Black women stand at the intersection of two groups that suffer from severe underrepresentation in roles of senior leadership in the arts and culture community. In response to this disparity, a team of dedicated individuals from the NYCAIER Black Affinity Group have crafted a List of Demands for Centering Black Women’s Leadership in Arts Education.

Complete the form below to add your name to show your support for "Rebuild. Reconcile. Reimagine. Centering Black Women: List of Demands". You can view the current list of individuals who have signed onto this letter by visiting https://bit.ly/2N4c7Pn

Separately, click the link — https://bit.ly/3qi3Khc — to register for the Roundtable's campaign kick off event centered on this list, featuring a moderated panel discussion between Black women who are veterans in the field of arts education. Attendees will hear from panelists as they discuss critical issues that the List of Demands seeks to address, and will learn how they can be a part of the movement. Tuesday, February 16th at 4:00 PM.

Thanks for your support!


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These demands are based on the following key points explicitly and unapologetically meant to set up Black women to flourish in leadership and vision:

● Pay equity
● Promotion/Advancement
● Healing
● Hiring, investing in, and trusting Black women
● Including budget lines for every item on this list

Arts education and cultural organizations dedicated to uplifting Black women must:

1. Create dedicated budget lines for hiring Black women in leadership positions.

a. Ensure equity in pay, especially taking into consideration the emotional labor that Black women undertake and the unique cultural capital they bring to an organization.
b. Offer compensation packages that really benefit Black women, including wellness/mental health, coverage for children, retirement plans, severance packages. Create a true-cost budget (Propel Nonprofits), reflective of the "true cost" of providing a living wage, full benefits, compensation policies, and employee incentives that many nonprofits overlook.
c. Create a blueprint/policies that support mentorship, coaching, self-care, and hold space for self-advocacy around issues like promotion, salary increase, and other investment in advancement.
d. Advocate for living wages for folks in entry level and mid-career positions.
e. Encourage policies that limit exorbitant pay gaps.
f. Address lack of pension for elders.
       i. Provide post-career/retirement resources: counseling, incentives to save, matching in 401(3)b, etc.

2. Ensure opportunities for promotion/advancement.

a. Fund executive coaching/mentorship, whether by someone within the organization or by an external consultant. For Black women hired into leadership positions, ensure that they have the support needed to avoid the "Glass Cliff" (The Today Show).
       i. Make salary negotiations easier via policies (e.g. annual cost-of-living increase).
       ii. Build in interview and compensation negotiation coaching.
       iii. Remove the degree requirement from all job postings.
b. Fund ongoing professional development, including for Black women interested in pursuing executive careers.

3. Recruit Black women as teaching artists and for executive leadership and board positions.

a. Develop a plan for intentionally recruiting Black women to all levels, including staff leadership and board positions.
b. Create training opportunities for Black women pursuing careers as teaching artists, senior executives, and board members.
c. Recruit where Black women are.
       i. Include and engage working class Black women on your boards.
       ii. Hire more Black women to do curriculum development, and compensate them for this specialized work.
d. Create a community-based, executive position dedicated to Diversity, Equity and Inclusion, including cultural competency, to be held by a Black/Brown person.

4. Prioritize healing.
a. Fund retreat opportunities for Black women, restorative time to heal themselves beyond PTO.
       i. Sponsor/support retreats for Black women, such as the one being coordinated through the NYC Arts in Education Roundtable.
b. Allocate funds toward mental health needs beyond the Retreat: Most therapists, especially Black therapists, are “out-of-network” and not covered by health insurance plans.
c. Compensate employees beyond their salary (e.g. as consultants) for their emotional labor: For example, when employees are asked to lead conversations on race, to write DEI policies or messages on behalf of the organization, or weigh in on hiring decisions related to race.

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