07/29/2009
Contact:
Liz Bartolomeo
press@artsusa.org
202.371.2830
Lt. Governor David Dewhurst Receives Award for Arts Leadership
WASHINGTON, DC — July 29, 2009 — Americans for the Arts, the nation’s leading nonprofit organization for advancing the arts in America, and the National Lieutenant Governors Association today presented Texas Lieutenant Governor David Dewhurst with the Lieutenant Governors Arts Leadership Award. The award honors a public official who has demonstrated outstanding leadership in the advancement of the arts at the state level. It was presented at the National Lieutenant Governors Association annual conference in Baltimore, MD, as part of the Public Leadership in the Arts Awards series.
“Lt. Governor Dewhurst has demonstrated consummate leadership in supporting public funding for the arts,” said Robert L. Lynch, president and CEO of Americans for the Arts. “His advocacy for the arts in Texas has proven to be a great success.”
Texas Lieutenant Governor David Dewhurst receives the 2009 Lt. Governors Arts Award for his support of the arts and arts education throughout the state. Since being elected in 2002, Lt. Governor Dewhurst has strongly advocated for continued support of Texas’ arts and entertainment industries. This year, Dewhurst secured $1 million in the state budget for the Texas Cultural Trust’s Create Texas, Put Your ART Into It, a state-wide public relations campaign promoting arts education and economic development. He also supported budget allocations for other outreach programs aimed at raising the awareness of the importance of the arts. Last year, Dewhurst helped secure $20 million for film incentives for the state.
His other legislative achievements include the support and passage of a bill that the Texas Commission on the Arts, the Texas Cultural Trust, and Texans for the Arts requested which dissolves an ineffective endowment and provides additional funding of approximately $5 million for grants to the TCA. Lt. Governor Dewhurst secured the Senate sponsor, and his staff shepherded the bill through the process, rescuing it when the House stalled and many bills died.
“The arts not only enrich our lives; they also help us understand and appreciate Texas’ rich heritage and the many cultures and communities of our state. Through the arts, our lives are made more colorful, our minds are further challenged, and our appreciation for the infinite capacity of human expression grows deeper every day,” said Lt. Governor Dewhurst at the 2009 Texas Medal of Arts Awards ceremony in January.
“Few elected officials can achieve Lt. Governor Dewhurst’s commitment and support of the arts. It is only fitting that he be recognized for his longstanding support for the arts,” wrote Amy Barbee, executive director of the Texas Cultural Trust in nominating Lt. Governor Dewhurst for the award.
Americans for the Arts is the leading nonprofit organization for advancing the arts in America. With offices in Washington, DC, and New York City, it has a record of 49 years of service. Americans for the Arts is dedicated to representing and serving local communities and creating opportunities for every American to participate in and appreciate all forms of the arts. Additional information is available at www.AmericansForTheArts.org.
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