EAL/LA has been working tirelessly to bring awesome programming and professional development tools to its growing membership.  The Communications Leadership is seeking a small team of individuals to design and create an infographic to be published by EAL/LA.  This team of 3-5 members will design and publish an infographic, gaining publication credit on the EAL/LA website and on any printed versions of the graphic.

We are looking for three to five individuals who will work with Commmunications Co Chair, K. Ryan Henisey on the design and delivery of EAL/LA statistics and content.  The team will be responsible for building and publishing an infographic based on data collected by the EAL/LA Leadership Council.  This project will involve work using computer graphics (such as but not limited to Photoshop, Illustrator, etc.)

Members invited to join the team will gain professional development as they work on the design, format and layout of the infographic.  The team will initially meet on Monday, January 28th.  This short, three week project will be a team effort.  Members will be encouraged to use and develop design and computer graphic skills.

This is the type of program members can use to pad their resume.

If you are interest in joining the InfoGraphic Team, please message K. Ryan Henisey here on the EAL/LA website.  Please leave your name, email, phone number, and a brief message stating your interest.

Talk Nerdy to Me: WordPress was awesome.  Thank you to LACMA for allowing us access to their classroom and computers.  Thank you to the members that attended.  We had a great turn out and some excellent conversation on blogging and WordPress.

Some reminders – You can access help on WordPress at any time.  They have ongoing forums and blogs dedicated to managing your own site.  There are a host of WordPress lessons here.

Remember, WordPress is a blogging tool.  As a tool, it can be used to make or create based on your input.  Like most things in life, the more you put into it, the more you will get out of it.

Here are a few quick reminders for items covered in the WordPress Workshop:

Once you’ve logged into your site, use the toolbar at the top of your page to navigate.  You can access WordPress, your Dashboard, your Stats and more.

In your Dashboard, or straight from the toolbar above, you can access your posts.  From here, you may create, edit, and publish.

Prepping for publication may seem daunting at first, but once you get used to the format, publication is easy.  Remember to add your title at the top, set your visibility and publishing.  Use the toolbars to draft your post and add media – photo and video.  Be sure to tag on the right; tags help WordPress place your post in searchable categories.  You can also categorize your won work.  Much of mine is based on Art and Poetry.  Be sure to include an excerpt.

EAL/LA is proud to get this year started with a bang.  We have some wonderful events planned for all members for the month of January.  Be sure to check in here for more information as each event draws closer.

  Talk Nerdy to Me: WordPress

We’re starting January off with a Talk Nerdy to Me workshop on WordPress.  The TNTM series returns with a fun filled evening exploring blogging on one of the largest blog hosting sites available.  Communications Co Chair, K. Ryan Henisey will lead participants through the ins and outs of WordPress for small blogs, like his personal art blog LifeAsGood.com, to large sites, like EALLA.org.  This workshop will take place on January 9th on the LACMA Campus.  All members are welcome.

Talk Nerdy to Me: WordPress
Wednesday, January 9th at 7:15pm.
LACMA: IS Training Space

We will all meet in the LACMA West Building on the bottom floor. Elizabeth Gerber with Education will lead us to our classroom at 7:15 on Wednesday evening.
Please note that the museum is closed on Wednesdays. Parking is free after 7pm in the LACMA Underground Lot off of 6th Street.
I’ll Be happy to answer any questions here on FB or on the EAL/LA Site.

Data Geeks: Diving into the Otis Report on the Creative Economy

Pairing with The LA Stage Alliance, EAL/LA is proud to announce an evening of data, exploring The Otis Report on the Creative Economy of the Los Angels Region.  Join us as we explore the data presented in the report.  Check in here and in your weekly e-blasts for more information on reserving a seat as the event draws near.  Seating will be limited.

Data Geeks: Diving into the Otis Report on the Creative Economy
Monday, February, TBD. 7-9pm
LACAC
1055 Wilshire Blvd #800
Stay tuned for RSVP information.  Seating will be limited.

EAL/LA Branding Workshop

Join us at the Atwater Village Theatre on January 19th for EAL/LA’s Branding Workshop.  Come learn about branding your organization through an EAL/LA lens with Nancy Hytone Leb.

Branding Workshop
Saturday, January 19
9:30 am – 12:30
Atwater Village Theatre
3269 Casitas Ave
Los Angeles 90039

The Managing Director (MD) will ensure successful operations of the EAL/LA Leadership Council by guiding efficient communications and organization.  The MD may serve as a consultant to the Leadership Council but will not be a voting member. This is a part-time, temporary, 6-month position, with the possibility of renewal pending additional funding.

