Customized Training Services - The Art of Community:
Building a Newcomer Arts and Culture Support Network
In collaboration with local arts and social service agencies, the Institute for Cultural Partnerships (ICP) is pleased to offer a community-based workshop that explores best practices and strategies for merging the arts with social services to better serve newcomer communities. In addition to presentations from nationally-recognized arts advocates, local funders, and traditional artists, the workshop includes interactive learning and networking to foster future collaborations among participants. For more information contact Amy Skillman at 717-238-1770.
Who should attend ? The day-long workshop is of interest to refugee and immigrant traditional artists, community organizations, folklorists and arts administrators, refugee and immigrant service providers, funders and other civic institutions (educational institutions, public libraries, museums, as well as shops and galleries that market newcomer arts, etc.) who are concerned with the well-being of our newcomer communities.
Workshop Resources Each workshop participant receives a copy of the following publications.
The Art of Community; Creativity at the Crossroads of Immigrant Cultures— a collection of profiles featuring projects from around the country that merge the arts and social services in refugee and immigrant communities.
Newcomer Arts; A Strategy for Successful Integration— a manual for refugee service workers and refugee artists which includes a directory of national and local arts and cultural organizations and funders.
Workshop Format
The day-long workshop presents both national and local models of programs that have merged the arts with social service agencies to enhance the integration of refugees and immigrants into our communities. Participants also hear from newcomer artists who perform and/or demonstrate their art forms, and talk about the importance of maintaining their cultural traditions in their new homeland.
Drawing on personal experience and ideas generated by the presentations, participants work together to explore possibilities for collaboration and to establish a local network through which resources can be shared, communication can be maintained, and future projects developed.
Space is made available for participants to share information about their art forms or programs and to learn about other resources in the community. The day includes lunch and morning and afternoon breaks with light snacks. Linguistic interpretation is made available as needed. At the end of the day, it is hoped that the group will have worked together to identify specific needs of the participants. Examples of topics covered include:
for artists and cultural communities—specialized arts supplies or musical instruments, space, funding, marketing training or opportunities, technical assistance in fundraising, educational and professional development;
for social service agencies—ways to fulfill organizational goals by incorporating arts into their activities; and
for arts and cultural organizations and funders—ideas for enhancing their services to refugee and immigrant artists and communities.
The workshop closes with participants identifying concrete steps to be taken, and a sense of who will participate in proposed activities and in what capacity. It is hoped that a handful of leaders will emerge from the group to be key contacts who will facilitate future communication and/or gatherings of the group.
ICPresponsibilities—what you can expect from us
Planning— we work with host organizations to: identify and suggest a full range of participants to be invited to attend; explore funding options and develop proposal narratives and budgets; identify a selection of local artists and organizations to be invited as presenters; and develop a customized resource directory of newcomer and arts resources in your region (this resource directory is included as an appendix in the Newcomer Arts manual). In addition, we work closely with host organizations to coordinate logistical details such as space, catering, AV and supplies, publicity, registration, the workshop agenda, and planning for workshop personnel needs such as registration and note-taking.
Workshop— during the workshop, we work with host organizations to prepare the site and attend to final details; we also facilitate the workshop.
Follow-up — we prepare a report of proceedings and a contact list of participants to be used as a resource among workshop participants. Several months following the workshop, we check in with participants to monitor new developments that have emanated from the workshop, and to evaluate the workshop’s usefulness in establishing an immigrant arts network in the host community. On-site evaluation also helps ICP to monitor the program’s effectiveness and gather suggestions for future reference. In addition, workshop participants are welcome to contact us for consultation.
Outcomes — Our experience suggests that the workshop offers culturally and professionally diverse community members the opportunity to meet, learn from one another, and pool their expertise, skills and resources towards fulfilling common goals.
