22 simple tips for a more accessible arts & culture event
“Accessibility is being able to get into a building. Diversity is getting invited to the table. Inclusion is having a voice at the table. Belonging is having your voice heard at the table.”
Glass Half Full Award: Honoring Kwame Scruggs, Ph.D
GAR Foundation is honored to present Kwame Scruggs with the 2019 Glass Half Full award for his steadfast and inspirational leadership of Alchemy, Inc.
The Conservancy for Cuyahoga National Park hosts Ohio’s first-ever Latino Conservation Week
The Conservancy for Cuygahoga Valley National Park recently hosted Ohio’s first-ever Latino Conservation Week to engage the Latino community in the outdoors and create awareness around conservation. The event is part of the organization’s diversity, equity, and inclusion efforts to make the park more welcoming to minority populations. GAR Foundation supported the CVNP’s diversity and […]
Three vital roles backbone board members play in complex civic systems
Backbone organizations are unusual entities and that means they need unusual boards too. Board members of organizations responsible for performing backbone functions need to assume roles and responsibilities beyond those of a board member of a traditional nonprofit.
Why an inclusive arts & culture plan is the perfect next step for Akron
By: Rob Lehr & Dina Younis Communities of all sizes develop plans – strategic plans, economic development plans, urban design plans – but a cultural plan? You betcha. From festivals to food trucks, arts and culture are among a community’s most powerful assets. But in order to ensure that we are effectively caring for and […]
Akron is embarking on its first Arts and Culture Plan
ArtsNow and Designing Local are taking a closer look at Akron’s existing arts and cultural offerings and inviting residents to share what they want to see in each of Akron’s neighborhoods. The end result: Akron’s first-ever comprehensive cultural plan. ArtsNow has received funding from GAR Foundation and Knight Foundation to work together with the City […]
Five things we learned after working with consultants
Hiring a consultant can make sense for a number of reasons. Oftentimes, consultants bring specialized skill sets that you don’t have in house and don’t wish to develop. Sometimes they simply add capacity to get a job done when you have no bandwidth to spare. In other situations, they are the outsiders who can deliver […]
The Pillars of the Akron Civic Commons
The Akron Civic Commons works across three neighborhoods in Akron: Downtown, Park East, and Summit Lake, and the process is guided by four pillars: Civic Engagement, Socioeconomic Mixing, Value Creation, and Environmental Sustainability. But what do these mean in the context of their work? All throughout the month of January the Akron Civic Commons shared […]
New year, new review?
There are few things in professional life that can take the oxygen out of a room quite like the prospect of year-end performance reviews and new year goal-setting. Why is that? Many of us are goal-oriented people, after all. Many of us fancy ourselves introspective and eager to learn from our experiences. And yet, the […]
New $5 million investment from GAR Foundation and Knight Foundation will help build a more vibrant, connected downtown with restoration of Akron Civic Theatre
Akron, Ohio — Nov. 15, 2018 — Akron Civic Theatre today announced plans to transform Akron’s Whitelaw Building into a vibrant new theatre, revitalizing a key corridor of Akron’s primary downtown entertainment and residential district and introducing new opportunities for Akron residents to meet and connect. The project is a collaboration with the Bowery Development […]