Members present:
Lucie Searle, Laura Travis, Robert O. Jones, Keith Munslow, David Newton, Madolin Maxey, Gerry Heroux, Steve Durkee
Members absent:
Sean Daly, Dennis diBattista, Richard Welch, Susan Detrie Souve, Elizabeth
Wylie, Erminio Pinque
Staff present:
Bert Crenca, Shawn Wallace, Sheri van Antwerp, Joe Auger
Guests present:
Patryc Wiggins, NEAT; Sam Miller, NEFA
VOTED to approve the minutes of the Board meeting of 1996/01/16.
The Board agreed by consensus to change the order of the agenda pending the arrival of Sam Miller.
Sam Miller reported that NEFA had been started by the six New England state arts councils at the urging of the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) as an agency to receive public and private funding for efforts to build and maintain partnerships among the varied constituents of the arts community, including producers (artists), presenters (museums, galleries, theatres, etc.), community groups, and public agencies (state and local arts councils, etc.). NEFA has a board of twenty-four and a budget currently in the $3.5-4 million range, forty percent of which comes from public funds, primarily (in descending order) NEA, the Massachusetts Cultural Council, and the five other New England arts councils. In general, the public funds cover the operating expenses of NEFA, while privately raised funds are used for programs and grants. Historically NEFA has been involved chiefly with managing traveling exhibits. It also has funded cultural initiatives to demonstrate the importance of the arts to local socioeconomic vitality and development.
NEAT was founded by NEFA to be an artist-led and -governed organization to provide outreach to and communication and connection among New England artists. NEAT has an Advisory Board of fifteen members. In addition to producing a newsletter, its primary activity has been to convene a regional conference for artists approximately every eighteen months, known as the Congress. Two Congresses have been held, in Providence and in North Adams, Massachusetts. A third is scheduled for Portland, Maine, June 20-23, 1996, and an enthusiastic bid has been received from Newport, New Hampshire to host the fourth Congress in 1997. Conference registrations and memberships serve as an important information base for networking area artists and arts organizations, and have generated some income. However, NEFA has provided the majority of NEAT's funding (approximately $30,000 to $50,000 for the Congress, and an equal amount for miscellaneous other expenses), as well as administrative functions. Staff changes and reductions at NEFA over the years and ongoing communications problems between NEFA and the NEAT Advisory Board have adversely affected NEFA's administration of NEAT activities, and the NEAT Advisory Board is concerned about NEAT's survival.
NEAT and NEFA have both looked at the viability of separating NEAT from NEFA. Independence for NEAT could be risky in this current era of dwindling resources. Conversely, NEAT would have more opportunities to raise funds for itself as an independent organization than it does as a program of NEFA.
With the support of the AS220 Board, the AS220 staff prepared "AS220's Proposal for the Management of the New England Artists Trust" (hereafter referred to as the Proposal), submitted to NEFA with cc to NEAT on January 30th. In Phase 1 of the management proposal as outlined, AS220 would contract with NEFA and NEAT to administer NEAT programs for the period from February to June 1996 (i.e., until the completion of the Portland Congress) with funds already budgeted by NEFA. AS220 staff would facilitate funding of the Portland Congress; conduct regional meetings with artists and state agencies regarding NEAT business; set an agenda for NEAT business at the Congress, including a final outline of NEAT programs for approval at the Congress; investigate funding sources that could be employed to undertake NEAT programs; proceed with planning for Congress IV in Newport, N.H.; and evaluate the success of Phase 1 with input from Congress III in June. The AS220 Board would recognize the NEAT Advisory Board as the governing authority for NEAT program activities. Phase 2, to be undertaken from June 1996 to June 1997, would procure funding, implement, and manage NEAT programs, including Congress IV in Newport, N.H., and develop a five-year plan for NEAT. (Additional details including phase budgets are included in the Proposal, q.v.).
Some discussion ensued to clarify various points regarding organization, administration, and funding. Sam Miller indicated that NEFA would remain committed to providing funding for the Congress commensurate with past funding levels. Shawn Wallace suggested to the Board that, if they felt more comfortable doing so, they could approve only Phase 1 of the Proposal, for which funding was already committed. With the Fool's Ball upcoming, Board members sought to determine whether managing both the Fool's Ball and the upcoming Congress III would overtax the staff, and concluded that the majority of work for the Ball had been or shortly would be completed. Board members agreed that it was important, as outlined in the Proposal, for the AS220 and NEAT boards to arrange for representatives at each other's meetings.
Board members Madolin Maxey and Keith Munslow departed during the long presentation and discussion, and when Gerry Heroux indicated that he had to leave, the remaining Board members expressed reluctance to endorse the Proposal without the participation of a greater number of Board members than the number currently present. Lucie Searle suggested scheduling a special Board meeting before the next regularly scheduled meeting to address the Proposal.
Recorded and submitted by
Robert Owen Jones
Secretary
AS220 Board of Directors Meeting -- 1996/02/13 page 4