Preliminary Findings from the PA Humanities Discovery Project 

Presenter(s): Julie Goodman (Drexel University), Dr. Andrew Zitcer (Drexel University), Allison Wright (Drexel University)

Description: This research proposal presents initial results from the PA Humanities Discovery Project, a collaboration between PA Humanities, Drexel University, and funded by the National Endowment for the Humanities. The project aims to document the experiences of individuals engaged in humanities practices across Pennsylvania communities. The research involved a statewide survey with over 500 responses and eight focus groups with 10-12 participants each. The topics covered include how participants describe their work, themes addressed, engagement, location, support, impacts, and connections to other organizations. Additionally, the effects of social justice movements, COVID-19 pandemic, and other political and social events on their practice were explored. While the full conclusions are not yet available, this proposal aims to present a subset of the research effort. Specifically, the proposal includes social network analysis results using data from both the survey responses and focus groups to identify existing connections and networks among Pennsylvania's humanities workers. This analysis also examines how recent events have impacted their practice, including social justice, political, and public health factors.

These questions will be explored through multiple lenses, including the demographic characteristics of the survey and focus group participants.

Racialized Leadership and Organizational Performance in the Arts  

Presenter(s): Charlie Wall-Andrews (Toronto Metropolitan University), Reima Shakeir (New York University)

Description: The aim of this study is to examine the impact of racialized people’s leadership and to see if it significantly predicts the financial performance of art organizations in Canada. We compared 12 arts (non-profit) organizations in Canada with racialized people in key executive positions and 14 arts (non-profit) organizations in Canada where all executive-level managers were white in 2014-2021. Both parametric and nonparametric tests were used to compare various numeric outcomes between organizations in the control and treatment groups. Our results show that racialized leaders in arts organizations enable at least the same and, in some cases, improved effects on the financial performance of organizations with white leadership in the arts sector. Empirical facts inferred from panel regressions imply that such assignments were, on average, associated with some moderately positive effects on revenue and net revenue. This paper illustrates that there is a need for arts organizations to embrace and represent more racialized leadership by using a criticality and a systems-theory approach.

International Ecosystem of Arts Entrepreneurship Pedagogy: Creating a New Summer School

Presenter(s): Dr. Natalia Grincheva (University of the Arts Singapore)

Description: This presentation will reflect on the experimental project of virtual student exchange developed in 2022 in the framework of the undergraduate course Strategic and Entrepreneurial Thinking for Arts Organisations at the University of the Arts Singapore, LASALLE College of the Arts. Under the pressure of border closures and significantly decreased students’ mobility due to the pandemic crisis, the module incorporated a virtual student exchange component to meet its learning outcomes, expectations and objectives. It was redesigned to accommodate international teamwork of students from 4 different countries (Singapore, Taiwan, Hong Kong and Japan) to develop creative start-up business proposals.

Through teleconference technologies and integrative curriculum design, the module facilitated international collaboration of students from partner universities, including Hong Kong Baptist University, Kyoto Seika University, and Taipei National University of the Arts. The presentation will reflect on the pedagogical implications of the experimental virtual student exchange to discuss how students across countries coped with the course work requirements and what challenges and opportunities did it create in the context of international arts entrepreneurship. Finally, the presentation will conclude by sharing plans of developing an International Summer School to be launched in summer 2024. 

Teaching Artists’ Stories: Putting Teaching Artist’s Knowledge and Experience To Everyday Use

Presenter(s): Shanita Bigelow (University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign)

Description: This paper explores the inclusion of teaching artists in discussions about access to arts education, arts education policy, and the ways in which arts education curricula, teaching practices, and school/institutional supports are provided. Teaching artists, who are practitioner-educators, hold the requisite experience and expertise to offer a deeper understanding of what quality arts education necessitates. This study highlights the power and pitfalls inherent in their work, unpacking semi-structured interviews with self-identified, BIPOC, female, and gender-nonconforming teaching artists. By including the experiences and knowledge around teaching/learning practices, this paper emphasizes the importance of teaching artists in conversations around the importance of art education and the ways it can best be presented, distributed, and leveraged in the fight for educational equity.

