens of cultural professionals, public administrators and urban planners shared their insights in several focus groups in 2009.

You can learn from their experiences by reading "Building Communities that Support and Nurture the Arts: What Works Best?"

The report is the latest entry in the New Jersey Creative Vitality Index.  The NJ-CVI is one of the most comprehensive sources of information about the arts industry in New Jersey.  To see other reports in the index, please visit http://policy.rutgers.edu/pdi/abc/resources/cvi/index.php

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