This month features a conversation with the Arts Council of Greater New Haven Director Daniel Fitzmaurice about Create the Vote CT, a nonpartisan public education campaign to raise awareness and support for the arts among voters and candidates running for public office. Daniel is one of the co-founders of this initiative which attempts to bring together CT's many arts organizations to
collectively make their voices heard.

On July 31st the public is invited to attend
Arts, Culture, & the Future of CT’s Economy: Gubernatorial Candidate Forum.
The event goes from 5:00 – 6:30 p.m.at the
Co-Op High School's Mainstage Theater,
177 College Street, New Haven, CT. and is free and open to all.
Please RSVP here.

The Forum will be an opportunity for the creative community to show the candidates that their commitment to the arts, culture, and creativity matters. Each candidate was given a questionnaire with six questions to respond to.

Confirmed attendees are: Joseph Ganim, Oz Griebel, Rod Hanscomb, Tim Herbst, Ned Lamont, Marisa Manley, and David Stemerman. The program will be hosted by WTNH-TV anchor Ann Nyberg, who is also a committed champion of the arts in Connecticut.

This is a gubernatorial election year and thus an excellent moment to discuss the strengths and challenges the state faces and to collectively form a vision for our community. While candidates spend much time talking about jobs, the economy, and education, they rarely talk about arts and culture as part of their campaign. Seeing the need to make arts and creativity part of the discussion, Connecticut Arts Alliance (CAA) and the Connecticut Alliance for Arts Education (CAAE) have launched Create the Vote CT. and instigated Arts, Culture, & the Future of CT’s Economy: Gubernatorial Candidate Forum to get the public involved.

Over 100 arts and culture organizations - including WPKN!- have signed up to be co-sponsors of this inspired event. Daniel knows all too well the challenges that face so many arts organizations throughout the state, as budgets get slashed, and yet it bears repeating that arts and culture are what bring so much revenue and other collective goods to our towns and cities. Join us as we discuss this exciting and timely project and the various candidates, questions and challenges that lie ahead in activating and informing the public before the election.

Are you registered to vote?
it's easy and it's online here at https://voterregistration.ct.gov