B.C. Regional Integrated Arts Network

Download the letter and questionnaire (.rtf format)

Please join us in advancing a significant initiative in the field of "disability arts"/"integrated arts."

Dear Friends and Colleagues,

I am a Vancouver-based arts consultant who has been asked by a group of arts practitioners, presenters and administrators to work with them on a significant new initiative in support of "disability arts and culture" in B.C.

I am writing to fill you in on this initiative and to request your organization's involvement and assistance. After you have read this letter, we would be grateful if you would find some reflective time for the survey that follows - it shouldn't take a great deal of time and, ultimately, it may prove to be useful in developing more support for you and your organization's work.

The Story So Far

On September 15, 2006, 18 people from a variety of groups came together for an initial meeting, at the invitation of Geoff McMurchy, Artistic Director of the Society for Disability Arts and Culture (S4DAC). (You will find a list of the people who attended and their organizations near the end of this letter.)

The starting point for the discussion, held in the Vancouver offices of Legacies Now, was:

How can we best take advantage of possible opportunities for collective projects/collaborations before, during and after the 2010 Olympics and Paralympics?

A number of general assumptions were shared by many at this gathering:

• We want collective participation at both Olympic events
• Programming and capacity-building for the entire field are important
• What is left behind (the legacy) is critical
• Some kind of a network could be very useful in reaching our collective goals and in maximizing the resources available to us (financial, creative, administrative, presentation and other)

Many great ideas for collaboration emerged, some of which may be fundable.

Some of the "big" ideas include:

1. The creation of a regional disability arts network. (In fact, with this initiative, we're now taking the first steps in the network's creation and have provisionally dubbed it the "B.C. Regional Integrated Arts Network" or BRIAN.)
2. The creation of a physical space - a potential "Centre for Integrated Visual and Performing Arts"
3. The establishment of an "Inclusive/Integrated Disability Arts Commissioning Fund"
4. The development of a web-based information hub for the community
5. Advocacy work or a campaign around broad issues of accessibility - for both patrons and artists

There was a lot of spirited and creative conversation at the meeting and many useful comments and observations; much could be added to this brief summary. (The minutes of that meeting are available by e-mail; just let us know. They will also be posted on the BRIAN section of the Society for Disability Arts and Culture website soon. Go to http://www.s4dac.org.)

Legacies Now Provides Some Seed Money

The decision of the group at the Vancouver meeting was to move forward with the creation of a collective strategic plan - a plan that could be shared with funding bodies, including 2010 Legacies Now and the Olympics and Paralympics.

In October, the group was pleased to learn that Legacies Now would provide funding in support of the initiative. An advisory group was created, terms of reference for the work were developed, several consultants were approached and, in January, 2007, I was contracted to assist with the project.

This is Where the Community - and You - Come into the Picture

The group members are clear on how to proceed: We want to create a useful, practical action plan - a "strategic plan for 2010 and beyond." And we want the process of developing that plan to be as inclusive as possible.

We believe that by working together to advance our interests and concerns, and through pooling experience and resources, we can accomplish more than we can on our own, especially at this time of unique Olympics-related funding opportunities.

We begin with the following questionnaire. This will be followed by additional research, face-to-face interviews with selected groups, discussion and small focus groups, and bigger plenary group sessions. This process is designed to bring us together, build new connections and create a dynamic, practical plan that reflects a broad consensus.

We are asking you to complete the questionnaire. Once it is completed and returned to us, we will be able to keep you informed as the planning process continues. Although we don't have funds to bring people to Vancouver, we hope that people from outside the Lower Mainland will find ways to attend one or more of the group sessions, tentatively planned now for the latter part of April and early May. If you can't attend in person, there are many other ways to be in contact with us, including the telephone.

Relevant Pieces of Information

• Although the funding for this project will be administered by the Society for Disability Arts and Culture, the project "belongs" to the broader community.
• The Advisory Group members are Geoff McMurchy, of S4DAC; Catherine McDonald, of Theatre Terrific; Lori Baxter, of Legacies Now; and Irwin Oostindie, of Gallery Gachet.
• The people who attended the initial planning meeting were Janet Ashdown, Consumer Initiative Fund, Vancouver Coastal Health, Highs & Lows Choir; Suzanne Bessette, Garth Homer Society art studio program, Victoria; James Sanders, Artistic Director, Realwheels Society, "Skydive"; Barbara Sanders, Administrator, Realwheels Society; Susanna Uchatius, Artistic Director, Theatre Terrific; Irwin Oostindie, Gallery Gachet, mental health, DTES; Pat Danforth, Victoria Disability Arts Festival; Geoff McMurchy, S4DAC Artistic Director, kickstART; Terry Wiens, Dance Victoria, Coordinator, Tailspin integrated dance workshops; Moe François, Director, Artists Helping Artists; Lawrence Shapiro, dancer representing Helen Walkley, choreographer; Vickie Cammack, Executive Director, PLAN Institute, S4DAC board member; Al Etmanski, President, PLAN, 2010 Legacies Now consultant; Rina Fraticelli, Executive Producer, National Film Board, Pacific & Yukon Region; Lori Baxter, 2010 Legacies Now/Arts Now; Catherine McDonald, General Manager, Theatre Terrific; Judith Marcuse, Artistic Producer, Judith Marcuse Projects, who facilitated the session; and Avril Orloff, who provided graphic recording for the session.
• One goal is to create a database that will be as complete as possible, providing a picture of current disability arts and culture activity in B.C. Therefore, we would be grateful if you would forward this letter and questionnaire to other organizations working in the disability arts area if their work meets either of these two criteria:
1. the organization supports or presents emerging or professional artists with disabilities of any kind; or
2. the organization uses the arts as an integrating or community-building tool for people with disabilities.
• The focus of the strategic plan will be on the needs of groups and organizations. Therefore, we are not setting out to solicit information from individual artists and others not representing a group or organization. However, if an artist is connected to a network, collective, or unincorporated group, he or she is enthusiastically invited to discuss the questions among the group and to answer on the group's behalf.
• If your organization meets either of the criteria, please complete the questionnaire. When it's completed, please reply to me by e-mail at rickmarc@shaw.ca and also to the BRIAN e-mail address at brian@s4dac.org.
• If you have questions, suggestions or concerns, please feel free to contact me by e-mail or by phone (604-921-8436). You can also contact Geoff McMurchy by e-mail at director@s4dac.org or by phone (250-385-9828).

