Leadership is central to the success of an arts Board and consequently to the successes of the organizations they serve. Board leadership’s primary role is to lead the Board in support of the organization and to work with the professional leadership whose role is leading the organization strategically and operationally.

The role of Board leadership has become so much more demanding and complex in recent years that it is virtually impossible for a single individual to function effectively as Board leader. For this reason we propose distributing leadership roles and responsibilities.

A Chair assumes an external role in the community with professional leadership, representing the organization and serving as principal activist. The Chair must be cast with an individual comfortable with leading the board in fund raising and development activity and recruiting more people who can help.

A President is the key internal leader helping to lead, manage and support the board to be as effective as possible. This Board leader works closely with professional leadership and his/her Board peers to keep the Board focused, motivated and on task.

The Treasurer is the principal interface working with appropriate staff monitoring and maintaining focus on finances. The Board receives accurate and timely financial reports and will be alerted to any financial concerns by the Treasurer and staff leader.

A Secretary helps assure that each Board member receives good and timely information about the organization’s needs, plans and activities and maintains open communication between Board leadership and organizational leadership.

The above leadership team of the Board combines with the professional leadership to serve as a Leadership Core where primary responsibility for strategic planning, implementation and ongoing identification and recruitment of new Board and resource people will be carried out.