EMU Today

YPSILANTI - Eastern Michigan University students traveled this month to Washington D.C. to advocate for arts programs receiving funding from the government. Students on this trip are enrolled in “Arts Advocacy,” a class taught by Susan Booth, professor and program director of the arts management and administration program at Eastern. 

Students attended a two-day conference presented by Americans for the Arts that took place March 12-13. They spoke with legislators about the need for arts programs and federal funding.

“Students spent the semester getting ready for this trip,” Booth said. “They researched federal legislators and how they vote on arts issues. We reviewed the Americans for the Arts Legislative Handbook and researched the issues that we’d be discussing with the legislators.

“Students also spoke with local arts organizations receiving federal arts funding and learned about how these funds impact their ability to share their art with diverse audiences.”

The class is only offered every few years, but the conference happens annually. The conference not only includes advocacy work, but students also got to network with other students and industry professionals and learn new information in a lecture given at the John F. Kennedy Center for Performing Arts.

Students documented their experience on a class-collective blog site, with posts ranging from the breakout sessions on policy issues and their experiences to interesting photography and intriguing things they did in Washington D.C.

“I’ve taken away so much from my class trip to D.C.,” student Dacia Whiteside said. “It was so amazing to be around so many people who support the same cause you do. The most inspiring part was going to the Nancy Hanks Lecture, featuring Lonnie G. Bunch II, Director of the National Museum of African American History and Culture.

“He gave us so many words of wisdom as advocates for the arts. The biggest gem I took away was when he expressed how all the ‘no’ responses he’d received had made him resilient.”

To read more about the students’ experiences on the trip, please check out their blog.

About Eastern Michigan University

Founded in 1849, Eastern is the second oldest university in Michigan. It currently serves more than 20,000 students pursuing undergraduate, graduate, specialist, doctoral and certificate degrees in the arts, sciences and professions. In all, more than 300 majors, minors and concentrations are delivered through the University's Colleges of Arts and Sciences; Business; Education; Health and Human Services; Technology, and its graduate school. EMU is regularly recognized by national publications for its excellence, diversity, and commitment to applied education. For more information about Eastern Michigan University, visit the University's website.