Some very dedicated people in the community feel that the time is right for disability arts organizations to come together and help each other build a dynamic and thriving community. I am delighted to be involved in helping to guide and support this process.

Thank you so much for your contribution to this endeavour.

With best wishes,
Richard Marcuse
Consultant

Questionnaire

Please complete and return to rickmarc@shaw.ca and brian@s4dac.org.

If you wish to mail the questionnaire, or want to provide documents not available electronically, please send snail mail to: Richard Marcuse, 6754 Dufferin Avenue, West Vancouver, B.C. V7W 2K2.

Please note: There are several ways to complete this questionnaire electronically. One is to set the e-mail up for a "reply" - once you've hit "reply," you will be able to add text into the document. Alternatively, you may want to open the attachment with any word-processing software, like Word - then you will be able to add text as, and when, you choose.

I hope you won't view this questionnaire as excessively time-consuming - please feel free to paste in relevant text from existing documents or take other short-cuts. Along these lines, if material requested is available on-line - on your website, for example - please simply point me to it and I will retrieve it. And, finally, we will be happy to receive partially-answered questionnaires; you can also forward it to us in bits and pieces.

Please send us your response - complete or partial - as soon as possible, but no later than Wednesday, April 25.

The more information you give us, the better this planning process will go - and the better we will be able to make our case to funding bodies and to others.

The questions

General

1. Name of your organization:
2. Mailing address:
3. Phone:
4. Fax:
5. E-mail:
6. Website:
7. Year established:

What your organization does

8. What is your organization's mission?
9. Please describe your organization's activities or programs.
10. What is your organization's long-range vision?
11. Overall, do you view your organization as "consumer-driven," "service-driven" or "professional-driven" - or do you place it in some other category? If your organization is consumer-driven, what portion is led by consumers?

Governance, administration and some facts and figures

12. Is your organization a society registered in Victoria? If not, does it have some other status?
13. Is your organization registered as a charity with the Canada Revenue Agency?
14. Do you have a board of directors? If so, how many directors are there and what kind of role do they play in running the organization?
15. How many full- and/or part-time staff do you have? Please list their job titles.
16. What is your overall budget? What are the sources of your revenue? If you are able to provide full budget figures without great effort, please do so. A recent revenue and expense statement and a balance sheet, if available, would be ideal. These documents will not be shared; they will be used confidentially to generate averages and identify trends within our sector.
17. Does your organization carry a deficit or a surplus on the books? If so, what is the amount?
18. If you have a membership, how many members do you have?
19. How many people do you serve with your programs?
20. If you present "disability arts" events, what is the size of your audience on an annual basis?
21. How do you know when your projects or programs are a success?
22. What is the geographical scope of your organization's operation? Philosophy and planning for the future.
23. Are you comfortable with the term "disability arts"? What do you think about the term "integrated arts"? Do you prefer another way of referring to the collective activities of artists with disabilities? If so, what is it? Please briefly explain how you see the differences between these terms.
24. In the last five years, what are the three most successful things your organization did? Why were they successful?
25. In the last five years, what was your biggest struggle or disappointment? What would have helped you with that?
26. What are the obstacles to fulfilling your organization's mission?
27. What new project ideas and plans do you have for your organization?
28. Do you feel that working with other disability arts organizations would be useful to you? How?
29. Do you support the idea of a "B.C. Regional Integrated Arts Network"? Why or why not?
30. What collective or group projects interest you?
31. What collective or group initiatives do you think would be the most useful for disability arts organizations as a whole?
32. Does your organization already have specific plans for the 2010 Olympics or the Paralympics? If so, what are they?

Concluding question and comments

33. Do you have any additional suggestions or comments regarding the creation of a development strategy for the field?

Please remember:

• We will be happy to receive suggestions, comments and questions regarding the development of this plan anytime during the research and consultation process. Feel free to get in touch by e-mail, snail mail or on the phone.
• Print materials describing your organization's activities will be very useful. Please send them to: Richard Marcuse, 6754 Dufferin Avenue, West Vancouver, B.C. V7W 2K2. These materials will become part of the BRIAN database and may ultimately be part of a resource centre or archive.
• We would rather have an incomplete response to the questionnaire than no response at all - above all, we want to hear your thoughts for helping this field of artistic activity flourish to its fullest potential!

Thank you so much for completing this questionnaire!

Contact information:

Richard Marcuse
Consultant
E-mail: rickmarc@shaw.ca
Phone: 604-921-8436

Geoff McMurchy
Artistic Director, Society for Disability Arts and Culture
E-mail: director@s4dac.org
Phone: 250-385-9828

Avril Orloff
Office Manager, Society for Disability Arts and Culture
E-mail: avril@s4dac.org
Phone: 604-685-3368 (messages)