The National Guild for Community Arts Education: A Mission of Transformation and Inclusion
Founded in 1937 as the National Guild of Community Music Schools, the National Guild for Community Arts Education stands as the sole national service organization dedicated to providers of community arts education. The organization champions the transformative power of community arts education in building an equitable and just world through advocacy, leadership development, and peer learning. The Guild envisions a world where all individuals have access to community arts education that enriches their lives and contributes to the well-being of their communities.
The Essence of Community Arts Education
Community arts education is a dynamic and inclusive approach to learning and engagement in the arts. It fosters creativity, cultural expression, and social transformation within communities. It is a participatory and transformative practice that engages individuals in the creation, exploration, and critical dialogue of the arts within a community context. The National Guild believes in the power of the arts to transform lives, and strives to make art accessible to everyone regardless of economic means, background, or artistic experience.
The "Portal of Transformation" and a Vision for the Future
In June 2022, the National Guild for Community Arts Education embarked on a transformative journey called "The Portal," setting the stage for "A Beautiful Evolution" in the realm of community arts education. This blueprint sets the stage for a new chapter of innovation, inclusion, and boundless possibilities in community arts education.
The purpose of this process is threefold: to become more fully aligned with the Guild's racial equity principles, policies and values; to continue its historic service and advocacy work while imagining an inclusive organization which reflects the nation’s broad and diverse community arts sector; and to strategically position the Guild for relevance and resiliency into the future. Transformation or revisioning requires curiosity, a deep commitment to the field of community arts education that the Guild serves, and the willingness to think within a renewal mindset and make bold changes.
The Guild’s key transformational message, in the words of the Executive Director, is that the Guild’s work over the past 85 years has helped build a strong foundation to support community arts education leaders around the country. After these past two years, the Guild realized that it is on the right track with the “why” but now is the time to expand the “how” it does its work so that it can best adapt to the needs of the community. The only way the Guild can accomplish this is by working collectively together and by seeing humanity in one another. Together, the Guild can strengthen the community arts education ecosystem so that communities can thrive by removing barriers. The Guild must use its creativity to better not only the community arts education field, but the entire world.
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Addressing Inequity and Expanding Access
The National Guild recognizes that community arts education only exists for a few in this country. There are inequitable opportunities for those most at the margins to realize and embrace their full creativity, feel liberated and whole, and exercise that creativity and sense of wholeness for community change. People thrive when they participate in community arts education programs that are sustained and responsive to community needs. As people of color and marginalized communities are disproportionately impacted by the multiple crises of this time, community arts education is more crucial than ever as a vehicle for activism, individual and collective self-expression, and healing.
As the only community arts education organization serving this nation, the Guild seeks to expand membership from the center outward, and intentionally serve the people, organizations, and communities that have been excluded from access to the Guild’s programs and services since inception. Member organizations and others, organizations rooted in BIPOC neighborhoods, and teaching artists have shared with the Guild that they need culturally relevant programming, an inclusive membership structure, and full community input and participation to support belonging. The Guild's commitment is to address and remove these barriers, as well as others, as it works with the community to create and implement its strategic plan.
The changes the Guild seeks in its organization are rooted in the way it will listen, center and design its programs and services to ensure that those who have been excluded are no longer, and that it will institutionalize and actualize policies, processes and practices in its organization that align with its commitment to equity, power redistribution and restoration.
Key Initiatives for Transformation
To further its mission of transformation and inclusion, the National Guild has launched several key initiatives:
Community Arts Education Leadership and Intercultural Institute (CAELII)
The Community Arts Education Leadership Institute is embracing a new identity as the "Community Arts Education Leadership and Intercultural Institute (CAELII)." This transformation reflects the Guild's deep commitment to fostering inclusive, intercultural dialogue, and holistic leadership in the field of community arts education. This includes the introduction of three distinct and dynamic cohorts, each designed to meet the unique needs and aspirations of leaders and emerging leaders within the community arts education community: the leadership transformation, organizational liberation, and community advocacy cohorts.
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GuildCollective Program
The GuildCollective program is designed to unite and support hyperlocal community arts education leaders in a cooperative network, enabling the sharing of resources, expertise, and best practices.
Bi-annual Regional Summits
In an effort to connect community arts educators and organizations at the local level, the National Guild will host bi-annual Regional Summits. These gatherings will provide a forum for in-depth discussions, idea sharing, and networking.
National Guild NextGen Fellowship Program
The NextGen Fellowship program aims at nurturing emerging leaders under 30.
Sabbatical Program
Recognizing the importance of self-renewal and professional growth, the National Guild will launch a sabbatical program. This program offers community arts leaders the opportunity to take a well-deserved break to explore new perspectives, engage in research, or recharge creatively.
Navigating Challenges and Embracing Collaboration
As the National Guild brings forth the promise of a new and inclusive organization, intentionally giving priority to racial equity through active inclusion, its work has stirred doubt and anger among some current and former Guild members. The Guild's goal is to hear, inspire, and work with its members to build a stronger, more relevant, inclusive and equitable National Guild.
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The Guild’s key organizational messages, highlighting the vision of the Executive Director as well as organizational messages from the Board and Staff, will be consistently provided, outlining the Guild's goals at this juncture and throughout the strategic planning process. The Guild will ensure that its messages are clear, transparent, and that they present opportunities to solicit input, thoughts and ideas as it moves forward.
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