Mission Statement

Minnesota Access Alliance’s  mission is to raise the bar for accessibility across the culture and arts sectors in Minnesota.

About Us/History

MN Access Alliance was formed after a group of arts and cultural administrators met through attendance at a Leadership Exchange in Arts and Disability (LEAD) conference put on by the Kennedy Center.  After an initial information session at the Bell Museum drew over 20 organizations- it was clear that there was interest in sharing knowledge and resources about accessibility. In the spring of 2017 a formal steering committee was formed, articles of incorporation drafted – and the group settled on a name: MN Access Alliance.  The founding organizations were:

The Bell Museum Children’s Theatre Company Guthrie Theater Logo Interact Center for Visual and Performing Arts Minnesota Historical Society
Minnesota Orchestra Minnesota State Arts Board Ordway Center for the Performing Arts The Minnesota Zoo VSA Minnesota

Services Offered

We host free workshops, panel discussions and events for arts and cultural organizations of all sizes on topics such as; Access 101, Captioning, and Forming an Access Committee. These typically occur every other month- and the location changes to allow more individuals to access the trainings if transportation is a challenge. Captioning and interpretation is always available upon request.

A photo of 13 smiling people (four seated and nine standing) and a golden Labrador dog seated below with a sandstone brick wall in the background.
2019 Minnesota Access Alliance Board Members: (from left to right, first row): Maren Levad, Sherry Shirek, Millie (Yellow Labrador seated below), Nicole Smith, Simone Needles; (from left to right, second row): Jenea Rewertz-Targui, Natalie Kennedy, Jessi Ryan; (from left to right, third row) Jon Skaalen, Emma Allen, Jeanine Pollard, Hunter Gullickson, Samantha Smingler, and Claire Ross. Absent: Erin Brueggemann.

 

 

Board Members

List of Board of Directors (The Organization is the member)

  • Arts Access for All, Sherry Shirek, Founder/consultant
  • Arts Midwest, Erin Brueggemann, Program (Operations) Director
  • Bell Museum, Emma Allen, Director of Operations (Co-Chair)
  • Great Lakes Aquarium, Samantha Smingler, Inclusion Coordinator
  • Guthrie Theater, Hunter Gullickson, Accessibility Manager (Education Committee)
  • Independent Consultant, Nicole Smith
  • Interact Center for Visual and Performing Arts, Simone Needles, Visual artist, Arts Instructor (Education Committee)
  • Minneapolis Institute of Arts, Jeanine Pollard, Research & Project Manager, Center for Empathy & the Visual Arts
  • Minnesota Historical Society, Maren Levad, Museum Access Specialist (Secretary, Education Committee)
  • Minnesota Orchestra, Jessi Ryan, Director of Education & Community Engagement (Evaluation Committee)
  • Minnesota State Arts Board, Natalie Kennedy, Program Officer & Accessibility Coordinator (Co-Chair)
  • Minnesota Zoo, Claire Ross, Guest Services Supervisor (Communication Committee)
  • Ordway Center for Performing Arts, Jenea Rewertz-Targui, Manager of Community Programs & Access Initiatives (Community Engagement Committee)
  • VSA Minnesota, Jon Skaalen, Access Programs Coordinator (Communication and Community Engagement Committee)

Thank you to previous steering committee members who helped MNAA get to where we are.

  • Independent Consultant, Jill Boon
  • Children’s Theatre Company, Kristina Miller & Deb Girdwood
  • Interact Center for Visual and Performing Arts, James Lekatz

Contact Info

MNAA, care of Minnesota State Arts Board
Attn: Natalie Kennedy, program officer & accessibility coordinator
400 Sibley Street, Park Square Ct Ste 200
St. Paul, Minnesota 55101
  • info@mnaccess.org
  • boardnominations@mnaccess.or
  • 651 215 1603 (temporary phone number, permanent number coming soon)