The Fine Arts Work Center is committed to placing equity at the center of our work.
Our goal is to create a welcoming, inclusive, and equitable environment for a diverse community of artists and writers to create new work and boldly reimagine the future of arts and literature.
We recognize that structural and racial inequities exist in the nonprofit and arts sector, just as they do in broader society, and we hold ourselves responsible for doing all we can to break down those inequities. We strive to create an anti-racist organizational culture and foster diversity, equity, and inclusion at FAWC.
All members of our community, including program participants, employees, trustees, faculty, students, volunteers, and visitors have the right to an experience that supports their creativity, well-being, and sense of belonging. No member of our community should experience harassment and/or discrimination based on race, sexual identity, gender, or ability. We expect all those acting on behalf of the Fine Arts Work Center to act in a manner that maintains and strengthens our values.
We are very grateful to members of our community who bring issues to our attention and share their experiences with us, particularly BIPOC (Black, Indigenous and People of Color) stakeholders and others most marginalized. We recognize there is significant ongoing and long-term work to be done.
Outlined below are highlights of work that is underway. This is an overview of an evolving set of actions and objectives designed to honestly address inequities that exist at the Work Center, center the experience of stakeholders most impacted, and create more equitable policies, practices, and structures.
Non Discrimination Statement
If you wish to file a Civil Rights program complaint of discrimination, complete the USDA Program Discrimination Complaint Form, found online here, or at any USDA office, or call (866) 632-9992 to request the form. You may also write a letter containing all of the information requested in the form.
Send your completed complaint form or letter to us by mail at U.S. Department of Agriculture, Director, Office of Adjudication, 1400 Independence Avenue, S.W., Washington, D.C. 20250-9410, by fax (202) 690-7442 or email at program.intake@usda.gov.
Leadership
The Board of Trustees has established a Diversity, Equity, & Inclusion (DEI) Committee made up of representatives from the Fine Arts Work Center Board of Trustees, Fellows, faculty, and staff. The Committee meets monthly and is charged with serving as an advisory council on issues of diversity, equity, and inclusion within the Work Center. It also guides organizational efforts to adopt anti-racist policies and practices.
Fine Arts Work Center community stakeholders and others are welcome to contact the DEI Committee directly with questions, comments, or concerns in support of anti-racism, diversity, equity, access and inclusion. The Committee can be reached at dei@fawc.org.
Strategic Plan and Values Statement
In 2022, we continued our partnership with Arts Consulting Group to develop a community-driven strategic plan that centers diversity, equity, inclusion, and access.
Inside our 2023-2026 Strategic Plan, you will find a refined mission and newly articulated vision and values. Five pillars establish our priorities and implementation trajectory for the future, with a focus on strengthening our ability to follow-through on the equity, diversity, inclusion, and access initiatives in the plan. We commit to reviewing our progress quarterly and making updates when needed to reflect changes in climate or culture.
Values / Our Guiding Principles
Freedom
We believe that providing artists with the freedom of time and space to focus on artistic practice within the beautiful natural environment of Outer Cape Cod creates an expansive sense of possibility and leads to creative transformation.
Rigor
We value excellence and believe in artistically significant work. Our community continually shapes and reshapes important conversations about arts and letters.
Responsiveness
We strive to create a welcoming and generative environment supportive of artists. By providing individuals the resources they need to thrive, we hope to enrich people’s intellectual, artistic, and aesthetic lives.
Inclusion
We believe that a diversity of voices strengthens our public discourse and that this leads to cultural vibrancy. We work to evolve as an organization that honors our legacy while repairing historic inequities.
Stewardship and Care
We are committed to the mindful stewardship of our natural, human, financial, and physical resources.
To review our complete strategic plan, please click here.
Community Input and Transparency
FAWC’s recently adopted strategic plan was developed in 2022 with the input and participation of over 100 community stakeholders. To gather ongoing data on DEI-related efforts, we circulate anonymous surveys to staff, Trustees, faculty, and Fellows. Beginning in Fall 2021, the FAWC DEI Committee hosts roundtables with our broader community. The goal of these open sessions is to listen and engage in dialogue; report back on what we have learned; share updates regarding ongoing recommendations, challenges, and policies; and continue to create an anti-racist culture within the Fine Arts Work Center network.
Accessibility
The Fine Arts Work Center strives to be accessible to all our visitors. If you have questions or an accessibility request, please complete this form to help us prepare for your visit.
Accountability
We expect all members of the Fine Arts Work Center community–staff, trustees, faculty, students and others–to act in a manner that upholds FAWC as an inclusive and equitable space. Our goal is to create and maintain an environment that recognizes and values difference, holds ourselves and each other accountable, and builds the trust necessary to share creative endeavors. To support these accountability efforts, we have strengthened human resources support, adopted a code of conduct and set of shared community agreements, and created a new incident reporting protocol.
Learning and Growth Culture
We are committed to creating a culture of learning and growth. We provide monthly staff training opportunities focused on disrupting the harms of white dominant culture and bringing about both individual and collective change. The Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) Committee facilitates training sessions for our Board of Directors, addressing topics such microaggressions and how to have productive conversations about race.
Resources
To align with movements to advance racial equity within the cultural and nonprofit sector, our leadership and staff are engaged with the following resources:
Creating Cultures and Practices for Racial Equity
A Toolbox for Advancing Racial Equity for Arts and Cultural Organizations
Race Forward
Cultural Equity Learning Community
Mass Cultural Council
Racial Equity Work
Mass Cultural Council
Universal Participation Initiative
The Pink Elephant
A Practical Guide to Creating an Anti-Racist Organization
Dr. Janice Z. Gassam Asare, Ph.D.
Feedback and Questions
We invite and welcome feedback. We recognize we must be intentional in this effort, make changes when change is called for, and hold the organization accountable to measurable outcomes. To share your insight and questions, please connect with dei@fawc.org.
