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ACROSS THE
BOARD
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St. Louis
Regional Arts Commission
Keeping the jewels shining
By Pam Droog
David Mason calls himself a diehard sports fan, but he can be as
passionate about the theater as he is about a triple play. "The
artistic and cultural community defines who we are as a region,
as much or more than sports teams," says Mason, who is president
of David Mason & Associates Architects & Engineers, and, for the
past three years, president of the St. Louis Regional Arts Commission.
"From the symphony to a neighborhood dance troupe, these are important
little jewels for a region to have, and all those jewels need to
shine."
Mason and 14 other commissioners, along with director Jill McGuire
and nine staff members help keep those jewels sparkling, thanks
to the commission's annual matching grants program and other support.
Each year the commission awards more than $3.2 million in grants
to about 200 nonprofit arts groups in order to promote, encourage
and foster the arts and cultural institutions and activities within
the region.
The commission began in 1985 as a cooperative effort between St.
Louis City and County. Funding comes from 27 percent of the City/County
hotel/motel room sales tax revenue, as well as project grants from
corporations and the National Endowment for the Arts.
Eight board members are appointed by the County Supervisor and seven
by the Mayor. Former Mayor Vincent Schoemehl asked Mason to join
the commission in 1993. "Of all the boards one could sit on, this
is certainly one that requires a lot of work and time," Mason says.
"But it's a lot of fun, because of the associations we've made,
and because of the vibrancy of our arts community."
Regional Arts Commission board members typically serve four-year,
staggered terms. "It's a diverse group that truly represents a cross-section
of the region," Mason says. "All of them are great supporters of
the arts, not just financially, but by really being there to help."
It's not a board that meets once a month for a social hour. "Our
meetings are very intense and everyone takes their duties quite
seriously,' he notes.
Most of the board's duties revolve around the granting process,
which begins in mid-January when applications are due and extends
into the spring for the review process. "This year we ended up with
204 applications, including 14 groups we haven't heard from before,"
McGuire says. "When the review process begins, so do the three-to-four-hour
monthly meetings where the board members are called on to read and
evaluate the applications."
At those meetings, board members hear reports from peer review committees,
made up of citizens who closely follow the activities of the various
applicant groups. "This allows the community to weigh in on a given
grant application," Mason explains. "It's certainly not just the
commission making these determinations. The process is very fair
and very rigorous."
Commissioners also are expected to attend events, McGuire explains.
"We ask every single commissioner to go to performances, gallery
openings, opening nights, concerts of the groups we fund. As a result,
our board gets out a lot," she notes, "so they're familiar with
a group when its grant request comes in."
Grant announcements are made in early May. "We typically fund the
St. Louis Symphony, Opera Theatre, the Black Rep and other well-known
groups," Mason says, "But there are numerous lesser-known ones,
too. It's a wonderful mix, and we hear from all of them and there's
not one that's not seen as an equal of another."
Besides the annual matching grants, board members also award grants
for specific purposes, such as equipment purchases, travel to conferences,
consultant visits, stabilization, emergencies and "unforeseen opportunities.'
McGuire explains, "For example, the Association of American Museums
is meeting in St. Louis soon, and the Regional Arts Commission is
helping local museums with some of the expenses they have to meet
to bring this major conference to town." In these cases, she says,
"We think of ourselves more as a partner than just a granting agency."
Though the commission is publicly funded, board members do help
raise funds for special projects. For example, MasterCard, Emerson
and Enterprise Rent-A-Car currently are funding marketing efforts,
like the Explore St. Louis Arts Internet directory, and cultural
tourism programs. They also serve on committees, including grants
guidelines, marketing, finance and public art and education.
In that regard, a very public art project the commission has been
working on for more than a year will debut this month. The People
Project, inspired by Chicago's famed Cows, will feature 200 sculptures
on display through September. "Everyone loved the cows but we decided
to make it different, and make it regional, so all 12 metro area
counties will be included," McGuire says.
As a result, perhaps the People Project will help make McGuire's
wish become a reality. "What I'd like to see happen is that the
arts are more well-known and publicized," she says. "But I do think
the situation is improving." After all, the Regional Arts Commission
is in its 17th year of sustaining and growing the arts throughout
the region. "Grass roots provide what you need to be a great arts
town,' McGuire says, "and through our board and public support,
we've been able to do that, to provide the funding, the basics."
Pam Droog is a St. Louis-based free-lance writer.
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