{"id":5411,"date":"2018-10-10T02:00:26","date_gmt":"2018-10-10T06:00:26","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.artsjournal.com\/engage\/?p=5411"},"modified":"2018-10-04T10:25:38","modified_gmt":"2018-10-04T14:25:38","slug":"the-state-of-engagement-2","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.artsjournal.com\/engage\/2018\/10\/the-state-of-engagement-2\/","title":{"rendered":"Needs of the Field"},"content":{"rendered":"<p style=\"text-align: justify;\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-5408 alignleft\" src=\"https:\/\/www.artsjournal.com\/engage\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/09\/PonderingVista.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"240\" height=\"240\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.artsjournal.com\/engage\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/09\/PonderingVista.jpg 240w, https:\/\/www.artsjournal.com\/engage\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/09\/PonderingVista-150x150.jpg 150w, https:\/\/www.artsjournal.com\/engage\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/09\/PonderingVista-100x100.jpg 100w, https:\/\/www.artsjournal.com\/engage\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/09\/PonderingVista-200x200.jpg 200w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 240px) 100vw, 240px\" \/>Last time (<a href=\"https:\/\/www.artsjournal.com\/engage\/2018\/10\/the-state-of-engagement\/\">The State of Engagement<\/a>) I shared some thoughts about the status of community engagement in the nonprofit arts industry. Today I want to offer a few observations about the needs of our field with respect to community engagement. Before I begin I want to be clear that this does not purport to be an exhaustive list but simply some of the things that are most on my mind right now.<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"text-align: justify;\"><em>Understanding\/Awareness<\/em><br \/>\nThere is a great need for more <strong>universal understanding of basic concepts in the means by which arts organizations and the public connect<\/strong>; and by universal, I mean all of our internal stakeholders: artistic staff, administrative staff, and board members. I have written extensively on the need to better understand and differentiate among audience development, audience engagement, and community engagement. The unfortunate conflating of the three creates confusion and inhibits success in any one of them. With respect to community engagement there is little awareness of its potential, principles, and practice. Without significant growth in this area, real change will be extremely limited.<\/li>\n<li><em>Advocacy for Community Engagement<br \/>\n<\/em>While it might be hoped that simple understanding and awareness would generate change, the inertial forces in our industry make that unlikely. So, there needs to be <strong>a concerted effort to press arts organizations to deeper commitments to their communities<\/strong>. We need to utilize both <a href=\"https:\/\/www.artsjournal.com\/engage\/2017\/09\/why-engage\/\">carrots and sticks<\/a>\u2013the carrot of broadly perceived indispensability (wouldn&#8217;t that be cool!) and the stick of impending obsolescence.<\/li>\n<li style=\"text-align: justify;\"><em>Trained Practitioners<br \/>\n<\/em>The skills necessary for successful work in community engagement have not been part of the training or experience of most in our field. <strong>Opportunities for training, sharing, and mentoring need to expanded.<\/strong><\/li>\n<li style=\"text-align: justify;\"><em>Mission-level Organizational Commitment<br \/>\n<\/em>As awareness and understanding lead to support for community engagement, <strong>organizations need to make their commitment to it a mission-level priority, not an add-on or afterthought.<\/strong> Otherwise, communities will see the limited efforts for what they are\u2013window dressing. This need not be a commitment that excludes an arts mission but is added in parallel to it or, better, as a more accurate understanding of what an arts mission actually\u00a0<em>should<\/em> be: connecting people with art.<\/li>\n<li><em>Organizational Transformation<br \/>\n<\/em>Once the commitment is made, <strong>the hard work of transforming the organization from an artcentric to a community-oriented focus must take place<\/strong>. Initially, simple changes in our habits of mind will go a long way in supporting the process. Eventually, though,if an organization is not <em>doing<\/em>\u00a0anything differently as a result of its engagement efforts, it\u2019s not focused on the community.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\">I said at the beginning of my last post that these musings were the result of trying to assess the future of this blog and of ArtsEngaged. I&#8217;m clear that there is still much work that needs to be done. We will continue to support all of the points above. But this work must grow. To that end we are creating a network of community engagement practitioners and advocates. For now, it lives as a Facebook group: <a href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/groups\/668362663522307\/?fref=mentions&amp;__xts__%5B0%5D=68.ARBEmW2e-YrI6Hzp5BL7wLEvnb55yqX7a0_NmDx02pZ6I5bXu8Taf1WLLzk5VmwEuZ8ekz48Fc_kvpKrO3H6TKgVNZciq1h80YrLHZxbxNtrvEpZOOw-EZCKmfyv53xyK90U-IQZlbsJMMlAuJ4RCIOdENZc1UkAo9oNQOxaSheRxaWzL5Ao&amp;__tn__=K-R\">Become Indispensable<\/a>. If this work is meaningful to you, join us and invite colleagues to participate as well. (If you are Facebook averse\u2013and we understand that\u2013emails us at <a href=\"mailto:CEN@artsengaged.com\">CEN@artsengaged.com<\/a> and we&#8217;ll be sure to include you in the festivities.) In addition, ArtsEngaged continues to offer <a href=\"https:\/\/www.artsengaged.com\/cet\">Community Engagement Training<\/a> to individuals and groups.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\">One last word. With respect to organizational transformation, I have been pleased to read of the work of <a href=\"http:\/\/www.ofbyforall.org\">Of\/By\/For All<\/a>, a movement to assist organizations that have made a substantive commitment to their communities. While it may not be for all organizations\u2013the level of community focus they advocate may be a bit much for some arts organizations, at least at first\u2013it does appear to be a great resource for implementing effective community engagement work.<\/p>\n<p>Engage!<\/p>\n<p>Doug<\/p>\n<p>Photo:\u00a0<span class=\"ccIcn ccIcnSmall\"><a href=\"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by\/2.0\/\"><img decoding=\"async\" title=\"Attribution\" src=\"https:\/\/s.yimg.com\/pw\/images\/cc_icon_attribution_small.gif\" alt=\"Attribution\" border=\"0\" \/><\/a><\/span>\u00a0<a title=\"Attribution License\" href=\"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by\/2.0\/\">Some rights reserved<\/a>\u00a0by\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.flickr.com\/photos\/archerwl\/\">archerwl<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>What needs to happen to more fully embed nonprofit arts organizations in their communities.