Arts Management Class

Here's my very first pass at the "Intro to Arts Management" class syllabus. This is not intended to be a final document that I would ever use, but is supposed to show the bones of a stand alone class that could eventually be the basis for a program or even a major in Arts Management.

Rough Syllabus for Introduction to Arts Management

The course explores how arts organization (including theater, dance, music, and visual arts) engage artists and audiences and how they are governed, both internally (formal leadership) and externally (public policy and market forces). The course also includes overviews of historical contexts, economic conditions, organizational cultures, and financial systems. The course will highlight similarities and differences between arts management and non-creative-industry management.

The course objectives are:
• to define basic organizational models and operating strategies of various types of arts organizations;
• to present an historical overview of creation and management of the arts and arts organizations;
• to create a theoretical underpinning to practices in arts management;
• to highlight the was that arts organizations impact and interact with the communities in which they exist;
• to examine professional practices and different career possibilities within arts management;
• to expose students to professionals working in various different managerial positions in the arts through guest lecturers; and
• to provide experiential educational opportunities for students interested in arts management through course project work

Possible texts:
• Florida, Richard The Rise of the Creative Class: and how it’s Transforming Work, Leisure, Community, and Everyday Life (2002)
• Bourdieu, Pierre The Field of Cultural Production (1993)
• Byrnes, William Management and the Arts – Third Edition (2003)
• The Fundamentals of Arts Management Arts Extension Service (1987, 1994, 1998, 2003)

• Andrew Taylor The Artful Manager - Blog
• Lee Rosenbaum Culturegrrl – Blog
• Seth Godin Seth’s Blog – Blog
• Americans for the Arts ARTSBlog – Blog

• Center for Arts Management and Technology (CAMT)Technology in the Arts – Podcast

• ArtsJournal - Listserv

Possible guest lecturers:
• Head of Goggleworks
• ?


Week Topic Notes

1 What is Arts Management - An overview of what we mean by “Arts Management” positions, structures, duties, responsibilities etc.
2 History of Management in the Arts - History of how Theater, Dance, Music, and Visual Arts have been supported and organized in various epochs in Western History
3 Cultural Capital - Starting with Pierre Bourdieu’s work on Creative Capital, discussions of audiences and audience behavior focusing on the question of “why do people attend the arts?”
4 Creative Communities - Focusing on Richard Florida’s work explaining the creative economy and exploring the intersection of the arts and community, and continuing the inquiry into “ why do people attend the arts?”
5
6 Mission, Vision, and Values - The creation of mission, vision, and values statements and the ways that these ideas permeate through an organization
7 Governance and Oversight - The role of the board and senior management
8 Marketing - An overview of basic marketing concepts and how they are applied specifically to the arts
9 Development - Exploring the interaction between audience development and fundraising. Also a look at private foundations and government funding
10 Finance - Discussion of basic financial terms and ideas and the ways that for-profit and not-for-profit organizations use these separately
11 Planning - How different arts organizations set goals and quantify the success of various strategies and tactics
12
13 Public Art - An overview of the way that public art is being deployed by various communities and organizations
14 The Internet and the Arts - Using new technologies to cultivate arts audiences and donors
15