Teaching artists, who work to maintain a hybrid professional identity and are placed in a myriad of educational settings, require ongoing professional and artistic development, and a community of practitioners or collaborators. This paper offers insight into their experiences in teaching and learning, showcasing the importance of their inclusion in conversations around the importance of art education, curricular choices, guest speakers, and collaborative projects. This study may provide conference participants, particularly arts administration educators, with an understanding of their work and lives in addition to their experiences and expertise as artists, educators, and community members.

Artists as Co-Creators: Advancing Artists-in-Residence Models in the Local Government Context

Presenter(s): Hsin-Ching Wu (College of Charleston), Kate Keeney (College of Charleston) 

Description: There is an increasing interest in the public sector in adopting the arts and culture in development and service delivery, such as culture-led economic, community, and workforce development, art-based approaches to health and social care, and the integration of the arts in education. Additionally, scholars have called for a more active role of artists as co-creators in collaboration with government and nonprofits to solve public sector and societal issues (Taylor, 2021; Woronkowicz & Schert, 2020; Wu, Keeney, & Burgess, 2022). Despite growing attentiveness, gaps remain in the organizing structures, implementation, outcomes, and most importantly value of arts-based residencies in the government context, especially in rural communities. 

This research aims to connect the limited empirical knowledge and emerging practice of artist-in-residence arrangements. Specifically, this paper builds upon previous work (Wu, Keeney, and Burgess, 2022) that positions artists as co-creators when in residence or in collaboration with government in order to develop the potentiality of the artist-in-residence practice in smaller municipalities. We undertake a conceptual analysis of literature in order to 1) position artists as co-creators, 2) include nonprofit organizations as essential contributors and capacity builders, and 3) provide a framework for which to build understanding and evaluative efforts by multiple stakeholders. Ultimately, this research aims to advance understanding, impact, and ultimately adoption of artist-in-residence models in rural communities. 

Passing the Mantle: An Exploration of Leadership Transitions at the Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater

Presenter(s): Dr. Amanda Nelson (Virginia Tech)

Description: Founded in 1958, The Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater is one of the premier dance companies in the world. Between the years 2008-2013, the organization navigated four significant artistic and administrative leadership transitions: Artistic Director; Director of The Ailey School; Artistic Director of Ailey II; and Executive Director. All four of these transitions involved leadership roles held by women with significant tenures at the organization. 

Succession is a sensitive subject that involves deeply personal decisions that can have significant organizational impact. The team at Ailey approached these transitions, the passing of the mantle, with empathy and intentionality: discussion and planning were coordinated and choreographed. 

This paper will explore succession and succession planning through the observations and reflections of those who experienced this series of rapid transitions. The paper will examine communications (both internal and external) and logistics, alongside off-boarding and onboarding practices employed during these leadership transitions.

Integrating Tessitura CRM Training into An Undergraduate Arts Marketing Class: A Case Study at Xavier University

Presenter(s): Dr. Jason C. White (Xavier University), Kristen Olson (Tessitura Network)

Description: According to the AAAE undergraduate standards, Marketing is about generating income; communicating a brand, mission, and vision; and understanding what your audience wants and needs. While most arts administration education programs include a marketing class or a contextual equivalent, training in CRM (Customer Relationship Management) systems is rarely integrated into those courses. This is unfortunate because large non-profit arts and cultural organizations increasingly use CRM systems to log customer data, track attendance and participation rates, automate the sale of tickets and subscriptions, offer programs and events based on customers’ cultural preferences, build and nurture personal relationships with customers, and to customize diverse audience experiences. As a result, job postings for marketing and ticketing positions in these organizations increasingly list a preference for candidates who are CRM certified. 

