THE FELLOWSHIP expands the skill-sets of emerging and mid-level arts and culture workers through a nine-month personal and professional development curriculum. Through participation in this interactive learning cohort you will build relationships across sector, discipline, and role within the Bay Area’s arts and culture field.

Beginning in 2021, we are shifting the format of the fellowship to incorporate intergenerational work and to better fit the realities of our new world, especially as we continue to navigate the global pandemic. The cohort will meet for shorter sessions more often, and we will focus each year on one of our four Affinity Topics: Cultural Equity, Creative City, Regenerative Practices, and Arts & Capital.

We will continue to center our Equity Framework and Practices and empower art workers with invaluable tools and skills for leadership in the arts & culture field as we work towards an arts industry that is equitable for all people, is a valued and sustainable career sector, and honors the individual arts worker as a creative and whole person.

Cohort XI (2021–2022)

This year, we focus on Cultural Equity and invite emerging and experienced arts workers to apply to join a cohort of individuals aligned with EAP’s mission and values, who find themselves doing regular equity/EDI work in any capacity.

Jumping off from our Emergence 2021 session: Wellness Tactics for EDI Work, an intimate cohort will gather, share, and support each other to discuss our experiences, share tactics for coping and resilience, and map out tools and skills we might need to develop to keep going. This cohort is for equity advocates, workers, and all who find themselves in these spaces doing work—at any experience-level. By the end of the program, we hope you’ll feel seen, supported, and have made connections with people you can call! The program centers BIPOC experience and needs; allies are also welcome and will focus on ways to mitigate damage and strengthen healthy collaboration.

What are our objectives?

• For Arts & Culture Workers who are Experienced in Equity Work/Organizing/Leadership: To have a space for emotional support and wellness during this work, to engage in peer problem-solving, to create opportunities for individuals to develop and try out their own curriculum. To continue leadership development through centering decolonized leadership practices in arts and culture.
• For Arts & Culture Workers who are Emerging into Equity Work/Organizing/Leadership: To deepen learning around Equity and EDI work (i.e., particularly tools, strategies, language, etc.) as it relates to arts and culture, receive mentorship from those experienced in this work, and to have a space to practice facilitation and curriculum development. To begin leadership development through centering decolonized leadership practices in arts and culture.
• For EAP: To support the professional development and empowerment of our network of arts and culture workers and leaders through training in EAP’s Equity Framework, cultural protocols, methodologies, and curriculum
• For the Community: To work toward an arts industry that is equitable for all people, is a valued and sustainable career sector, and honors the individual arts worker as a creative and whole person.
• For the Field: A network of EDI workers and cultural leaders who are thoughtful, critical, have shared language and practices, and who will get the work done! To reduce harms that are created by hiring EDI consultants and facilitators who don’t understand the field or the experiences of BIPOC individuals and communities.