FLORIDA ARTS COUNCIL
MEETING MINUTES
September 19, 2007
Teleconference

In Attendance:

I. Call to Order
Chairman Katharine Dickenson called the teleconference meeting to order at 10:02 a.m.

II. Introduction of Council, Staff and Guests
Mrs. Dickenson asked the Florida Arts Council, department staff, and audience members to introduce themselves.

III. Adoption of Agenda
Gary Libby moved approval of the agenda with Jim Shaw seconding. The motion carried.

IV. Department of State Update
•  Sandy Shaughnessy welcomed new Council member, Don Browning, and congratulated Jeff Tucker on his recent reappointment.
•  The Executive Summary from July’s Convening Sessions has been completed and will be posted on the Division’s Web site.
•  An exhibit celebrating Hispanic Heritage month will be on display in the Capitol Building and the Governor’s Mansion. With assistance from Council member Gary Libby, nine pieces from the Ramos Collection will be on display, as well as the artwork of Xavier Cortada.
•  The Division will be tracking SB166, potentially establishing a program to select an “official state orchestra.”
•  Laura Stone has been asked to sit on a Department of Education panel that will update the Sunshine State Standards. Don Blancett will head a cultural facilities peer group session at the NASAA annual meeting.
•  Ms. Shaughnessy also reported that she traveled with Secretary Browning to the FAM conference in Largo, then on to Miami for a meeting with Michael Spring, Executive Director of the Miami-Dade County Cultural Council, and a tour of the Miami Circle.

V. Approval of Minutes from June 2007 Meeting
Gary Libby moved approval of the June 2007 meeting minutes, with Margaret Wise seconding. The motion was approved.

VI. Committee Reports
A. Awards Committee – Katharine Dickenson reviewed the report as follows: 

The 2008 Awards Committee convened via teleconference in the offices of the Division of Cultural Affairs in Tallahassee on August 30, 2007, to make recommendations from the list of nominees to the Florida Artists Hall of Fame and Arts Recognition Programs.

In attendance on the conference call were: Committee Chairman Katharine Dickenson, with awards Committee members Jacqueline Bradley, Gary Libby, Janeen Mason, and Norma Roth. Division staff in attendance were: Division Director Sandy Shaughnessy, Dianne Alborn, and Ken Crawford.

Call to Order
Chair Katharine Dickenson called the meeting to order at 10:02 a.m.

Introduction of Council and Staff
Council members and staff identified themselves.

Meeting Minutes
The Awards Committee began with a review of the Florida Artists Hall of Fame nominees. The Committee requested and received some instruction from staff regarding selection and voting procedures, for the benefit of new Committee members. Members were made aware that the Committee can recommend their selections to the full Arts Council, but Council members may also nominate from the floor from the entire list of nominees. The Committee then decided to discuss nominees by discipline category, beginning with Visual Artists (the largest group of nominees), then proceeding through the other artistic disciplines, including: Dance, Music, Writing and Filmmaking.

Following extended discussion and deliberation, the Awards Committee voted unanimously to put forward the late Augusta Christine Fells Savage as the only candidate from the list of nominees for the 2008 Florida Artists Hall of Fame.

Gary Libby - MOTION TO NOMINATE AUGUSTA SAVAGE AS ONLY NOMINEE FOR 2008 ARTISTS HALL OF FAME
Norma Roth SECOND
MOTION PASSED UNANIMOUSLY

The Committee went on to review nominees for the 2008 Arts Recognition Award. After consideration of the four individuals nominated for the award, the Committee decided not to select any of these individuals to present to the full Council for this year’s Arts Recognition Award.

Gary Libby - MOTION TO RECOMMEND NONE OF THE NOMINEES TO THE ARTS COUNCIL FOR 2008 ARTS RECOGNITION AWARD
Norma Roth - SECOND
MOTION PASSED UNANIMOUSLY

Future Meeting Needs and Adjournment
Staff reminded Committee members of upcoming full Arts Council teleconference voting meeting, 10:00 a.m., Wednesday, September 19, 2007. Ms. Dickenson thanked members of the Committee and staff, and called for motion to adjourn. Meeting was adjourned at 11:15 a.m.

HALL OF FAME SELECTION
Gary Libby moved to accept the minutes from the Awards Committee meeting. Norma Roth seconded the motion. Extensive discussion began with Margo Bindhardt, who commented that the Awards Committee, in the future, should offer more of a choice to the full Council by recommending more than one nominee. Mrs. Bindhardt asked to amend the motion to include other recommendations. Mr. Libby and Mrs. Roth agreed to allow an amendment to the motion.

Stephen Hogge suggested getting a sense of who would like to nominate from the floor, which would also provide an opportunity for further discussion. With further deliberation, Mr. Libby and Mrs. Roth agreed to withdraw their motion.

Nominations were entertained from the floor:
1. Gary Libby nominated Augusta Savage.
2. Margo Bindhardt nominated David Kirby and Victor Nunez.
3. Tim Deratany nominated Frits van Eeden.
4. Stephen Hogge nominated Harry Crews.

