Cultural Catalysts with Alison McNeil

All of We Is One: How Suzan Jenkins Has Led Arts and Humanities Grant Making in Maryland for Nearly 20 Years

Episode Summary

Suzan E. Jenkins, CEO of the Arts and Humanities Council of Montgomery County (AHCMC) and leadership coach, joins Cultural Catalysts as the first funder to appear on the show — and she wastes no time demystifying what a local arts agency actually does. From distributing the largest arts grant funding of any local agency in Maryland, to advocating with county legislators, to managing the complex ecosystem of individual donors, private foundations, state and federal dollars.

Episode Notes

Suzan E. Jenkins, CEO of the Arts and Humanities Council of Montgomery County (AHCMC) and leadership coach, joins Cultural Catalysts as the first funder to appear on the show — and she wastes no time demystifying what a local arts agency actually does. From distributing the largest arts grant funding of any local agency in Maryland, to advocating with county legislators, to managing the complex ecosystem of individual donors, private foundations, state and federal dollars.

Suzan breaks down: 

• How grant-making actually works, including the part most people miss: that funders also have to raise money, navigate politics, and work within real constraints
• The Montgomery County Cultural Plan, a years-long community-driven process built on seven modes of engagement, seven languages
• The guiding principle she carried from her childhood in the Caribbean: all of we is one

Find out more:

• Connect with Suzan: 
  • LinkedIn
• Arts and Humanities Council of Montgomery County
  • Website
  • Facebook 
• Open Sky Jazz
  • Website
  • Leadership Coaching
  • Email