Press Release

Trenton, NJ - On Wednesday, May 17th, Secretary of State Nina Mitchell Wells and a panel of national experts gathered at New Jersey Network for a day-long symposium to explore how cultural organizations can expand audiences at their facilities and programs.

Wells said the purpose of the symposium is to discuss strategies to reverse the current decline in attendance at many arts and cultural venues and ensure that New Jersey's 600 arts organizations, 300 historical societies and 110 museums continue to grow and prosper. "Today the cultural and heritage industry faces an enormous challenge to broaden, deepen and diversify participation," she explained. "It is crucial now more so than ever that we take proactive steps to tackle the challenges we face and work together to ensure that our cultural organizations reach a broader cultural community,” she added.

The symposium, co-sponsored by the New Jersey State Council on the Arts, the New Jersey Historical Commission, and New Jersey Network, brought together a panel of experts in cultural development who addressed such issues as growing diverse audience participation, building strong alliances and developing successful partnerships.

Speaking to an audience of more than 300 participants, Wells encouraged a diverse cross section of representatives from New Jersey's arts and history organizations to take advantage of the strategies presented by the guest panelists and workshop leaders. During the symposium, they facilitated breakout sessions on how to attract younger and more diverse audiences that reflect New Jersey’s multicultural populations.

Donna Walker-Kuhne, the symposium's keynote speaker, discussed the benefits of increasing accessibility to the arts for today’s growing multicultural population. "I firmly believe that the arts are the only pure vehicle we have in today's society that cross cultural and ethnic barriers and allow people to transcend their differences," Walker-Kuhne said. She is the author of “Invitation to the Party: Building Bridges to Arts, Culture and Community.”

The symposium, co-sponsored by the New Jersey State Council on the Arts, the New Jersey Historical Commission, and New Jersey Network, will bring together experts in cultural development who will address such issues as growing diverse audience participation, building strong alliances and successful partnerships. Donna Walker-Kuhne, a nationally known expert on audience diversification and The distinguished panelists include John McEwen, Executive Director of the New Jersey Theatre Alliance; Karla Nicholson, Director of Programs for the American Association for State and Local History; Greg Stevens, Project Manager for Education, National Museum of the US Army; Dr. Francie Ostrower, Senior Research Associate, Urban Institute Center on Nonprofits and Philanthropy; David Grant, and President and CEO, Gerald R. Dodge Foundation. Other speakers are Dr. Marc Mappen, Executive Director of the New Jersey Historic Commission; David Miller, Executive Director of the New Jersey State Council on the Arts; Mark Albin, Deputy Director for Marketing and Public Relations for the Newark Museum; Carol Cronheim, Former Acting Secretary of State; and Mark Packer, President of ArtPRIDE New Jersey.

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