Mission

The Dubuque Art Center’s mission is to support a culturally vibrant and equitable community through arts education, empowerment, and leadership initiatives.

Arts Education: We help people explore their experiences in order to find inspiration and develop self-confidence.

Empowerment: We give people the knowledge, tools, and opportunities to create positive change in their own lives and in their communities.

Leadership: We facilitate unified efforts to leverage greater resources, promote community participation, and support cultural sustainability.

HISTORY
The Dubuque Art Center is a vibrant non-profit arts organization located in Dubuque, Iowa.  The center was founded in 2008 by Jordan DeGree, who serves as the current Executive Director, as a place to grow both creativity and community.

Central to the Dubuque Art Center’s success is the large number of people, community partners, sponsors, and donors who support the center.  Thanks to this tremendous network the center has expanded programming and increased operating efficiency, ensuring that every dollar we raise results in maximum community impact.

The Dubuque Art Center’s experienced board, faculty, and staff are dedicated to our community and enthusiastic about the future.  Our quality projects and programs address community needs and increase the quality of life for everyone living and working in and around Dubuque.

NOTABLE ACCOMPLISHMENTS

• We operate Iowa’s largest free community arts education program, providing a diverse array of arts education courses to more than 1,200 youth and adults annually

• We received national recognition in 2010 with a State Farm Youth Advisory Board Grant award for our Speaking Out Project, which reduces the educational achievement gap.  We were one of just two organizations in Iowa to receive this award, and one of 150 projects selected from over 2,000 applications nationally.

• In 2010 we received a 365 Impact Award for “Idea Ahead of Its Time”

• In 2010 we received a Dubuque Main Street Excellence Award

• The Dubuque Art Center has been awarded more than $50,000 in funding from the Iowa Department of Cultural Affairs and the Iowa Arts Council, demonstrating our high level of programming excellence

• Our projects and programs have been featured locally in the Telegraph Herald, Dubuque 365 Ink, KWWL News Channel 7, KCRG TV 9, Mediacom Channel 22, and nationally through multiple online publications

• We were invited to present on the topic of forming effective community partnerships at the 2010 Iowa Non-profit Summit

• Our staff has been invited to sit on the Every Child Every Promise Out of School Time Committee, the Fall Into Art Downtown Gallery Tour Committee, the UW Platteville Nohr Gallery Committee, the Carnegie Stout Public Library Art Subcommittee, the Historic Millwork District “Arts in the District” steering committee, and the Dubuque 2.0 Steering Committee.

The Dubuque Art Center is a 501(c)3 organization.