HISTORY WE ARE WATCHING YOU
			In response to concerns of local artists, community residents and activists regarding the practices of El Museo de Barrio, Community Board #11 launched a community awareness and advocacy campaign last year. The campaign had four components: a community petition drive, an artist survey, community rallies and a town hall meeting to report back to the community the survey findings and to propose recommendations to increase community participation and representation in programs. The campaign called for: • Community representation in the search for a new executive director. • The creation of policies for the distribution of unwanted catalogues. • Polices to promote Puerto Rican artists, culture, and history, and preservation efforts for Puerto Rican art and artifacts. Community Board #11 Cultural Affairs Committee's Recommendations to the Museo del Barrio These recommendations must be transformed into Board polices so that the new director can implement them. A community-working group will be established to continue follow up this process and will come back to keep the community informed! The following recommendations have been developed from a system impact perspective with out come goals that can be integrated into the current structure of the Museo del Barrio. The systems identified are the Board of Trustees, Programs, Exhibitions, Community Education, Public Relations, and Capital Growth. We believe that working towards the implementation in partnership with the Board of Directors, to develop policies will assist in the development of a productive relationship with administration of the Museo. It is their task to implement policy. We propose that these items be placed on the agenda of upcoming Board meetings and assigned to the various corresponding committees for resolution. We seek to transition from "We are Watching You" to "We Are Working with You" Board of Trustees The reconfiguration of the Board of trustees by the creation of 5 - 6 community representative seats with full voting capacity though an amendment to the existing by-laws We mean that there should be members representing the grassroots, working class, Latino constituency, be it through residence, expertise, length of engagement in local advocacy...etc. Policy developed for unwanted catalogues • Term limits in the Board: to make sure accountability is maintained through diversified representation • Annual reports, newsletters, and the convening of an annual town hall meeting for delivering annual report, and fostering dialogue. • Increase the number of Puerto Ricans and Latinos in Upper Management positions. Programs • Artist in resident programs with a focus on US born Latinos • Senior citizen artist search and exhibitions • Art programs for developmentally disabled ? Resource Research and Study Library: a national/international resource for students, scholars worldwide on Puerto Rican Latino and Latin American art. ? Artists in Residence Program like that of Studio Museum and the Bronx, where Puerto Rican and Latino artists are offered a one year artist?s studio residency, while utilizing them to conduct outreach programs for community. • A similar program to train, mentor and develop future Puerto Rican Latino and Latin American curators and art researchers and administrators ? Academic symposia with panel discussion Exhibitions ? Permanent multimedia installation space of the history of El Museo del Barrio that accounts for its history in civil and human rights struggles. • Permanent Evolving Exhibition Space: An exhibition space on relating basis would represent the works of Puerto Rican art and artifacts that contributed to founding of El Museo del Barrio and the start of its permanent collection. ? Thematic formats • Afro-Latino collaborations Community Education • Institute an Acquisition and Dissemination Policy of Works of Puerto Rican and Latino artists. • A similar program to train, mentor and develop future Puerto Rican Latino and Latin American curators and art researchers and administrators • The creation of a staff position and departments of PR Art and LA Art • These future curators can work together with artists in residence to develop and conduct outreach programs and lectures within community and museum constituency at large. Public Relations Community Newsletters, annual community forums, reports lectures, on the state of US born Latinos Partnerships with community agencies through development initiatives Membership drives Capital Growth Renovate the Firehouse