Catching Up with Kathy Ann

Last spring, the Piedmont Triad Initiative for Community Arts enlisted the help of then Salem College senior, Kathy Ann Canafax, to serve as an intern, researching social media and seeking out the best tools for online communication in the Triad. Kathy Ann was an impressively thorough, driven intern, bound for an interesting future. I checked in on her last week to see what she is up to now...

I am currently in my ninth month of AmeriCorps*VISTA service with Arts In Reach
in New Hampshire. VISTAs (Volunteers In Service To America), unlike other
AmeriCorps members, work in a not-for-profit organization to build capacity and
develop resources that increase sustainability. Although my primary tasks
are fundraising/grantwriting, strategic planning, and social media, I have also
gained experience in special event planning, Board governance, media relations,
and program
evaluation.

One of my biggest accomplishments has been assisting the Executive Director in
the creation of a short-term strategic plan. By combining her inner knowledge of
the organization with my academic understanding of planning structure, we were
able to create a working document that has helped us secure almost $20,000 in
grant funds. The greatest accomplishment of the organization this fiscal year
has been our most recent special event. Despite our feature performer
cancelling within two weeks of the event, our Board and staff cultivated a
lucrative guest list, and with the help of a charismatic presenter we have over
$37,000 in received and pledged donations from the
event.

My familiarity with nonprofit use of social media, especially through the
Piedmont Triad Initiative for Community Arts, has been particularly helpful
during my VISTA term. We have already taken a few steps toward greater
engagement of our participants through the internet, including Facebook and
YouTube, but I am hoping to create a persuasive report to be included in our
long-term strategic planning effort, which begins this month, that includes ways
to engage participants, donors, and community
members.

Ultimately, my year with Arts In Reach has been the perfect start to a career in
not-for-profit and arts management. Arts In Reach empowers teenage girls through
arts activity, and I have seen firsthand the transformation of a participant
from awkward and shy to confident and bold, through our group mentoring
activities and various means of artistic expression. Being able to
experience all aspects of a not-for-profit, from writing grants in the office to
assisting monologue practice in theatre class, is an invaluable beginning to
understanding my own strengths and interests in arts administration.

-Kathy Ann Canafax