October 7, 2008

Contact: Ernie Dodson, Museum Of Black Arkansans & Performing Arts Theater

501-372-0018

Mid-America Arts Alliance, a regional arts organization serving cultural organizations in its member states of Arkansas, Kansas, Missouri, Nebraska, Oklahoma, and Texas, has selected EMOBA, The Museum Of Black Arkansans & Performing Arts Theater as one of twenty museums to participate in the Hands-On Experiential Learning Project (HELP). Mid-America Arts Alliance is implementing HELP

 in Arkansas in partnership with the Arkansas Arts Council and with generous support from the Institute of Museum and Library Services, and the Arkansas Museums Association through a grant from the Department of Arkansas Heritage. HELP provides museums with on-site, affordable learning opportunities that further skills in areas critical to successful museums today.

Ernie Dodson, director of EMOBA commented, "We are so excited to have been chosen for this project. We try very hard to make our organization a vital part of our community. Receiving hands-on training to assist us in our efforts is a real honor and privilege."

HELP is a program of Mid-America Arts Alliance’s (Mid-America) Professional Development division that provides institutional advancement, capacity building and professional development opportunities for Mid-America’s constituents. Other Arkansas communities selected for participation include: Ashdown, Batesville, Burdette, Camden, Forrest City, Fort Smith, Little Rock, Harrison, Hope, Marked Tree, Paris, Pine Bluff, Pocahontas, Pottsville, Prescott, and Wynne. Participating museums will concentrate on improvements related to nonprofit governance. Training will be directed to museum trustees as well as museum staff, paid or unpaid, and will focus on essential components of good governance.

HELP combines workshops, on-site consultant visits, and online tutorials to assist museums in goal-setting and evaluation. Mid-America subsidizes all workshop travel and a portion of each museum’s attendance at a state or regional museum conference, which will allow them to connect with peers in the field and other state-wide organizations. Mid-America wants to strengthen existing in-state networks and help participant museums build a community to share challenges and solutions.

For more information please contact Fretonzia Hickman at 501-372-0018.