Art educators, advocates, art council members and legislators will network at the Maryland Arts Day, presented by Maryland Citizens for the Arts, from 8:30 a.m. to 2 p.m. Feb. 10 at the Miller Senate Building, 11 Bladen St., Annapolis. The day includes a keynote address by UMBC President, Freeman A. Hrabowski III, other speakers and many educational sessions.

The Governor’s P-20 Leadership Council Task Force report on Arts Education in Maryland Schools was recently presented to the House Appropriations Subcommittee on Education and Economic Development. Chaired by Del. Adrienne Jones and co-chairs, Mary Ann Mears, founder of Arts Education in Maryland Schools Alliance and Dr. Jack Smith, Chief Academic Officer, MD State Department of Education, they provided the committee with an overview of the report and its recommendations, all of which address quality and access of arts education for Maryland students. Also attending were task force members Carol Trawick, MSAC Chair and Theresa Colvin, Executive Director. Task Force Final Report.

Governor Hogan named R. Michael Gill as Secretary of Department of Business and Economic Development (DBED) Gill, former chairman of a Columbia investment banking firm, Evergreen Advisors, was selected because of his background in private industry. Benjamin H. Wu, an internationally recognized technology policy expert with more than 25 years of experience and management leadership, has been chosen to be DBED’s new Deputy Secretary.

After eight years at the helm of the Division of Tourism, Film and the Arts, (DTFA) Assistant Secretary, Hannah Lee Byron, has been appointed as the new Executive Director of the Maryland Medical Marijuana Commission. While at DTFA, Byron spearheaded many notable initiatives including the 9/11 Memorial of Maryland at the Baltimore World Trade Center, public art legislation, as well as the expansion of the award-winning Arts & Entertainment Districts Program.

James "Jay" Tucker, retired Fine Arts Coordinator for the Maryland State Department of Education, (MSDE) passed away January 22. Tucker spent 30 years at MSDE. Recognized as a brilliant and sensitive artist and arts educator, Jay held the respect and admiration of many colleagues across the State. Thanks to his leadership, Maryland achieved a national reputation in advancing arts education for the benefit of all students. He will be greatly missed.

New report’s surprising findings
Three reports from the NEA reveal the impact of arts and cultural industries on GDP, and how and why Americans participate in certain arts activities. NEA only reviewed one year, 2012; gathering data on arts and the cultural sector from three angles: supply, demand and consumer behavior.

Challenge America
The NEA Challenge America grant offers support primarily to small and mid-sized organizations for projects that extend the reach of the arts to underserved populations - those whose opportunities to experience the arts are limited by geography, ethnicity, economics, or disability. Application Deadline: April 16. Earliest Beginning Date for Arts Endowment Period of Performance, Jan. 1, 2016. Read more.

Arts and economic development go hand in hand
CityLab published a study linking arts clustering to economic development in nearly every metro region in the U.S. The Economic Alliance of Greater Baltimore analyzed arts clustering in the Baltimore metro area with 2012 data and compared it to the peer markets for the 2014 Regional Report.

Cassie Meador is Dance Exchange’s artistic director in Takoma Park. Her dance training began at an arts magnet school in Augusta, GA. She obtained a BFA in dance at The Ohio State University and discovered Dance Exchange at Bates Dance Festival. She feels fortunate to have found a home at Dance Exchange, where they create dances about real-world topics and use art as a vehicle for community building.

MSAC: Talk about Dance Exchange’s history...

Cassie Meador: Liz Lerman founded Dance Exchange in 1976 and this is our 39th year of gathering, moving, and making. We’re an intergenerational company, with dancers from their early 20s to mid-80s performing on stage, in studios, outdoors, and in community settings—from hospitals to farms to schoolyards.
Read More.

Ken and Julie Girardini are the principle designers at their Carroll County studio, Girardini Design. They design and make furniture, lighting, clocks, candleholders, sculpture and fine art. Self-taught, the couple creates each and every piece by hand. Their primary medium is cold rolled steel, but they add curiosities like glass, brass, copper, paper, and wood to keep it interesting.

Ken has won three Maryland State Art Council's Individual Artist Awards. They participate in the most prestigious juried art/craft shows in the U.S: The Philadelphia Museum Craft Show, the Washington, Evanston and St. Louis Craft Fairs. Ken and Julie Girardini will be exhibiting (booth #702) at the Baltimore American Craft Council Show, Feb. 20-22.

Through Feb. 22

The Mirror of Nature: The Art of Philip Koch
Hagerstown

Through Feb. 14

Arts for Sweethearts
Cumberland

Feb 20 to Feb 22

American Craft Council Show
Baltimore

March 4

Calvert Marine Museum's Annual Youth Art Month Exhibit
Solomons

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