Round 1 Voting Results:
Augusta Savage – 6
Victor Nunez – 5
Harry Crews – 4
Frits van Eeden – 2
David Kirby - 1

No nominee received 2/3 majority vote.

Round 2 Voting Results:
Augusta Savage – 7
Victor Nunez – 5

Gary Libby moved to send two names to the Secretary of State for consideration as inductees into the Florida Artists Hall of Fame – Augusta Savage and Victor Nunez. Margo Bindhardt seconded the motion. The motion was carried.

ARTS RECOGNITION AWARD SELECTION
Tim Deratany moved to accept the Awards Committee’s recommendation of not presenting an Arts Recognition Award this year from among those nominated. Margo Bindhardt seconded the motion. The motion carried.

Janeen Mason suggested that the Council be given the opportunity to move nominees from the Hall of Fame category to the Arts Recognition Award category, if they deem someone worthy of recognition.

VII. Business Items
A. Review of Florida Arts Council Meeting Calendar – Katharine Dickenson reviewed the upcoming Florida Arts Council meeting dates. The November dates are now 13-14 in Tallahassee.

B. 2007-2008 Grants Program Budget Update – Don Blancett presented an update on the 2007-08 grants program budget.

C. Art in State Buildings Program Recommendations – Lee Modica reported that 13 selections of artwork were made for the following locations – Florida State University (12) and the University of Central Florida (1) - for a total of $137,684.
Ms. Modica assured the Council that all required procedural forms had been collected, reviewed and accepted documenting that established procedures were followed for these selections.

Margo Bindhardt moved approval of the selection process. Margaret Wise seconded the motion. The motion was approved.

D. Challenge Grant Program Panelist Recommendations – Lee Modica presented the list of recommended panelists for the Challenge Grant Program Panel meeting on October 31, 2007. This multidisciplinary peer review panel will review and score proposals for the 2008-09 Challenge Grant projects.

Following review of the panel list, Gary Libby moved approval with Janeen Mason seconding. The motion carried.

E. State Touring Roster Panelist Recommendations - Gaylen Phillips presented the list of recommended panelists for the State Touring Program Roster Panel meeting on October 24, 2007. This multidisciplinary peer review panel will review applications for the two-year 2008–2010 State Touring Program roster. The roster is made available to presenters statewide (including the 2,800 K-12 schools and community colleges) who will book the artists and apply to the Division for fee subsidy.

Following review of the panel list, Gary Libby moved approval with Margaret Wise seconding. The motion carried.

VIII. Grant Panel Reports
A. Quarterly Panel Reports (QA and AEG Programs) – Jim Shaw, Panel Chairman, reviewed the report as follows:

Application review for the First Quarter Quarterly Assistance/Artist Enhancement Grant Programs Review Committee took place on August 21, 2007 at 9:00 a.m. with committee members Morgan Lewis, Gaylen Phillips, and Sarah Stage.

First, funding was considered for thirteen (13) Quarterly Assistance applicant organizations with a total request of $35,500. Projects represented a wide range of topics that included music projects, an art festival, and consultant projects. The committee reviewed each application and ten (10) achieved the threshold minimum score of 75 for funding consideration.

Full funding was recommended for the two (2) Mini-Grant applications that scored a minimum of 80 points for a total amount of $3,000. Full funding was recommended for the two (2) top scoring Consultant applications for a total amount of $2,000. Funding in the amount of $2,500 was recommended for Special Project applications that scored a minimum of 90 points for a total amount of $7,500. The total amount recommended for funding was $12,500.

Mr. Shaw reported that eighty-two (82) applications for the Artist Enhancement Grants Program were reviewed. The total request was $78,750. After careful deliberation and scoring, the panel recommended 32 applications for full funding in the amount of $30,500.

After the final application review and scoring, public comment followed from individuals on the conference call. They thanked the panel for their hard work and careful consideration and comments. They also commented on the tremendous value of the public support for their work and projects as individual artists. Many commented that the idea of applying for grants was an arduous task to them before this process, and now, at the conclusion of the panel meeting, they felt much more confident about writing grants to support their work.

The meeting adjourned at 12:10 p.m.

At the conclusion of his report, Mr. Shaw moved approval of the Quarterly Assistance and Artist Enhancement Program funding recommendations. Janeen Mason seconded the motion, which carried.

Funding recommendations for these two programs were as follows:

IX. Other Business
Discussion ensued in regard to holding a Governmental Affairs Committee meeting in November. Tim Deratany, Committee Chairman, asked that an agenda be developed and distributed prior to the November meeting. One item to be added is SB166, Official Orchestra Designation.

Margo Bindhardt reported that the Citizens for Florida Arts CSO met on Monday, September 17th via teleconference. Their main focus at this time is increasing membership and will reach out to current and alumni members of the Florida Arts Council.

X. Public Comment
No public comment was received.

XI. Conclusion
With no further business, the meeting concluded at 11:52 a.m.