Interested in Serving on the Art Center’s Board of Directors?

We’re so happy you are interested in board service. Below is an FAQ for potential board members. If you have other questions, please feel free to reach out to Diego Rotsztain, chair of the Governance Committee, at diego.rotsztain@gmail.com and/or Melanie Cohn, Executive Director, at mcohn@8b431fa5799d.navitend.net.

What’s the mission of the Art Center?

Vision
To create an inclusive and welcoming community where lives are transformed and enriched through the shared experience of art.

Mission
The Visual Arts Center of New Jersey nurtures the capacity for personal expression, expands the creative experience, and fosters stronger communities by empowering people to see, make, and learn about art. Through exhibition, Studio School, and community programs, the Art Center engenders connection, curiosity, and creative risk-taking among its constituents.

What work does the Art Center do for the community?

The Art Center offers a 360-degree arts experience. The Art Center does this through three program areas: In-Community, Museum, and Studio School Programs

In-Community Programs

At the Visual Arts Center of New Jersey, we believe in the inclusivity of all groups and through our community engagement programs we make art available to under-served, economically
disadvantaged and marginalized audiences.

Our In-Community Programs are carefully designed in collaboration with social service organizations, schools, and community-based groups to meet the needs of the partner organization and the constituents they serve. These programs are hosted at the Art Center or off-site at partner institutions and are led by our professional art instructors to engage students in the creative process. Curricula encourage self-expression through the study of art history, interpretation, vocabulary, and design and explore creative processes, tools, and techniques. A selection of our In-Community Programs include:

Arts Alive Program: One of the Visual Arts Center of New Jersey’s flagship programs is the Arts Alive Initiative created in partnership with Elizabeth Public Schools. Since 2009, the Arts Alive Initiative has brought 300 students per year from Jefferson Arts Academy to the Art Center for an in-depth sequential learning arts education program that expands their knowledge and understanding of contemporary art. The students visit for three consecutive weeks during each exhibition season and create art projects that apply ideas and themes from the Art Center’s exhibitions. Upon the completion of the program, the students present their work for a critique by Curator, Mary Birmingham, who selects a number of pieces for display in an exhibition of their work at the Art Center. This initiative supports the New Jersey Core Curriculum Content Standards for Visual Arts as well as other standards.

In 2015, the program was expanded to serve 400 eighth grade students from the Elizabeth School District with a half-day visit to the Art Center that included a tour of contemporary art exhibitions and a hands-on artmaking workshop related to the exhibition.

In 2018, the relationship with Elizabeth Public Schools grew again, to include training bilingual instructors in visual strategies that support English language learners. The training was done in partnership with CALTA 21.

Additionally, the Arts Alive Initiative includes two full-day art educator symposia for 65 Elizabeth art educators from grades Kindergarten through High School. The symposia are led by a professional artist and include a presentation about the visiting artist’s work, gallery exercises, and a hands-on art-making workshop.

Art from the Heart Program with SAGE Eldercare Spend-A-Day Program: Art from the Heart enhances the quality of life of older adults with mild to severe aging disorders through art projects to keep their minds sharp and to encourage self-expression. Learn more about SAGE Eldercare.

Creative Art Therapy with NJ Veterans Affairs: In 2020, the Art Center launched a new art therapy program with NJ Veterans Affairs in five locations state-wide with two distinct programs: one serving veterans with Alzheimer’s and dementia and the other serving formerly homeless veterans in transitional housing.

Museum Programs

The Visual Arts Center of New Jersey is one of nine nationally accredited art museums in New Jersey. Exhibits are open to the public seven days/week. Prearranged tours are available to school, community, and adult groups, Monday–Friday. From 2011–2015 we organized 23 solo exhibitions and 8 group shows.

• In the 8 group exhibitions, we have included 91 women and 43 men
• Of the 23 solo projects, 12 have been male and 11 have been female artists
• More than half (12 of 23) of solo shows have been with NJ-based artists
• 2 have been faculty members of VACNJ

While most exhibiting artists are NY- or NJ-based, we have also shown work by artists from:
Australia, Korea, Japan, Germany, Holland, England, Norway and Canada, and all across the US, including California, New Mexico, Virginia, Tennessee, North Carolina, Pennsylvania, Vermont, Rhode Island, Massachusetts, and Maine.

Studio School

The Studio School offers art instruction for students of all ages, from kids as young as age 3, to
teens and adults looking to develop technical skills in art. Classes are available in a breath of art
media, including painting/drawing, ceramics, digital media, fiber, jewelry, printmaking, sculpture,
and more. Annually, the school offers four semesters of classes and workshops, in addition to a
summer art camp with specialized offerings for kids, tweens, and teens. Our faculty members are outstanding working artists and art educators from the region. Each year, the Studio School serves approximately 4,500 total students, who come from throughout the state of New Jersey and neighboring states.

What does the board of directors do?

The Art Center’s board is an integral part of the organization. The role of the board is to:

--Recruit, supervise, retain, evaluate and compensate the Executive Director.

--Provide direction for the organization. The board has a strategic function in providing the vision, mission, and goals of the organization. These are often determined in collaboration with the ED and senior staff.

--Establish a policy-based governance system. The board develops policies to guide its own actions and the actions of the manager. The policies should be broad and not rigidly defined as to allow the board and manager leeway in achieving the goals of the organization.

--Assume fiduciary duty to protect the organization’s assets. The board has to make sure the assets of the company are kept in good order. The board of directors has a monitoring and control function. The board is in charge of the auditing process and hires the auditor. It is in charge of making sure the audit is done in a timely manner each year.

What’s the time commitment? How often does the board meet?

The board meets five times a year. In addition, each board member is asked to serve on at least one committee. Most committees meet around four times a year. We also encourage board members to attend a few of the Art Center's many events each year.

What is the Art Center’s strategic plan?

The Art Center just completed a four-year strategic plan. It can be downloaded here.

Do you have an Annual Report?

The Art Center publishes an Annual Report each November for our annual meeting. You can download the most recent Annual Report here.