NAEA Advocacy Toolbox: #VisualArtsEdMatters

Kathi R. Levin, a national leader in arts education for over 20 years, is an ongoing consultant with the National Art Education Association, managing a portfolio which supports the association’s policy, advocacy, research, national standards, and leadership development efforts. She is the Program/Development Officer for NAEA's grant-making National Art Education Foundation and consults with organizations in arts education, strategic planning, management, and governance. Her clients have included the New Jersey Performing Arts Center, Los Angeles County Arts Commission, and Americans for the Arts. Ms. Levin was Director of the Kennedy Center Alliance for Arts Education Network for over a decade where she conceived of and wrote A Community Audit for Arts Education (the foundation of the Center’s "Any Given Child" Initiative), and managed outreach and leadership development initiatives, including over 25 national partnerships. She previously served as a senior staff member of the New Jersey State Council on the Arts. 

Donna Russell is Executive Director of the Alabama Arts Alliance, an Advocacy and arts education organization providing statewide services including professional development and advocacy activities for educators, administrators, arts organizations, and citizens. Her work supports programs, policies, and practices that ensure that all Alabamians can discover and develop their talents, have access to a comprehensive arts education, and possess a knowledge of arts that enables them understand the cultural heritage of others. Ms. Russell serves as Alabama's State Captain for the Americans for the Arts Advocacy Coalition, the State Arts Action Network, and the Alabama Artistic Literacy Consortium. She has been appointed by the governor to serve on the Arts Education Course of Study task force and is the President of the Alabama PTA.