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":5408,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_genesis_hide_title":false,"_genesis_hide_breadcrumbs":false,"_genesis_hide_singular_image":false,"_genesis_hide_footer_widgets":false,"_genesis_custom_body_class":"","_genesis_custom_post_class":"","_genesis_layout":"","jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"Needs of the Field: What it will take for field-wide transformation.","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[4],"tags":[12,13,17],"class_list":{"0":"post-5411","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-overview","8":"tag-arts","9":"tag-community-engagement","10":"tag-examples-2","11":"entry"},"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/www.artsjournal.com\/engage\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/09\/PonderingVista.jpg","jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p1G6h9-1ph","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":6612,"url":"https:\/\/www.artsjournal.com\/engage\/2022\/04\/assessing-engagement\/","url_meta":{"origin":5411,"position":0},"title":"Assessing Engagement","author":"Doug Borwick","date":"April 13, 2022","format":false,"excerpt":"The time has come to apply greater rigor to evaluating engagement processes, results, and the state of community engagement in the nonprofit arts industry.","rel":"","context":"In &quot;The Practice of Engagement&quot;","block_context":{"text":"The Practice of Engagement","link":"https:\/\/www.artsjournal.com\/engage\/category\/the-practice-of-engagement\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.artsjournal.com\/engage\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/04\/Clipboard.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":5402,"url":"https:\/\/www.artsjournal.com\/engage\/2018\/10\/the-state-of-engagement\/","url_meta":{"origin":5411,"position":1},"title":"The State of Engagement","author":"Doug Borwick","date":"October 3, 2018","format":false,"excerpt":"For too many arts organizations, their level of self-focus apparently makes understanding that effective community engagement is something substantially different from traditional sales\/marketing\/fundraising\/education approaches nearly impossible.","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Overview&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Overview","link":"https:\/\/www.artsjournal.com\/engage\/category\/overview\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.artsjournal.com\/engage\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/09\/PonderingVista.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":4997,"url":"https:\/\/www.artsjournal.com\/engage\/2017\/08\/the-boards-role-in-community-engagement-ii\/","url_meta":{"origin":5411,"position":2},"title":"The Board&#8217;s Role in Community Engagement: II","author":"Doug Borwick","date":"August 16, 2017","format":false,"excerpt":"The board of directors can and should be a supportive resource for community engagement.","rel":"","context":"In &quot;The Practice of Engagement&quot;","block_context":{"text":"The Practice of Engagement","link":"https:\/\/www.artsjournal.com\/engage\/category\/the-practice-of-engagement\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.artsjournal.com\/engage\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/06\/BoardOfDirs-300x199.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":5026,"url":"https:\/\/www.artsjournal.com\/engage\/2017\/10\/community-engagement-training\/","url_meta":{"origin":5411,"position":3},"title":"Community Engagement Training","author":"Doug Borwick","date":"October 4, 2017","format":false,"excerpt":"Community Engagement Training: Training in effective community engagement","rel":"","context":"In &quot;The Practice of Engagement&quot;","block_context":{"text":"The Practice of Engagement","link":"https:\/\/www.artsjournal.com\/engage\/category\/the-practice-of-engagement\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.artsjournal.com\/engage\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/08\/I_LoveLearning-300x200.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":4263,"url":"https:\/\/www.artsjournal.com\/engage\/2015\/10\/making-my-peace-with-sales\/","url_meta":{"origin":5411,"position":4},"title":"Making My Peace with Sales","author":"Doug Borwick","date":"October 28, 2015","format":false,"excerpt":"The case must be made for why someone should choose the arts experience over other options. To do so, we must have a relationship with them that can inform our messages.","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Customer-Client-Collaborator Series&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Customer-Client-Collaborator Series","link":"https:\/\/www.artsjournal.com\/engage\/category\/customer-client-collaborator-series\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"CashRegister","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.artsjournal.com\/engage\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/07\/CashRegister-e1438012800963.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":5381,"url":"https:\/\/www.artsjournal.com\/engage\/2018\/09\/reach-and-frequency\/","url_meta":{"origin":5411,"position":5},"title":"Reach and Frequency","author":"Doug Borwick","date":"September 12, 2018","format":false,"excerpt":"Community engagement is not just a worthy effort to pursue at the margins. It is critical to the future of individual arts organizations and to our industry as a whole.","rel":"","context":"In &quot;The Practice of Engagement&quot;","block_context":{"text":"The Practice of Engagement","link":"https:\/\/www.artsjournal.com\/engage\/category\/the-practice-of-engagement\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.artsjournal.com\/engage\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/04\/Dictionary.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]}],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.artsjournal.com\/engage\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5411","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.artsjournal.com\/engage\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.artsjournal.com\/engage\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.artsjournal.com\/engage\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.artsjournal.com\/engage\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=5411"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"https:\/\/www.artsjournal.com\/engage\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5411\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":5416,"href":"https:\/\/www.artsjournal.com\/engage\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5411\/revisions\/5416"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.artsjournal.com\/engage\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/5408"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.artsjournal.com\/engage\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=5411"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.artsjournal.com\/engage\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=5411"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.artsjournal.com\/engage\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=5411"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}