| Place a Classified | Subscribe today | July 10, 2009 |
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Arts panel collects comments
POCATELLO - Ruth Piispanen could hardly keep up with the ideas being voiced Thursday at the Pocatello Senior Center.
The Gate City was the last stop of the Idaho Commission on the Arts' series of public meetings, and Piispanen was in charge of writing down suggestions being called out by the crowd during the forum. The state's arts commission is hoping to increase cultural value and awareness in Idaho, and representatives of the organization have traveled throughout the state looking for suggestions. They've posed three questions during the meetings - what do you like most about Idaho, what roles might creativity play in Idaho's future and what value do you believe arts and cultural activities offer to your community - to hear what residents suggest to make Idaho more culturally vibrant.
Even though Pocatello was the last stop of the tour, the Gate City brought a voice to the table that Michael Faison, executive director of the arts commission, said wasn't present in any of the other cities. Nearly 30 Idaho State University students showed up to the event and voiced their opinions on how Idaho could incorporate more art into the culture. The students joined local artists, members of the Pocatello Arts Council and faculty members from the arts department at ISU in the endeavor.
''We haven't had students in any of these meetings,'' Faison said to the crowded room. ''It's nice to get your perspective, even though you probably don't know who we are.'' While the students were just as vocal as the others involved in the meeting, their reason for being there was quite different.
The professor of their survey of art class, Ryan Babcock, offered his students extra credit to attend the event. Boise State University faculty member Carol Nimic, who led the group discussion for the arts commission, didn't mind that bonus points motivated the students' attendance; she was happy to have their unique input.
''You might be here on assignment, but your feedback is valuable,'' Nimic said. With the information gathered from Pocatello and the other 11 cities throughout the state, the state arts commission will now decide how to approach Idaho's future incorporation of art into the state's culture.
''We want to find out what's important to people around the state,'' Faison said. ''Then we want to see what we can do to enhance the cultural values in this state.'' BY ADAM CHAMBERS achambers@journalnet.com
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