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Save The Arts

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(Wednesday) February 24, 2010

To the Editor:

In a difficult economic environment for the Commonwealth of Virginia (arguably a crisis) no organization or agency is going to escape their impact – or should they.  The issue is one of proportionality.

What’s being proposed by the House Appropriations Committee is not simply a reduction, but an extinction of arts and humanities in Virginia.

The Virginia Commission for the Arts mission is to support and stimulate excellence in all of the arts, in their full cultural and ethnic diversity, in order to enhance the quality of life, to stimulate economic development, to support educational advancement and to make the arts accessible to all Virginians.

The House Appropriations Committee has proposed that the Virginia Commission for the Arts funding be cut by 50% in fiscal year 2011, and the Commission completely eliminated in 2011.

Here are some key points for everyone to know about what the Virginia Commission for the Arts offers and its impact on Virginia:

  • Last year the Commission helped make possible 39, 943 arts events with a combined attendance of over 7.7 million people, including 1.9 million school children (and for many of these children, it is their only exposure to art).
  • Every dollar the state invests through the Commission returns a $7 investment by corporations, in ticket and event sales, and in local government funding.  The state also leverages federal matching funds–$1 million last year from the National Endowment for the Arts.
  • Hundreds of arts organizations across the Commonwealth are small businesses contributing to the economies of their communities.  They provide jobs.  They purchase goods and services.  They help revitalize urban downtowns and the Main Streets of small towns.

The people of Virginia deserve great art.  Such cultural gems as the Art League, Alexandria Symphony Orchestra and MetroStage, to name a few, could be adversely affected by the short-sighted actions of the General Assembly.  This is a call to action for everyone who enjoys, participates or benefits from the arts to contact their legislators.

Sincerely,

Marcia Neuhaus Speck

Member, Virginia Commission for the Arts

Beth Temple

Board member, Virginians for the Arts

Former Member, Virginia Commission for the Arts

Pat Miller

Chair, Alexandria Commission for the Arts