Recognizing this need, Dr. Jason C. White (Assistant Professor of Arts Administration) contacted and partnered with Kristen Olson (Vice President of Learning & Thought Leadership) at Tessitura, one of the most popular CRM systems used by non-profit arts and cultural organizations around the world with budgets over 1 million. Together with additional Tessitura staff, White and Olson worked to develop a 16-week (undergraduate) version of Tessitura’s professional certificate program; Fundamental Ticketing. This innovative educational collaboration resulted in a new 3-credit hour undergraduate course at Xavier University called Arts Marketing and Ticketing. White piloted this course at Xavier in Spring 2023. Students took the course and provided feedback on the experience. In this session, White and Olson will talk about the co-development process, share student outcomes and feedback, and share lessons learned. 

Enhancing Civic Engagement Through Artistic Programming 

Presenter(s): Kaitlyn Hardiman (Oklahoma Arts Management Solutions / Oklahoma City University / University of Kentucky)

Description: Nonprofit arts organizations have a civic responsibility to prioritize the needs of the communities they serve. However, studies have found that the performing arts sector, especially in dance, have prioritized their professional status over the needs that exist within their community. In response, RACE Dance Collective has stepped up and redefined how professional dance companies can prioritize civic engagement without compromising artistic excellence. Their annual production of "RACE's Hip Hop Nutcracker" provides hands-on educational and performance opportunities to high school students in partnership with the Oklahoma City Public Schools. When they observed a lack of engagement from the high Hispanic student population, RACE made a subtle but significant shift, translating the show into Spanish and offering two out of six performances for free. Consequently, they saw a 600% increase in project grant support from 2021 to 2022, becoming a new applicant to 70% of the funding organizations.

This presentation will showcase how performing arts nonprofits can prioritize their communities through subtle, yet intentional programming shifts. RACE serves as a valuable case study that sets an example for arts administration educators to reframe their approach to grant writing, community engagement, and program evaluation courses. By emphasizing civic engagement, nonprofit arts organizations can secure the funding they need while continuing to provide artistic and professional excellence.

Global Conversation: People, Process, Power: Stakeholders in Asia Cultural Sectors 

Moderator: Dr. Tiffany Bourgeois - United States (Ohio State University)

Hosts: Anne Frost - Canada (Humber Institute of Technology & Advanced Learning) and Dr. Daniel T. Green - United States  (Carnegie Mellon University)

Presenter(s): Dr. Hyesun Shin - South Korea (Kyung Hee University), Dr. Natalia Grincheva - Singapore (The University of the Arts Singapore), Dr. Sunnie Yang He - China (The Education University of Hong Kong), Alan Salzenstein - United States  (DePaul University).

Preparing Tomorrow’s Arts Leaders: Insights From the 2022 SNAAP Data

Presenter(s): Lee Ann Scotto Adams (SNAAP), Deanna Ibrahim (SNAAP), Dr. Jennifer Novak-Leonard (University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign)

Description: The 2022 SNAAP survey of arts alumni launched in the fall of 2022. The largest, most diverse group of institutions in SNAAP’s history participated, and for the first time, several community colleges and HBCUs took part in the survey. Close to one million arts alumni in the United States and Canada were contacted by SNAAP and invited to take the survey, representing SNAAP’s largest survey pool. 

The 2015-2017 SNAAP survey yielded great insights for the field of arts administration. Much has changed in the world since then. In response, SNAAP developed new questions to measure the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic and implications for training, education and employment of arts alumni. Additionally, SNAAP included questions to garner more insight on arts alumni experiences in terms of their sense of belonging during their educational experience.

As arts administration educators seek to prepare the next generation of arts leaders, what can be learned from the 2022 SNAAP data? SNAAP will present preliminary findings and leverage the diverse perspectives of arts administration graduates across cohorts, institution types, and more, to enhance our understanding of the current value of an arts administration education.

Strategic Planning for the Creative Professional

Presenter(s): Javier J. Hernández Acosta (Universidad del Sagrado Corazón, PR)

Description: Many professionals in the creative sector rely on self-employment, making entrepreneurship skills essential to complement their training in the arts. However, most undergraduate programs focus on creating companies or non-profit entities, neglecting self-employment, and leaving students struggling to apply marketing, finance, and strategic planning to their individual projects.

To address this challenge, the Creative Professional Canvas was developed to facilitate understanding of concepts such as creative mission, identification of opportunities, business model, brand identity, and execution plan. The Canvas employs the use of questions such as why, what, where, how, and when to help students develop these critical skills.

