MIAMI-DADE COUNTY DEPARTMENT OF CULTURAL AFFAIRS WINS TWO NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF COUNTIES ACHIEVEMENT AWARDS FOR ITS “GOING TO THE SHOW” GUIDE AND NEW ART IN PUBLIC PLACES WEBSITE
MEDIA CONTACT:
Liliana Hernandez-Constenla
305-375-5829/ LilianH@miamidade.gov
(Miami – July 2, 2013) The Miami-Dade County Department of Cultural Affairs has won two 2013 National Association of Counties (NACo) Achievement Awards which recognize innovative county government programs that modernize government and increase services to county residents. The Department was honored for its “Going to the
Show” guide for new audiences, and for its newly designed, creative and interactive Art in Public Places website www.miamidadepublicart.org. As part of its “All Kids Included– Accessible Arts Experiences for Kids” initiative, the Department of Cultural Affairs created “Going to the Show,” a free online resource, printed guide and classroom poster to help prepare new audiences for a live theater, dance or musical experience. The guide uses Universal Design principles, “social stories” and visual/picture schedules depicted through whimsical illustrations, to teach
children with and without disabilities, including children with Sensory Processing Disorders and Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD), what to expect when “Going to the Show.” Parents, guardians, teachers and other caregivers are able to familiarize their children with the sequence of events of going to a live performance by reading the guide together in preparation for a visit to the theater. This lends some predictability to this new encounter, which, in turn, decreases the child’s apprehension about this novel situation, and contributes to a happier, more satisfying cultural entertainment experience for everyone.
The newly designed website of Miami-Dade County Art in Public Places,
www.miamidadepublicart.org, extends the accessibility of more than 650 works of art from the Miami-Dade County Public Art Collection. The site allows residents and visitors. online access to images and documentation of the public art collection, the ability to create virtual tours and capabilities to search the collection by medium/media, artist or location. It also provides direct services to artists, featuring expanded content, opportunities for artists, tools, resources and news items that are constantly updated. A significant grant from the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation made it possible to develop a custom-designed platform that not only allows the collection to be viewed by worldwide visitors, but it also serves as a management system for the conservation and MIAMI-DADE COUNTY DEPARTMENT OF CULTURAL AFFAIRS
111 NW 1ST Street, Suite 625
Miami, FL 33128
stewardship of the County’s award-winning public art collection, including inventory and records-keeping functions.
For more information on the Miami-Dade County Department of Cultural Affairs and its programs please visit www.miamidadearts.org. The National Association of Counties (NACo) represents county governments in the United States and provides essential services to the nation’s counties. NACo advances issues before the federal government, improves the public’s understanding of county government, assists counties in finding and sharing innovative solutions through education and research, and provides value-added services to save counties and taxpayers money. For more information and a comprehensive list of winning programs please visit NACo’s website at www.naco.org.
The Miami-Dade County Department of Cultural Affairs and the Cultural Affairs Council develop cultural excellence, diversity and participation throughout Miami-Dade County by strategically creating and promoting opportunities for artists and cultural organizations, and our residents and visitors who are their audiences. The Department directs the Art in Public Places program and serves its board, the Art in Public Places Trust, commissioning, curating, maintaining and promoting the County’s art collection. The Department also manages, programs and operates the South Miami-Dade Cultural Arts Center, a campus of state-of-the-art cultural facilities in Cutler Bay, as well as Miami-Dade County Auditorium, Joseph Caleb Auditorium and the African Heritage Cultural Arts Center, all dedicated to presenting and supporting excellence in the arts for the entire community. Through staff, board and programmatic resources, the Department, the Council and the Trust promote, coordinate and support Miami-Dade County’s more than 1,000 not-for-profit cultural organizations as well as thousands of resident artists through grants, technical assistance, public information and interactive community planning. The Department receives funding through the Miami-Dade County Mayor and Board of County Commissioners, The Children’s Trust, the National Endowment for the Arts, the State of Florida through the Florida Department of State, Division of Cultural Affairs and the Florida Council on Arts and Culture, and the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation. Other support and services are provided by TicketWeb for the Culture Shock Miami program, the Greater Miami Convention and Visitors Bureau, the South Florida Cultural Consortium and the Tourist Development Council.
