Schedule for Create A Place conference now available

A preliminary schedule for Create A Place: Arts Build Communities, ABC's second annual conference on creative placemaking, is now available.  The schedule will be updated regularly as we add new speakers and have more information to share.

See the schedule 

or learn more about the conference.

Create A Place focuses on the how-to's of building, growing and sustaining creative communities and economies.  It is the only major event in New Jersey that brings together artists, cultural organization leaders, elected and appointed officials, community and economic development professionals and urban planners and designers to share ideas about making places better through and with the arts.

Rutgers University's Arts Build Communities provides expertise on how the arts connect economic and community development.  The annual creative placemaking conference is a key component of a wide-ranging set of services for individuals and communities.  ABC is made possible in part with support from the New Jersey State Council on the Arts/ Department of State, a partner agency of the National Endowment for the Arts; and the Geraldine R. Dodge Foundation.  All proceeds from Create A Place go to support the mission of Arts Build Communities.

Read more...

Creative Placemaking Master Practitioner Certificate can help you learn urban planning and leadership skills

We're excited to report that there's significant interest in the Creative Placemaking Master Practitioner Certificate program from people outside of the urban planning field.  To make it easier for them to meet the standards of the program, we're going to develop video tutorials and provide primers on urban planning by the time the program starts.

So if you want to become a Creative Placemaker, but don't have training or experience in urban planning -- no worries.  We'll help you.

Want to get started now?  See some videos that provide an overview of planning.  Then you can learn more through the Certificate Program.

Learn more or register for the Master Practitioner Certificate Program.

Learn more about Arts Build Communities

Questions?  Contact ABC Director Leonardo Vazquez, AICP/PP

Read more...

ABC launches Master Practitioner Certificate in Creative Placemaking

Arts Build Communities has just launched a new initiative to help urban planners, public affairs professionals, and elected and appointed officials build sustainable creative communities and economies.

The Master Practitioner Certificate in Creative Placemaking program combines learning in creative placemaking skills with client and business development.  Creative placemaking is an emerging field focused on community and economic development through the arts.

The year-long program is entirely online, but learners will be able to meet their classmates in person at least twice a year.  Program faculty include top experts in the field, including Tom Borrup, Juana Guzman and Rhonda Phillips.

Classes begin March 2012, and registration for the program will begin by December 1, 2011.

To earn a Master Practitioner Certificate, learners must pass all six Deep Learning courses, complete at least eight of the ten client/business development sessions, and prepare a reflective paper that demonstrates how they have applied what they learned to a creative placemaking project.

This is a continuing education program and currently is not eligible for graduate credit.  However, it offers more on the subject of creative placemaking than any other training or professional development program.

Arts Build Communities provides expertise on how arts connect economic and community development.  ABC supports creative sector professionals, economic development professionals, elected and appointed public officials, and urban planners -- as well as the communities they serve.  We conduct research, provide training and coaching, and engage in thought leadership.


Arts Build Communities is a center at Rutgers University's Edward J. Bloustein School of Planning and Public Policy.  In addition to the Master Practitioner in Creative Placemaking program, ABC provides these programs and services:

• Community coaching in creative placemaking
• New Jersey Creative Vitality Index
• ABC NJ-ArtiFacts

For more information, please contact ABC Director Leonardo Vazquez by email or 732-932-3822, x711

Arts Build Communities is a co-sponsored project of the New Jersey State Council on the Arts.  It is supported in part by the Council and the Geraldine R. Dodge Foundation.

Read more...

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

Read more...

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.

Read more...

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.

Read more...