Job responsibilities include:
- Attend all Leadership Council meetings and retreats and post meeting minutes and action items on Basecamp
- Attend events and committee meetings as needed, as available, or as allowed by or as subject to time and budget limitations
- Track Leadership Council and Chairs’ progress toward meeting major deadlines and achieving major goals according to grant proposals, reports to funders, the strategic plan, and other planning documents
- Encourage and facilitate inter-departmental communications, especially for marketing, programming, and fund-raising initiatives that require support from multiple departments
- Maintain a list of venue prospects and associated information, such as rental fees, capacity, food and alcohol availability, etc.  The MD may be asked to make a venue recommendation to Chairs or Committee members for upcoming events and meetings.
- Track service periods and renewal dates for services like Basecamp, Survey Monkey, donor management systems, etc., and alert the appropriate Chairs of upcoming renewals or service terminations
- Observe Leadership Council and EAL/LA operations and programs to look for gaps, overlaps, or ineffective methods, and work with Chairs to improve efficiency and effectiveness

The Managing Director may work with each department’s Chairs in the following ways:
- Assist Development Chairs in engaging Leadership Council and Advisory Board in fund-raising initiatives
- Communicate frequently (or on a regular schedule) with Finance Chairs, Community Partners Liaison, and Community Partners staff regarding fiscal management, fiscal sponsor processes, and financial planning.
- Strategize with Executive Chairs for effective governance, goal-setting, and long-term planning
- Work with Marketing & Membership Chairs to plan and execute membership and recruitment initiatives
- Enlist Communications Chairs in improving internal and external communication flows
- Communicate with Programming Chairs to understand the cross-departmental needs for upcoming events:  expenses and purchasing; promotion and marketing; attendance tracking; addressing member requests for specific content; insurance needs, etc.
- Other duties will be performed as assigned

To apply:
Please submit a resume, cover letter and list of three professional references to info@ealla.org by 11pm on December 31st. Interviews will take place the first week of January and the official start date is January 15th at EAL/LA’s Leadership Council meeting.

Dear EAL/LA,

We’re one of five Emerging Leader networks nationwide engaged in an Arts Action Fund membership drive! This is a great opportunity for our network to gain visibility and contribute to the important work being done by the Arts Action Fund. Between now and January 31st, 2013, I encourage all of you to join (it’s free!) and help us spread the word so our network is announced as the winner of this membership drive.

As you may know, the Arts Action Fund is a 501(c)(4) nonprofit membership organization affiliated with Americans for the Arts. The Arts Action Fund’s goals are to enlist and mobilize 1 million citizen activists who will help ensure that public and private resources are maximized and that arts-friendly public policies are adopted at the federal, state, and local levels. Our network is one of over 30 Emerging Leader networks nationwide, all affiliated with Americans for the Arts.

To join, please click here. Don’t forget to indicate you’re a member of our network!

We’ll be posting on Facebook and Twitter about the competition. Please re-post and help us sign up the most new members

Need a career boost? Looking for a mentor?

Apply for APAL (Arts Professionals Advisor Link), the Emerging Arts Leaders/Los Angeles mentorship program!

Now concluding it’s third year, APAL is a participant-administered program that affords Advisees not only the chance for valuable mentorship but also professional development in program planning and implementation. Aided by EAL/LA’s Leadership Council and past program participants, APAL Advisees select their own Advisors who they meet with at least four times on mutually agreed upon topics with an emphasis on the Advisee’s areas of interest. In addition to these one-on-one meetings, APAL participants plan mixers and a culminating event for all APAL Advisees and Advisors. This program format allows participants to not only gain valuable insights from their selected mentors, but to also have a supportive “book club-like” experience where they not only from their own mentorship journeys but also from their peers and other mentors.

“I can’t say enough positive things about my participation in APAL this year. The program has provided a strong platform for networking with both peers and established leaders in the arts and cultural sector, and has fostered a strong sense of camaraderie among members of our cohort. It is a rare and special opportunity for an emerging leader to have the chance to bounce around ideas, hopes, challenges and dreams with a well-respected mentor like Claire Peeps. As someone who has recently taken on a lot of responsibility within a small cultural organization, her guidance has been essential for my professional development this year. Additionally, Claire’s connections to the arts community at large have provided me with the opportunity to meet many leaders in the field and be exposed to a diverse range of insights and perspectives.”

-Shayna Keller, 2012 APAL Participant, Executive Co-Chair EAL/LA, Managing Director, Dance Resource Center

Strengthen your leadership capacity.

Download APAL Application 2013

More information about the program here. Submit your application by Monday, December 31 at 11:59pm PST.

Questions?

Contact Kelly Christ, EAL/LA Programming Chair, at Kelly@ealla.org.

Need a quick resume boost?  The first seven members to comment “resume” below will meet with our Communications CoChair K. Ryan Henisey for a round table resume workshop on Tuesday, December 11, at 7pm.

Emerging Arts Leaders/Los Angeles Creative Conversations April 2012 Testimonial
Stephanie Stallings, Musicologist; Director, Arts Diplomacy Network

As a recent transplant from Washington, D.C., I was alone in a new city, one person with few connections in a sea of established arts professionals. A new friend introduced me to Emerging Arts Leaders/Los Angeles. I found them online and discovered that there was something called a Creative Conversations event scheduled, serendipitously, for the following Saturday.

