Arts Education Program Manager for Americans for the Arts Jeff M. Poulin will speak at Shenandoah Conservatory’s Performance Forum at 3 p.m. on Wednesday, April 13, in Armstrong Concert Hall, on the campus of Shenandoah University. Poulin will share his experiences as an arts leader and explore current issues in the field of performing arts management.
This event is free and open to the public; however, seating preference is given to current Shenandoah Conservatory students, faculty and staff. Poulin is hosted by Shenandoah Conservatory’s Performing Arts Leadership and Management program under the direction of Associate Professor of Arts Management David Edelman, M.F.A.
About Jeff Poulin
As a tap dancer growing up, Jeff M. Poulin formed a fierce belief in the power of the arts to revolutionize education and the lives of young people. At age 18, he founded Perform for a Cure, a nonprofit organization which works to empower young people to change their communities through the arts. Today, he dedicates his life and career to this mission. In 2013, he joined Americans for the Arts, the nation’s leading organization for the advancement of the arts in America. He works to empower local, state and federal advocates to advance policies supportive of arts education through national visibility and community-based mobilization.
In this work, Poulin has trained over 10,000 advocates from all 50 states. His work has been instrumental in the publication and adoption of the 2014 National Core Arts Standards, the founding of the Innovation Collaborative, and the coalescence of field of Creative Youth Development.
Before arriving in Washington, D.C., Poulin worked for several nonprofit and commercial organizations in the United States and abroad, focusing primarily on production and programming, audience development, research and policy. Notably, he was an advisor on the implementation of the first national Arts in Education Charter under the directions of the ministers for arts and education in the Republic of Ireland.
At 26, Poulin holds national dance titles and has been recognized as one of the 50 most influential people from his hometown in Scarborough, Maine; 30 Under 30 by Oklahoma City University; as well as by service organizations like Kiwanis International and international groups like the Union of Students of Ireland. He frequently speaks at a number of nonprofit organizations and universities.
Poulin holds a Master of Arts in arts management and cultural policy from University College Dublin and a Bachelor of Science in entertainment business from Oklahoma City University.
