2016 Seminar on Strategy for New Artist-Endowed Foundation Leaders

 

The week of June 6-10, 2016, the inaugural edition of the annual Seminar on Strategy for New Artist-Endowed Foundation Leaders was presented collaboratively by AEFI and University of Miami School of Law (UMSL). The Seminar took place in New York City, hosted by the Dedalus Foundation, Helen Frankenthaler Foundation, Roy Lichtenstein Foundation, Joan Mitchell Foundation, and the Isamu Noguchi Foundation and Garden Museum. Twenty-four leaders representing foundations from across the U.S. were selected to participate. All members of the group completed the challenging program and received completion certifications conferred jointly by AEFI and UMSL in recognition of that achievement.

The week-long Seminar program was organized into sections focused on:

  • Legacy Stewardship and Artist-Endowed Foundations
  • Organizational Viability
  • Economic Sustainability
  • Cultural Asset Stewardship
  • Philanthropic Impact
  • Foundation Operation

With participation based on application and selection by admissions committee, the Seminar supports the professional development of individuals who currently have, or will have, new policy-setting and leadership responsibilities for artist-endowed foundations—directors, officers, trustees, board members, senior staff—and orients them to the characteristics of these distinctive organizations. Chief among these characteristics are foundations’ complex business models, diverse philanthropic practices, influential art historical role, and manifold governance and stewardship requirements.

The Seminar curriculum is based on findings of AEFI’s National Study of Artist-Endowed Foundations and focuses specifically on the strategic concerns of leaders entering the field. Site visits and sessions with seasoned foundation leaders are central to the curriculum. By building the capacity of new leaders, the Seminar advances AEFI’s mission to strengthen the charitable impact of the emerging artist-endowed foundation field.

View the 2016 Artist-Endowed Foundation Leadership Seminar program booklet here.