2011-12 Fellowship Components & Structure

 
The EAP Fellowship program aims to introduce an alternative model for professional development that balances traditional structure with increased creativity, collaboration, and experimentation.

Leading in today’s arts sector requires new competencies, skills and sensitivities that are adaptive, engaging and relevant. It is in this spirit that the Emerging Arts Professionals-San Francisco Bay Area (EAP for short) is pleased to continue its Fellowship Program for a second year.

Over the course of nine months, the Fellowship is designed to enrich and expand the skill-sets of emerging and mid-level arts and culture workers in the Bay Area. Approximately 15 Fellows will bring together their diverse insights, energy, and expertise to build their ability to realize their career and life aspirations in arts and culture.

Fellowship Framework

Principles of networked learning inform the design of the EAP Fellowship program. The model is intended to promote inquiry-based learning that is both empowering and flexible, as it adjusts and aligns to address each Fellow’s specific aims. The EAP Fellowship cohort will be balanced around five affinity areas, or program divisions:

Business Development Division

Our responsibility to the EAP/SFBA this year is to provide the necessary resources to work towards the goals outlined in the strategic plan. EAP/SFBA is relatively new, which gives us the opportunity to create our own balance of resources: we’ll develop income strategies and cultivate in-kind partners, community partners, and individual advisers with equal attention. We will also further develop the specialties and roles of the EAP/SFBA in order to meet the interests and priorities of the network.

Fellows will help lay the groundwork for innovative strategic partnerships and collaborations, both within EAP/SFBA and between EAP/SFBA and other organizations, which will enliven the EAP/SFBA network and bring fresh ideas to participants and the sector as a whole.

Qualifications:
This team will thrive on a mix of experience levels and familiarity with a variety of financial models.
If you fit just ONE of the following descriptions, you’d make a great Fellow for the Business Development Team:

  • Have developed a successful community partnership
  • Donor Cultivation expert
  • Have started or run your own business
  • Well-connected in a creative industry
  • Research and database junkie
  • Significant prior experience in fundraising
  • Sales guru
  • MBA with a conscience
  • Eager to explore the gray area between for-profit and non-profit ventures

Information Systems Division

This group will strategize systems for handling the organization’s operations and information infrastructure/system needs.  Through research on experimental and/or existing models in operation in the arts and culture field (and beyond!), Fellows will play a critical role developing conceptual frameworks and helping to lay the foundation for an active membership network. In addition, Fellows will assist with the implementation of an interactive online vehicle, which will serve to track and support member needs and will work closely with the Business Development Division to build and maintain a sustainable financial model for EAP/SFBA. We envision this becoming an innovative web-based platform with enhanced functionality that includes user generated content, interactive discussion space, live feeds, aggregated information from other cultural portals, blogs, news sites, etc and diverse social networking features.

Qualifications:
If you fit any ONE of the following descriptions, you’ll make a tremendous addition to our team:

  • Constantly seeking better ways to build communication within your organization
  • Have designed a database
  • Developer interested in meaningful work in the arts and culture
  • Are inspired by the California Cultural Data Project, The Bay Area Big List, and Google Analytics
  • Interested in how data and evaluation interacts with programming
  • Want to harness new technologies in your administrative work
  • Interested in breaking away from the conventional nonprofit financial model and leveraging technology to develop a light and modern administrative structure
  • Are a WordPress wizard, Basecamp buff or CMS junkie
  • Systems oriented with a keen attention to detail
  • Would like to propagate cutting-edge technologies in the Bay Area’s arts and culture sector
  • Have strong relationships with the Bay Area IT / digital media community

Media/Communications Division

Technological advances have propelled us into a highly participatory culture: individuals no longer simply consume culture, they now actively produce and contribute to it. EAP’s media/communications group will support IT Systems and Outreach by increasing EAP’s presence and engagement through media. This team will leverage the power of emerging engagement and social networking technologies to promote EAP, expand and build relationships with other arts professionals in and out of the EAP network, create dialogue and help establish EAP as a think-thank of ideas. The media group will build and maintain collateral and content for EAP – event copy, photos, audio interviews, speaker videos, etc., will aggregate information form other cultural portals, blogs, news sites etc., and will curate user generated content.

Qualifications:
If you fit any ONE of the following descriptions, you’d make a great Fellow for the Media/ Communications team.

