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The Arts Researcher as Entrepreneur: Creating New Contexts for Arts Practice and Production

Tuesday, October 14, 3:00pm – 5:30pm

Rice University Art Gallery

Organized by Sunil Iyengar, Director, Research & Analysis, National Endowment for the Arts.

Presented by Sunil Iyengar, Director, Research & Analysis, National Endowment for the Arts; Bill O’Brien, Senior Advisor for Program Innovation, National Endowment for the Arts; and Kevin Rafter, Manager, Impact Assessment and Learning, Irvine Foundation.

The National Endowment for the Arts is midway through a five-year research agenda, aiming to investigate the arts' value and impact on individuals and communities. To date, some of the most tangible outcomes have emerged from cross-sector partnerships that broaden the relevance and reach of the arts, allowing entry into whole new fields of practice and research. Using text-message polling, small group breakouts, and other discussion tools, we will come away with new insights about how the NEA research collaborations might be replicated at the regional level; what the learning curve is for transitioning from arts-centric research to knowledge about other domains where the arts can make a measurable impact; and what opportunities exist within the federal government for creating public-private partnerships to leverage key themes of engagement, creativity, and innovation. This off-site session will be held at Rice University Art Gallery.