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: Bell Museum, Children’s Theatre Company, Guthrie Theater, Interact Center for Visual and Performing Arts, Minnesota Orchestra, Minnesota State Arts Board, Ordway Center for the Performing Arts, and Minnesota Zoo.

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. Check out the list of upcoming workshops >

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 MN 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 Current Board of Directors

  • Arts Midwest, Carly Newhouse, Program & Accessibility Manager
  • Bell Museum, Emma Allen, Director of Operations (Co-Chair) (Email Task Force); and Natalie Kennedy, Director of Statewide Engagement (Co-Chair) (Access Calendar Task Force)
  • Duluth Playhouse, Samantha Smingler, Inclusion Coordinator (Programming Committee)
  • Guthrie Theater, Hunter Gullickson, Accessibility Manager (Programming Committee)
  • Independent Consultant, Jon Skaalen, (Access Calendar Task Force, Email Task Force, Website Committee)
  • Independent Consultant, Nicole Smith
  • Interact Center for Visual and Performing Arts, Simone Needles, Visual artist, Arts Instructor (Communication Task Force)
  • Metropolitan Regional Arts Council, Scott Artley, Accessibility Program Director
  • Minnesota State Arts Board, Annick Dall-Desbois, Outreach and accessibility coordinator; Jenea Rewertz-Targui, Advisory Review Panel Coordinator (Access Calendar Task Force, Website Committee)
  • Minnesota Zoo, Claire Ross, Guest Services Supervisor (Communication Committee)

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

  • Arts Access for All, Sherry Shirek, Founder/consultant (Access Calendar Task Force, Website Committee)
  • Arts Midwest, Erin Brueggemann, Program (Operations) Director (Communication Task Force)
  • Children’s Theatre Company, Kristina Miller & Deb Girdwood
  • Great Lakes Aquarium
  • Independent Consultant, Jill Boon
  • Interact Center for Visual and Performing Arts, James Lekatz
  • Minneapolis Institute of Arts, Jeanine Pollard, Research & Project Manager, Center for Empathy & the Visual Arts (Programming Committee)
  • Minnesota Historical Society, Maren Levad, Museum Access Specialist (Secretary, Communication Task Force)
  • Minnesota Orchestra, Jessi Ryan, Director of Education & Community Engagement (Evaluation Committee)
  • Ordway Center for Performing Arts