This presentation will highlight the significance of individual entrepreneurship for all professionals in the creative industries, and evaluate the effectiveness of current teaching methods in imparting entrepreneurship skills to individual artists. Additionally, it will explore ways to eliminate language and business tool barriers, making them more accessible to artists. The presentation aims to contribute to the development of new tools to communicate the importance of entrepreneurship in the cultural and creative industries.

Preparing the Next Generation of Arts Administrators: A Dynamic Approach 

Presenter(s): Mary E. Carlisle (Converse University)

Description: This paper will present results from a nested case study that investigated the relationships between the skills acquired through fine arts programs of study and skills used in the 21st-century workplace as perceived by undergraduate alumni from a rural IHE who graduated and entered the workforce between 2010-2019. Specifically, the alumni population studied are from three of the IHE’s School of the Arts (SoA) fine arts disciplines: (1) Art & Design, (2) Music, and (3) Theatre & Dance, for which the curricular framework emphasizes experiential learning and career readiness. Research questions that guided this study included: (1) What do fine arts alumni consider to be essential skills in their respective workplaces? (2) What skills do fine arts alumni believe they gained as a result of their undergraduate experience? And (3) How do fine arts alumni’s perceptions of essential skills in their workplaces differ across specific fine arts disciplines? Methods of inquiry used in the study consisted of an analysis of data obtained using three data collection methods: (1) Alumni Survey, (2) Semi-structured One-on-one interviews, and (3) Artifacts. The overall findings discussed will include (1) the embedded “hidden skill sets” that can result from fine arts programs of study at the collegiate level, (2) how these skill sets become tangible through experiential learning, and (3) how students perceive this preparation, which can lend itself into preparing themselves for becoming dynamic arts administrators.

What Can Art Administrators Learn from Social Work?

Presenter(s): Marc Arthur (Wayne State University)

Description: This paper proposes that arts administrators can learn from social workers' use of art and performance practices to aid in individual and community transformation. Social workers are increasingly using creative methods, like Photovoice, to measure art's impact and address difficult topics. Photovoice is a community-based participatory research method in which participants are given cameras to take pictures that are then used to guide interviews and discussions. The paper explores how this method might be applied in museums, galleries, and performance institutions.

The author suggests that blending methodological approaches from contemporary art and social work practice can create more relevant and impactful social and political transformation. The paper proposes a few models for how an integrated collaboration between social work and contemporary art might reorganize museum governance and curation. The goal is to better connect art institutions to audiences and create more equitable and sustainable community partnerships. By learning from social work's emphasis on qualitative and quantitative analysis, arts administrators can develop innovative methods to measure art's impact and create more impactful programming.

Integrating Design Thinking into Arts Organizations: An Approach to Developing DEI-Centered Community Engagement Programs

Presenter(s): Albert Martínez Fernández (New York University)

Description: This research paper explores the integration of design thinking as an innovative approach to promoting diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) principles in non-profit arts organizations' community engagement programs. The study aims to address the challenges of current approaches to designing community engagement programs and examine how design thinking can effectively capture the needs and values of specific communities. Through a triangulation methodology that includes textual analysis, in-depth interviews with experts, and feedback collection, the findings suggest that current approaches to community engagement in arts organizations are ineffective at promoting DEI practices. Moreover, findings in research indicate that design thinking offers a promising solution to these challenges by incorporating a bottom-up and user-centered design approach. This paper recommends a new Community Co-Designed Approach that leverages design thinking to develop community engagement initiatives that support and promote DEI principles. This study has important practical implications for arts administrators and practitioners seeking to implement DEI work, increase participation and engagement, and improve community relationships.

Co-Creating Leadership Development: The Artistic Directors Initiative

Presenter(s): E. Andrew Taylor (American University), Ximena Varela (American University)

Description: Newly appointed Artistic Directors in professional nonprofit theaters inherit complex organizations, unique challenges, shifting contexts, and daily crises at the boundaries of aesthetic, institutional, and civic practice. In 2019, the Arts Management Program at American University partnered with Arena Stage for a pilot research project to explore this world. Project participants were Artistic Directors in nonprofit professional theaters, recently appointed to their position, representing racial/ethnic/gender diversity, geographic diversity, as well as diversity of organizational size and mission.

