Unleashing the Power of the Arts

Imagine if everyone in the five-county region was working together to ensure that every child could learn to play the violin or edit a feature film. Imagine that every neighborhood had the cultural amenities its residents needed and every arts group could access funding and share resources to increase their impact.  With that vision in mind, ArtsKC is leading the development of the very first regional cultural plan. Our first step was to assess our arts and creative sectors and we found out that our region's residents participate and spend at higher levels in the arts than most of the county.  Then we worked with the City of Kansas City Missouri, to assist in creating a 10 year plan to place the arts alongside other vital services with an office of Cultural and Creative Services.  And now we are in the data gathering phase of our regional cultural plan. One ArtsKC Regional Cultural Plan identifies the cultural needs of the five counties by asking, "Where is arts education unavailable? What neighborhoods could benefit from arts revitalization? And how are the existing arts agencies challenged in reaching audiences?" It evaluates existing resources and creates a plan for change. 

How does this benefit you? A regional cultural plan means that we are all working together. So whether you live in Liberty or Lee's Summit, Olathe or Kansas City, Kansas - a regional cultural plan means that community leaders will be working towards common goals to improve arts education, arts marketing, communications, and economic development for the region.

How can you get involved? Register for Mindmixer, our community engagement website. Visit http://oneartskc.mindmixer.com and share your ideas.

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Photo credit: Tom Styrkowicz, 53Tom.com