Arts Learning Community for Universal Access group photo of 2019/2020 participants

Arts Learning Community for Universal Access

Raleigh Arts


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About the Program Apply to the Learning Community Members Group Projects

About the Program

Created in 2015, the Arts Learning Community for Universal Access is a collaborative program between the City of Raleigh Arts Commission and the United Arts Council of Wake County that brings together like-minded arts and cultural administrators who want to improve how inclusive their organizations are of the Deaf community and people living with disabilities. The year-long program runs from July through June.

2024-2025 Program Components

Once accepted into the program, Learning Community members will:

  • Attend the Learning Community’s July kick-off meeting.
  • Attend the full Leadership Exchange in Arts & Disability (LEAD®) Conference in Seattle from Wednesday, July 31, through Friday, August 2.
  • Meet every month in facilitated sessions to share lessons learned, discuss issues and achievements in their accessibility work, and explore accessibility topics of mutual interest to the group (attendance at nine meetings required)
  • Identify individual organizational goals/projects to accomplish during the year to increase accessibility for people with disabilities
  • Share what they have learned through a group presentation or project for the arts community at large

Apply to the Learning Community

A visually impaired woman feeling a statue while wearing gloves at NCMA

The City of Raleigh Arts Commission and the United Arts Council of  Wake County have partnered for a ninth year to offer a year-long arts learning community that uses a collaborative approach to advocating for and improving access to the arts for people with disabilities. Representatives of Raleigh and Wake County organizations are selected to participate in this program (maximum 2 representatives/organization) through an application process.

To participate in this program, applicants must be located within Wake County* and be a nonprofit exempt from federal and state income tax as either:

  1. A charitable organization with 501(c)(3) designation by the Internal Revenue Service with established arts programming or
  2. A unit of municipal government.

*Interested organizations outside Wake County should contact S.A. Corrin at sarah.corrin@raleighnc.gov to discuss their situation.

How to Apply

The 2024-2025 Learning Community application form and guidelines are posted below. The deadline to apply is Monday, May 6, 2024, at 4 p.m.

Eligible Learning Community applicants must:

  1. Review the Arts Learning Community for Universal Access Guidelines 
  2. Complete the Arts Learning Community for Universal Access Application Form 

Members

* Founding Members of the Arts Learning Community for Universal Access
Accessibility AssetOrganization
Betsy Ludwig*Arts Access
Kari Martin Hollinger, Carly Jones, Meg Revelle* and Stephen Wall*Arts Together
Brett Morris and Megan Sullivan*Artspace
Amanda Bittner, Cameron Laws, and Hannah LiebelArtsplosure
Nathalie RayBurning Coal Theatre Company
Sarah PrestonCary Arts Center
Jaclyn Bowie, Krista Nance, and Gab Smith*CAM Raleigh
Brittany Washington and Matt HesterCity of Raleigh, Martin Marietta Center for the Performing Arts
Veronica Aguilar and Cecilia SaloniEl Pueblo
Ella FangInternational Focus
Janine Eash, Jordan Pearce, Ashley Peay-Bettini, and Shenette SwannMarbles Kids Museum
Ai-Ling Chang, Kathleen Collier, and Emily Catherine MealorNorth Carolina Arts Council
Felicia Ingram, Molly Hull, and Melissa RothNorth Carolina Museum of Art
Liani YirkaNorth Carolina Museum of Natural Sciences
Rebecca EdmondsNorth Carolina Opera
Liza GreenNC State LIVE
Dan Ellison and Hilary LeggetteNC State University Gregg Museum
Mia Self and Emilie WoodNC State University Theatre
Ashley Blankenship, Meredith Laing, and Jason SpencerNorth Carolina Symphony
William Henry, Donna Mullins, and Katrina TarsonNorth Carolina Theatre
S.A. Corrin* and Julia Meder*Raleigh Arts
Jamie Katz Court* and Courtney WheelerPineCone
Fidel Benton, Meredyth Pederson Cooper, Alicia Grey, and Alease
Timbers
Raleigh Little Theatre
Ragen Carlile*United Arts Council of Raleigh and Wake County
Brandon Cordrey*Visual Art Exchange
Cathy GougeWake Forest Renaissance Centre
Johannah Maynard EdwardsWomen's Theatre Festival 

2023-2024 Members

In its eighth year, 12 arts and cultural organization representatives were given the opportunity to join the Arts Learning Community for Universal Access.

Accessibility AssetOrganization
Danny Peña and Oami PowersArtspace
Kathryn NeuhartCity of Raleigh,  Historic Resources & Museums
Andrea LukeCultural Voice of North Carolina
Melissa Cervantes and Alexandra LanderosEl Pueblo
Jack BarkleyMarbles Kids Museum
Ai-Ling ChangNorth Carolina Arts Council
Emi MizobuchiNorth Carolina Chamber Music Institute
Molly HullNorth Carolina Museum of Art
Yamila MongeTheatre in The Park
Katherine DentonTriangle Youth Music

Group Projects

As part of the Arts Learning Community for Universal Access program, members identify projects that increase accessibility to accomplish during the year and share what they have learned through a group presentation or project for the arts community at large. View member projects below.

aerial shot of the Raleigh Convention Center at twilight

Raleigh Convention Center Accessibility Overview Video

For their group project, a cohort of the 2021-2022 Learning Community created a “Welcome to Raleigh” video to enhance the Raleigh Convention Center’s accessibility information. This video provides an overview of the accessibility features at the Raleigh Convention Center, including drop-off areas, entrances, accessible restrooms, elevators and escalators, sensory kits, and rooms within the facility. The goal of the video was to provide visitors with a pre-visit view of the facility while answering many frequently asked questions. A different version of the video was recorded to provide more specific information to attendees of the LEAD® Conference in August 2022.

View the Raleigh Convention Center Accessibility Overview video

Post-it notes stuck on brown paper as part of a brainstorming session

Learning Community Digital Scrapbook

Wanting to show that accessibility is within reach for any organization, the 2019-2020 Learning Community members created a Digital Scrapbook, capturing the processes and results of individual projects enacted at their organizations.

View the Digital Scrapbook (Word Document)

Related Projects

  All projects