The central research focus was to discover and define the dynamics of Artistic Directors’ institutional roles and the environmental, social, and structural factors that focus or diffuse their work. Further, the project sought to explore whether a specific methodology, “consultancy protocols,” would be useful to both illuminate these issues and foster community among participants.

This conference session will discuss the structure, process, and outcomes of the project, and the discovered benefits of consultancy protocol, which helped participants think more expansively about a particular, concrete dilemma; developed their capacity, more broadly, to see and describe the dilemmas that are the essential material of their work; and fostered peer inquiry and group sensemaking to inform a productive response. 

International Research and Educational Ecosystem of Cultural Diplomacy as an Academic Discipline

Presenter(s): Dr Natalia Grincheva (Singapore University), Dr Hyesun Shin (Kyung Hee University), Dr Christina Kiel (Tulane University), Dr Zülâl Fazlıoğlu Akın (Ohio State University), Noor Danielle Murteza (Ohio State University)

Description: The Panel session will provide a forum for discussion of Cultural Diplomacy as an academic discipline in the context of international research and teaching. The panel will open with a presentation that will share the results of the most recent research project that developed a comprehensive overview of the evolution of the academic literature on cultural diplomacy since its inception. It drew on mapping, chronology building, and thematic analysis of 1663 sources published on cultural diplomacy in the Scopus database, the largest academic database in the world. The research findings exposed significant geographical and thematic gaps in cultural diplomacy academic research and teaching to suggest further trajectories for the development of discipline, focusing on diverse geographies, diplomatic channels, modes of operation, structures, actors, meanings, and implications. 

Choreographed Careers: The Importance of Arts Management Within Higher Education Dance Programs

Presenter(s): Rebecca A. Ferrell (College of Charleston)

Description: While higher education dance programs across the United States do a tremendous job preparing emerging artists for the studio or stage, required courses focused on arts management and entrepreneurial skills are often absent or offered only as an elective. Technique classes, creative process, dance history, and courses centered on kinesiology are at the core of a BFA or BA dance degree and are promoted as a holistic approach to 21st century dance training. However, these curriculums are void of any life-learning tools. 

The dance ecosystem is particularly laborious to navigate, even with an entrepreneurial spirit. Unionization is limited to those in large ballet companies, not the independent dance artists that make up a majority of the field. Large auditions calls and 40+ week contracts are no longer the norm, and the pandemic has illuminated inequitable contracting issues that are specific to dancers. 

It is our job as experts in the field to prepare our students for viable careers in the arts and culture sector. In order to successfully achieve this, arts management and entrepreneurial courses should be required for all dance programs. Understanding legal terminology and tax withholdings, basic financial management, and network-building techniques are essential to creating a sustainable career within the dance field. This presentation outlines the importance of a career focused curriculum in dance and offers valuable examples of programs who have started to implement this approach within their dance degree programs. 

Los Angeles 1932, 1984 and 2028 Olympic Games: How Arts Administrators Contribute to the Games

Curating for Diversity: Two Case Studies

Presenter(s): Dr. Penny Brandt (Wagner College)

Description: The practice of "mainstreaming" lesser-known works by women composers is advocated by Richard Taruskin to promote the political and social causes of women, as it counters the belief that women lack innate composing abilities. However, Taruskin's decision to "mainstream" music by Barbara Strozzi instead of Giacomo Carissimi and his negative comparison of the two composers diminishes his activism. Artistic directors and educators must learn from this example and avoid tokenizing or "othering" composers in diversity initiatives. Programs and marketing efforts should not justify decisions or relegate historically excluded artists to lesser spaces to embrace diversity. This paper proposes new methods for curating for diversity and examines problematic historical practices. The Women's Philharmonic Advocacy and the Institute for Composer Diversity's research is used in two case studies: the Women Composers Festival of Hartford and Golden Hornet (Austin, TX). The study highlights the importance of creating diverse and inclusive spaces without reinforcing damaging stereotypes or biases.

