PROVIDENCE – Randall Rosenbaum, of the R.I. State Council on the Arts, was named the 2016 recipient of the National Assembly of State Arts Agencies’ Gary Young Award.
The Gary Young Award, which recognizes an executive director who has made progress in increasing public support for the arts at the state, regional and national levels, was presented to Rosenbaum at a reception in Grand Rapids, Mich., on Sept. 17.
NASAA CEO Pam Breaux applauded the work of Rosenbaum: “The productive collaborations he has orchestrated throughout his state, his savvy policy leadership and his dedication to inclusive programming are testament to his championship of the arts and artists as central to civic well-being.”
Over the past 21 years Rosenbaum has increased the state government’s role in connecting Rhode Island-made art with the community and is the founder of a gallery in the state government administrative building.
As executive director, Rosenbaum has nurtured relationships between RISCA and the departments of health, environmental management, state, education, tourism, film and television, elderly affairs and transportation, in addition to the Commission on Disabilities and the Commission on the Deaf and Hard of Hearing. He is also responsible for a sales tax exemption for the sale of art in Rhode Island and a $30 million bond initiative to support improvements to the state’s cultural infrastructure.
The Gary Young Award was established by the New England Foundation for the Arts to honor the memory of a man who made numerous contributions to the state arts council movement in the United States, and to provide recognition to those who carry on his tradition of leadership in this field.
The National Assembly of State Arts Agencies is the membership organization that unites, represents and serves the nation’s state and jurisdictional arts agencies. Founded in 1968, NASAA represents their individual and collective interests, empowers their work through knowledge and advances the arts as an essential public benefit.
