Thursday, October 8, 2009
Re-Named, Re-Vamped
Saturday, September 12, 2009
Greater Washington Indie Arts Festival Board of Trustees and Employee Requirements
Hey, everyone! Many of you have expressed interest in contributing to the Greater Washington Indie Arts Festival in one way or another, whether as a Board of Trustee, an employee, or volunteer. Now let me go into a few of the specifics. After you have read this message thoroughly and asked any necessary questions, please send me a message (either via Facebook or to stoddard.christine@gmail.com) stating your name, mailing address, phone number, and whether you would like to be a Board of Trustee, employee, or volunteer. Regardless of which position you choose, you'll be helping out artists from the Baltimore, Washington, D.C., and Richmond areas and have something to add to your resume in the process.
First, I'll begin by clarifying the difference between each of the three positions. A Board of Trustee essentially serves as an advisor and decision-maker. S/he suggests what steps the President (me) should take in order to organize and successfully host the festival. This means responding to online surveys I create, participating in online discussion boards or chats, answering event-related emails I send out, and attending in-person meetings and fundraisers when possible. It is not essential that every Board of Trustee and employee respond to every survey, for example, but their participation is always greatly appreciated. (They should be responding at least to surveys/questionnaires at least 75% of the time.) The Board of Trustee is also a diplomat. S/he goes out into the community to speak about the festival, writes articles about it for local newspapers and blogs, and does whatever else s/he can do to best represent the festival. Overall, his/her job is to encourage artists to register for the event and local patrons of the arts to make donations. Each member will be compensated $100-$500 depending a year depending upon his/her level of commitment in terms of responding to online questions/messages, coming to in-person meetings/fundraisers, promoting the event, etc. Payment is deferred. If you are interested in a career in the non-profit sector, an excellent way to begin is as a Board of Trustee member. You will undoubtedly learn a lot about the D.C. arts scene.
An employee has a regular position within the festival. Current positions include artist recruiter, accountant, web designer, and PR/marketing representative. If you are willing to do this on a low-pay ($100 to $500 a year) or volunteer basis, that is preferable. Salaries are negotiable, but, please keep in mind that payment is deferred until the Greater Washington Indie Arts Festival gets on its feet (anticipated within 1 year for a $15,000 salary, 2 years for a $20,000-$25,000 salary). Both you and I will keep careful track of your efforts, tasks, and hours until then. This is a wonderful way to begin a career in the non-profit sector, especially if you are interested in running a non-profit of your own one day and want to learn about management. It's also a good way to learn about the local media and the D.C. arts scene.
Volunteers do whatever they can whenever they can, but have a much more casual commitment--anywhere from one hour a year to 150+ hours a year. I will contact volunteers for random festival-related tasks: staffing fundraisers, selling T-shirts, setting up for the festival, etc. You dedicate yourself on a case-by-case basis. This is the best option for people with limited Internet access and/or limited spare time. This is not the best option for really exposing yourself to the behind-the-scenes work of organizing the festival and meeting artists from all over the area on a regular basis.
The primary form of communication between the President, Vice President, the Board of Trustees, and other employees will be via email and the Facebook Greater Indie Arts Festival Facebook group. All members of the Greater Washington Indie Arts Festival are asked to check their email everyday or as often as possible. Volunteers are asked to be polite and respond to phone calls or emails, but, again, they may choose to withdraw their services at any time. In the event that the President calls a fundraiser, at least three Board of Trustees must be present. The rest of the help will come in the form of other available Trustee members, employees, and volunteers. Possible fundraising events may include (but would not be limited to) bake sales, car washes, raffles, and benefit dinners. All fundraisers would take place in the Baltimore-Washington, D.C.-Richmond area.
Please let me know if you have questions! I hope to hear from you soon.
Monday, June 22, 2009
Name Change
Thursday, June 18, 2009
Photos
Thanks to Patrick O'Connor, we have photos from the 2009 Neo-Indie Arts Festival. Check them out here.
Saturday, June 13, 2009
TODAY: 2009 NIAF
Wednesday, June 10, 2009
CALL FOR ARTISTS...yeah, you.
Monday, June 8, 2009
Art lovers, meet your community service requirements!
If you love music, theatre, film, poetry, painting, and other forms of literary/performing/visual arts, then come help set up and manage the 2009 Neo-Indie Arts Festival on June 13 in Arlington, VA. We need people to help set up tables and chairs, direct artists, put up the stage, stand watch of art, clean up and more! Earn community service hours for National Honors Society, youth group, high school graduation requirements, or any other need. Simply show up at Thomas Jefferson Community Center (3501 2nd St. S., Arlington, VA) at 4:30 p.m. on June 13. Bring any papers you need signed to get volunteer credit. This is not a paid gig, but it is a good opportunity to support a creative, non-profit cause. Thanks so much for your interest and hope to see you there!