Horizontal Citizen Participation in Creative Placemaking: A Case Study of Franklinton Arts District

Presenter(s): Gillian Kim

Description: The rise of digitalization and globalization has allowed citizens to participate more actively in government administration, leading to the emergence of New Governance theory, which emphasizes a horizontal relationship with citizens. Citizen participation has become increasingly crucial in governance, including in creative placemaking, which involves citizens as key stakeholders in promoting regional characteristics. The Franklinton Arts District in Columbus has been transformed into an arts district to rebrand the neighborhood, with active citizen participation essential to meeting local needs during various development stages.

This study evaluates citizen participation in decision-making for the Franklinton Arts District and explores means of building an inclusive arts district. The research methods include field study and document analysis of East Franklinton

Review Board meetings from October 2021 to September 2022, which reviews every site plan in the district. By analyzing agendas, reports, and the arts district plan, the study investigates citizen participation in the decision-making process using the Ladder of Citizen Participation and New Governance as theoretical frameworks. Ultimately, the study will provide recommendations on how to prevent the homogenization of places and create a community-driven arts district.

Measuring Inclusive Leadership in Nonprofit Performing Arts Organizations

Presenter(s): Thomas Abruzzo  (The Nonprofit Institute/University of San Diego)

Description: This research focuses on the development of inclusive leadership in nonprofit performing arts organizations, which historically privileged certain art forms over others. The study applies the Inclusive Leadership Questionnaire and develops the Uniqueness and Belongingness Index to measure the inclusiveness of leaders in San Diego County. The aim is to evaluate the psychometric properties of the instrument and index, explore the relationship between inclusive leadership scores and demographic and organizational characteristics, and provide recommendations for inclusive leadership practices. The nonprofit arts sector requires a new understanding of inclusive leadership due to its problematic roots in terms of privileging a dominant social class. This study is relevant in expanding work on inclusive leadership, as little is known about effective inclusive leadership, especially in the context of nonprofit performing arts organizations. By focusing on inclusive leadership practices, this research aims to provide nonprofit performing arts organizations with recommendations to create a more inclusive environment.

Layers of experience: Arts alumni perspectives on institutional, interpersonal, and internal influences on their sense of belonging

Presenter(s): Dr. Jennifer Novak-Leonard (University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign), Dr. Shanita Bigelow (University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign)

Description: Sense of belonging is crucial for students' academic success and career outcomes. While previous studies have explored the factors that contribute to a sense of belonging among students, there is limited research on the subject within arts-related degree fields that intersect with the educational experiences and careers of arts administrators.

This session will present findings from three papers that examine the sense of belonging in visual and performing arts, design, and media programs. The research draws on interviews with 35 recent alumni of undergraduate programs and explores their experiences of institutional, interpersonal, and internal factors that contributed to or hindered their sense of belonging. The research considers varied institutional contexts, including special focus four-year, doctoral, and tribal universities and colleges, providing further insight into the relationship between students' sense of belonging and the structure of their educational environment and social identity.

During the session, attendees will learn about the motivation for the research, its relevance to higher education literature, and insights gained from alumni interviews. Attendees will also engage in a discussion about how to include the voices of those most affected by institutional policies and processes in order to improve the sense of belonging for future students.

Career Impacts of the Pandemic: A Longitudinal Study 

Presenter(s): Douglas DeNatale (Boston University)

Description: The Covid-19 pandemic had a profound and immediate impact on the nonprofit arts sector, leading to widespread closures and staff layoffs. This presentation will outline the preliminary findings of an ongoing study that aims to examine the career trajectories of individual arts managers who were employed by nonprofit arts organizations in greater Boston prior to the pandemic.

Employing a large sample drawn from over 900 nonprofit arts organizations in the region, we have tracked the career outcomes of individual arts managers through various sources such as organization websites, financial returns, surveys, and social media platforms like LinkedIn.