  • Digital native with a passion for building community through technology (you live in the social media world seeking out and joining conversations, know about Web 2.0 and 3.0, and are constantly learning new technologies)
  • Experienced in marketing (traditional, new media, guerrilla and ‘word of mouth’)
  • Excellent writing/editing and verbal communication skills
  • Excel at research and are able to synthesize large amounts of data into actionable information
  • Experienced in digital content creation – audio, graphics, images, video
  • Knowledge of video and audio editing
  • News junkie

Community Outreach Division

This team will guide the strategy for audience/membership engagement, stewardship, as well as experience design through all of EAP/SFBA touchpoints. There will be ample opportunities to collaborate with key figures from across the non-profit and for profit sectors, thought leaders and strategists. This group will be instrumental in helping to create and maintain relationships with a wide range of partners and will be tasked with helping to grow the EAP network and build cross sector accessibility.

Qualifications:
If you fit any one of the following descriptions, you’ll make a tremendous addition to our team:

  • Highly collaborative style; experience developing and implementing communications strategies
  • Excellent writing/editing and verbal communication skills
  • Relationship builder with the flexibility and finesse to “manage by influence”
  • Sincere commitment to work collaboratively with all constituent groups
  • Self-starter, able to work independently, and entrepreneurial; enjoys creating and implementing new initiatives
  • Possess the ability to take knowledge and transform it into exciting and useful messages, and disseminate it to the right audiences through strategic distribution channels.

Public Programming Division

Working together, Fellows will help conceive, design and produce each of the EAP/SFBA programs. Programming will consist of professional development workshops, monthly networking mixers and content development for the online vehicle. Fellows in this section will play a pivotal role in developing exciting new ways to explore and animate critical issues facing the arts and culture sector. As such, participants will have their fingers on the pulse of the Bay Area’s creative field. Fellows will have the opportunity to explore cutting edge ideas as we experiment with new program delivery and evaluation models. Significant opportunities will be provided for Fellows to collaborate with a wide range of professionals to strengthen their networks and to gain a more comprehensive understanding of how vibrant programs are brought to life. Fellows will take the lead in the following areas: research, networking mixers / social events, professional development and work group liaison.

Qualifications:
If you fit any ONE of the following descriptions, you’ll make a tremendous addition to our team:

  • Have contributed to the design and implementation of a successful public program, or have a deep commitment to gaining this type of experience
  • Are eager to help strengthen professional capacities in emerging arts leaders
  • Strong project management and logistics coordination skills
  • Have natural talents for networking and cultivating innovative special events
  • Have a strong knowledge of the Bay Area’s arts and culture organizations and awareness of ongoing or upcoming programs
  • Deep interest in research, cultural policy and curriculum development
  • Experience with data collection and analysis
  • An MA student in Arts History, Museum Studies, Education, Arts or Public Administration, Public or Cultural Policy, Business, or a related discipline
  • Systems thinker, able to translate ideas into action

 

Components and Criteria

Fellowship Components
Fellows with common interests and/or expertise in these divisions will collaborate to help define personal and program division learning goals, identify topics of interest for the broader EAP network, and shape projects in support of the mission of EAP. Fellows will reflect and explore, with guidance and inspiration from facilitators, peer coaching, guest lecture presentations, and collaborations within their program division cohort. Each Fellow will have the opportunity to work on EAP team projects and pursue personal action learning projects. They will also have access to mentors and coaches assisting with project design.

Action Learning Projects

Drawing upon their personal reflections, the EAP Fellowship cohort, and the other resources provided, Fellows will develop and execute their own action learning projects. These projects may be realized within the context of EAP programs and organizational development, or produced separately, with support from EAP.

EAP Team Projects

At the same time, Fellows will work in project teams to fulfill the mission of EAP. Participants will have the opportunity to work across program divisions, applying their expertise or learning new skills in hands-on situations. In the fall, these projects will be defined by the EAP Leadership Group and shaped by ongoing EAP efforts. In the winter and spring, Fellows will be expected to take a more active role in defining the direction of EAP, through their participation in ongoing organizational development, articulation of the key issues affecting their peers and colleagues in the arts and culture sector, and initiation of creative, relevant and impactful responses.

Professional Development/Learning & Networking

The 2011-12 Fellowship will also benefit from special professional development partnership opportunities with Yerba Buena Center for the Arts. This collaboration is optional and may include peer mentorship, informational interviews, job shadowing opportunities with staff and project teams at YBCA.

The EAP Fellowship also provides unique opportunities for in-depth discussions, panels and events with innovative thought leaders from the arts, design, social justice and social entrepreneur sectors.