While I wasn’t expecting a program entitled Lessons from Social Entrepreneurs: How to Add Value to Your Organization and Career to have much of an effect on me, it ended up booting me down a path toward rethinking my professional goals.

LA Stage Alliance’s CEO, Terence McFarland’s keynote address alone was worth the cost of admission. His inspirational and practical advice rang bells in my head: Just do it. Then do it right.

I knew I wanted to pursue my passion, bridging cultural differences through the arts, but I wasn’t sure how to take the first step. Fortunately, two of the panelists at this Creative Conversations event were Adam Kalesperis and Joe Quintero, founders of the B.R.I.D.G.E. (Building Relationships and Inspiring Dialogue through Global Exchange) Theatre Project, which unites people in communities around the world through intensive playwriting and acting programs. What a breakthrough, and a complete surprise, to find other local professionals who shared my interests.

On my way home and in the weeks following, Terence’s words grew louder: Just do it. Think bigger.

So because of the inspiration I derived through my attendance at EAL/LA’s Creative Conversations event, I created Arts Diplomacy Network, an organization dedicated to bringing together individual visual and performing artists, arts leaders, and citizen and official diplomats who are passionate about international cultural exchange. My new initiative has led me to meet many likeminded professionals who are similarly committed to bridging cultural differences through the arts.

Now I’m developing unique programming like #ArtsDiploChat, a bi-monthly Twitter chat that brings together a community of arts/cultural/public diplomacy professionals and international exchange advocates to discuss ways to link our expressive lives to a public purpose. We’re also examining how new analytic tools like the Music Genome Project can be used to create more effective public diplomacy.

I thank EAL/LA and Creative Conversations for plugging me into a network of enthusiastic emerging arts professionals and for creating a space to allow me to reevaluate my career path. I currently serve on EAL/LA’s Programming Committee, which is planning October 2012’s Creative Conversations event, Sparking Inclusive Dialogue Through Creative Placemaking. I’m thrilled that I had the opportunity to help conceive of this topic and know that the event is going to be fantastic!

Register now for Emerging Arts Leaders/Los Angeles October 2012 Creative Conversations Event:

Sparking Inclusive Dialogue Through Creative Placemaking

This daylong event will explore how creative placemaking can enjoin atypical collaborators in a dialogue not only about art, but also about our community at large. Fostering the cultivation of Los Angeles and areas within it into “creative places” has a positive effect on the arts sector and the region as a whole:

“In creative placemaking, partners from public, private, non-profit, and community sectors strategically shape the physical and social character of a neighborhood, town, city, or region around arts and cultural activities. Creative placemaking animates public and private spaces, rejuvenates structures and streetscapes, improves local business viability and public safety, and brings diverse people together to celebrate, inspire, and be inspired.”
Ann Markusen (Markusen Economic Research Services) and Anne Gadwa (Metris Arts Consulting), “Creative Placemaking,” 2010.

Saturday, October 20
Atwater Village Theatre, 3269 Casitas Avenue, Los Angeles, CA 90039

11:00am-4:00pm: conference with catered lunch
4:00pm: Networking mixer at The Griffin, 3000 Los Feliz Boulevard, Los Angeles, CA 90039
EAL/LA encourages creators, performers, funders, arts administrators and anyone who is interested from any and all fields to attend.
Purchase your $20 ticket today!

The keynote speaker for the symposium is John Malpede, the Founder and Director of the Los Angeles Poverty Department. LAPD’s mission is to create performances that connect lived experience to the social forces that shape the lives and communities of people living in poverty.

Following the keynote and a catered lunch, we’ll have an exciting panel discussion with: Anne Bray, Co-Founder and Executive Director of Freewaves Engagement with edgy, demanding, enlightening art by a broad public is Bray’s mission…She is a visual instigator and translator.

Brian Janeczko, Architectural and Industrial designer and fabricator, Janeczko will speak about how technology and craft are impacting the traditional notions of and venues for community based public art. He will also speak about his experiences as founder and director of the architectural cycling group BikeHaus.

Dan Kwong, Project Director of Collaboratory at Great Leap, Inc. Culture, class, race, gender, sexuality and nationality all come under scrutiny in his innovative performances which weave together storytelling, multimedia, poetry, striking visuals, dynamic physicality and a generous sense of humor.

To learn more about this event and the speakers, read the Press Release.

To purchase your ticket now, please visit: http://ealla.kintera.org/ecommerce

Congratulations to the new Leadership Council members!

The people have voted, our new Leadership Council members are:

Executive Co-Chair- Shayna Keller

Marketing & Membership Co-Chair – Aurea Adao

Development Co-Chair – Maria Paredes

At Large Member – Stephanie Moore

Programming Co-Chair - Ronnie Wise

Terms begin this month.

Get ready to rock n’ roll EAL/LA!

Being a registered voter of ealla.org was required for voting eligibility. Number of unregistered voters, 19. These votes will not be counted.