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National Endowment for the Arts Chairman Jane Chu to visit Reno this week

CARSON CITY, Nevada (March 7, 2017) – Jane Chu, chairman of the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA), will be in Reno, March 9-11, 2017. This is the first trip to Nevada by the chairman.

Jane Chu, Chairman of the National Endowment for the Arts.  Business for the Arts Awards Luncheon, hosted by the Colorado Business Committee for the Arts, at the Denver Center for Performing Arts, Seawell Ballroom, in Denver, Colorado, on Wednesday, March 9, 2016. Photo Steve Peterson

Jane Chu, Chairman of the National Endowment for the Arts.

Chairman Chu is scheduled to speak at the Nevada Arts Council’s 50th Anniversary Awards Dinner, at a Nevada Arts Council event with other national arts leaders, and at the 12th annual Nevada Poetry Out Loud State Finals Competition. Chairman Chu will also make stops at numerous arts organizations and facilities in Reno during her trip.

On Thursday, March 9, Chairman Chu joins the Nevada arts community at the sold-out Nevada Arts Council 50th Anniversary Awards Dinner as it honors the Nevada State Senate, the Nevada State Assembly and the Office of the Governor for establishing the Nevada Arts Council in 1967.

Earlier in the day on Thursday, she is scheduled to visit Artown and Sierra Nevada Ballet, both recipients of NEA grants.

On Friday, March 10, Chairman Chu will give remarks about the NEA and participate in a conversation with Susan Boskoff, Nevada Arts Council executive director, at the McKinley Arts and Culture Center, 925 Riverside Drive, Reno. The event follows a National Arts Roundtable discussion, which starts at 9 a.m. Roundtable participants include Bob Lynch, president/CEO of Americans for the Arts; Kelly Barsdate, Chief Program and Planning Officer, National Assembly of State Arts Agencies; and Anthony Radich, executive director, Western States Arts Federation.

From 11 a.m. to noon on Friday, Andi Mathis, program specialist with the National Endowment for the Arts, will lead a workshop about NEA programs, grants, and resources. These events at the McKinley Arts and Culture Center are free and open to the public. RSVP to infonvartscouncil@nevadaculture.org by March 8, 2017.

After her remarks, Chairman Chu will remain in the McKinley Arts and Culture Center, and visit with Note-Able Music Therapy Services, the Reno Philharmonic Orchestra, and Reno Chamber Orchestra.  Later that afternoon, she will visit the Riverside Artist Lofts and the Sierra Arts Foundation, a local arts agency.

On Saturday, March 11, the Chairman will give remarks at the 2017 Annual Nevada Poetry Out Loud State Finals at KNPB Channel 5 Public Broadcasting, 1670 N. Virginia Street, Reno. A partnership of the National Endowment for the Arts, Poetry Foundation, and state arts agencies across the county, Poetry Out Loud is an arts education program that encourages high school students to learn about great poetry through memorization and performance. High school students from across the state will compete for the Nevada Poetry Out Loud title; the finalist will advance to the national competition in Washington, D.C. in late April.

The Nevada Arts Council, a division of the Department of Tourism and Cultural Affairs, was founded in 1967 as the state agency charged with ensuring that state and national funds support cultural activity and encourage participation in the arts throughout Nevada. The agency’s programs and services are designed to support creative expression, animate communities, diversify local economies and provide lifelong learning in the arts for all Nevadans. The Nevada Arts Council is funded by the State of Nevada, the National Endowment for the Arts, and other public and private sources.