Following is a list of last year’s Fellowship collaborators and guest speakers:

  • Stanford School of Design (d.school)
  • Marc Vogl (formerly of the William & Flora Hewlett Foundation, now ED of BAVC)
  • Deborah Cullinan, Executive Director, Intersection for the Arts
  • Adam Huttler, Executive Director, Fractured Atlas
  • Ken Foster, Executive Director, Yerba Buena Center for the Arts
  • Sarah Taft, Director of Membership, Fine Art Museums of San Francisco.
  • Akaya Windwood, Executive Director, Rockwood Leadership Institute
  • Joe Goode, Executive & Artistic Director, Joe Goode Performance Group

The roster for presentations in 2011-12 will be programmed in response to the needs and requests of Fellows. Director Adam Fong and Fellowship Program Director Chida Chaemchaeng will coordinate Fellowship activities, with support and participation from the EAP Leadership Group and the EAP network at large.

 

General Fellowship Participant Criteria

Successful applicants to the Fellowship program will exhibit the following qualities:

  • Strong interest in exploring and developing understanding of a specific program division
  • Self-starter, willing to take an active role in the learning process
  • Evidence of interest in innovative thinking, new business models and new ways of working
  • Commitment to advancing the Bay Area’s arts and culture sector
  • Clarity in communication, both written and verbal
  • Results oriented; Proactive and self-motivated
  • Solid project management skills, able to meet deadlines and manage work-flow with a high degree of organization
  • Able to work with diverse partners and constituencies
  • Team oriented, with a collaborative working style
  • Commitment to personal and professional growth
  • Interest in providing or developing applicable special skills (graphic design, social media management, a/v production and editing, in-kind donation procurement, etc.) welcome

 

Key Dates and Application Process

Duration and Key Dates
The 2011-2012 Fellowship will run from September through early June. Monthly time commitments will be approximately 10 hours, consisting of one large gathering each month, plus smaller meetings and offline work as needed. Fellows will be required to participate in the following events:

  • Saturday, September 24, 2011, 10am-2pm: Orientation
  • Saturday, October 15, 2011: Project Kick Off/Share Action Plans/Peer Coaching Introduction
  • Saturday, November 12, 2011: Collaborative Project Development
  • Schedule as needed, December, 2011: Peer/Mentor Check In Meetings
  • Saturday (TBD),  January 2012: New Year Goal Review
  • Saturday (TBD), February-May 2012: Work sessions bi-weekly/monthly at Intersection 5M
  • Friday-Saturday (TBD), June 2012: End of Year Report & Celebration/Internal Review

Application Process

The applications for the Emerging Arts Professionals 2011-2012 Fellowship are now closed. Thank you for your interest in EAP and the Fellowship!

We encourage you to sign up on the mailing list and check the website regularly for updates about our upcoming events, mixers and networking opportunities!

If you have any questions or would like to be put on a list for next year’s Fellowship applications, please contact chidac@gmail.com.

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EAP Fellowship FAQ

 

1) What kind of qualities are you looking for in an Emerging Arts Professionals Fellow?

We are more interested in what you want to do than what you have done. We want participants who are mission driven and want to develop projects that will have deep and lasting impact on the creative sector. We are looking for people who want to explore new and innovative approaches to leadership development in order to create effective future leaders and support for emerging ideas and thinking. We want people who are not afraid to get their hands dirty and who love to learn by testing new ideas in a live environment. We want Fellows who want to connect with other people from across sectors and who wish to develop big picture perspectives attuned to current trends and forces shaping the cultural sector. We want people who are not afraid to admit what they don’t know but who have an unwavering commitment to learning and are open to new perspectives, systems and ideas.

2) What can I expect?

You can expect a professional and inviting experience tailored to your specific needs.
Peer coaching and mentorship opportunities will be available to help you define your goals, intentions and create deeper career engagement opportunities with peers. You will not get paid but you won’t be doing busy work. You will be working with people who have a sense of mission and want to do something innovative, creative and collaborative.

3) What can I get out of the experience?

Some benefits will include:

  • Develop projects that will have a deep and lasting impact on our region’s creative sector and its  approach to leadership development in the future
  • Coaching and mentoring from a unique collection of seasoned professionals
  • Increased professional competencies in self-targeted areas
  • Reinvigorated professional practices
  • Hands-on opportunities to learn in the field and to test new ideas in a live environment
  • A semi-structured blend of independent and collective learning experiences, using the greater Bay Area as a classroom
  • Diverse opportunities to collaborate with other talented emerging leaders and to gain a deeper understanding and appreciation for the complexities of different operating environments
  • Access to statewide and national networks of emerging arts leaders
  • Big picture perspective, recognizes connectivity, is consistently attuned to trends and forces shaping the arts and culture sector
  • The opportunity to connect with highly-skilled professionals working outside of the arts and culture sector