The study explores patterns of employment layoffs among arts nonprofits and investigates whether they vary by organization type and/or financial status. It also examines the characteristics of arts managers who were laid off during this period, such as their job function, length of experience, and educational background.

Our methodology allows us to investigate the subsequent career outcomes for these arts managers: whether they remain in the field, secure employment elsewhere, or are rehired by their previous employers. We are also examining whether they find employment in other arts organizations in the Boston area or beyond.

While we are collecting individual-level data, findings will be disseminated only in aggregate form to protect the privacy of the participants. Ultimately, this study aims to shed light on the impact of the pandemic on the nonprofit arts sector and inform strategies for supporting arts managers and organizations during times of crisis.

Acknowledging The Past To Build the Future - Responding to Cultural Appropriation in the Arts

Presenter(s): Pamela Yau (Drexel University)

Description: This session will provide an example and model as to how we as arts administration educators can empower our students with the knowledge and skills to take a stand in response to cultural appropriation and insensitive representations. It is important to recognize that our students will most likely have to deal with issues of cultural appropriation and insensitivity especially in dealing with historical examples that may arise in their work such as in a museum setting or in performing arts repertoire. A noted case from the recent past would be the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston's "Kimono Wednesdays" program incident that was deemed culturally inappropriate and insensitive as it was an inaccurate representation of Japanese culture as the program was inspired by and focused on an Orientalist painting by Claude Monet rather than authentic Japanese artwork. The presenter will present a case study of an exhibition that they developed (which included the involvement of arts administration students) in partnership with their university's historic fashion and art collections that both held examples of items and artifacts that may be otherwise seen as culturally inauthentic and even culturally appropriative of Asian cultures. During the session, the presenter will demonstrate how they addressed the issues of an orientalist past in light of the present day and how to educate our arts administration students in being culturally responsive and sensitive in addressing these issues head-on.

Crossing Perspectives: AAAE-ENCATC 

"How AAAE and ENCATC Support the Arts Administration Educators of the Future"

Presenters: Dr. Daniel Green & Milena Deleva (AAAE) and GiannaLia Cogliandro (ENCATC) 

ENCATC Research Award Finalist: “Research on the Crisis Management of the Art World Based on the Perspective of Social Networks”

Presenter: Dr. Youyou (Ruby) Yu (NYU)

“Interest in Doctoral Education: A Study of NYU Arts Administration Alumni” 

 Presenter:  Dr. Richard Maloney (NYU)

Panel Discussion: “Doctoral Education and Arts Administration Educators of the Future: Challenges and Opportunities;” 

Moderator: Dr. Richard Maloney (NYU) 

Dr. Anthony Rhine (Pace University), Dr. Youyou (Ruby) Yu (NYU), Dr. Evgeniya Kondrashina (London School of Economics)

Description: The average age of college professors today is above the national average for the US workforce. With many faculty members at or near traditional retirement age, it is important for higher education institutions to recognize and actively address this challenge.

This demographic shift may be particularly problematic for the arts administration education field due to the small number of arts administration PhD programs – a traditional source of new faculty members – located in the United States.  

While doctoral education has undergone tremendous change during the past twenty years, scholars have identified several issues that continue to worry current and future doctoral students. These include: 

1) Student expectations of the doctoral experience and outcomes are not being met. 

2) Historically low doctoral completion rates (about 50%) can leave students with increased debt and no degree. 

3) Difficulty in finding a suitable job after graduation  

4) Gap in funding between available scholarship funds and actual cost of living 

5) The challenge of balancing home, work, and school life 

6) Self-funding expensive doctoral degree programs can result in enormous debt 

7) Lack of high-quality consistent engagement, mentorship, and supervision from faculty 

8) Lack of faculty, department, and university support when writing the dissertation.

To ensure the continued growth and vitality of the field, it is important to support students who wish to pursue a career in arts administration education. In this panel session, I will present the results of a large survey of arts administration students and alumni that captures their thoughts about doctoral education, and then moderate a discussion – focusing on the issues listed above -- between three experts. The panelists have a wide range of experience with doctoral education – teaching courses, designing programs, supervising dissertations -- at multiple universities in the US, UK, and China.