Building Creative
Communities
Practical Strategies for Rural Arts
* Lunch is provided for all attendees
Join us for a day of connection and action
Community leaders, artists, and culture workers across VCA Region 8 are invited to join Ash Hanson and Vivian M. Cook from the Department of Public Transformation and Geoffrey Kershner with Small Town Big Arts to explore concrete strategies for starting and sustaining community-engaged arts initiatives in rural communities and small towns.
Together, we'll draw on stories, examples, and resources from DoPT's signature programs—Engage Rural, Activate Rural, and The YES! House—three initiatives that center art and artists as catalysts for community connection and civic life.
This workshop is designed for those who are ready to roll up their sleeves and build something real. You won't just hear ideas—you'll leave with an action plan.
Serving Halifax, Mecklenburg, and Charlotte Counties.
In this workshop, you will:
Receive resources and guidance for developing — and funding — arts-based strategies that build trust, strengthen civic engagement, and expand access to locally-led decision-making.
Hear real examples of how creative entrepreneurs, artists, organizations, and small businesses are activating third places and building projects that spark possibility.
Gain tools for affirming arts as essential infrastructure, and models for arts-led development, collaborative leadership, and intergenerational connection.
Discuss local assets, challenges, and opportunities for arts-based civic engagement — and connect with peers doing this work across the region.
Three DoPT Initiatives Shaping Rural Arts
Engage Rural
A program centering creative community engagement strategies that bring rural residents into equitable participation in civic planning and community development processes.
Activate Rural
An initiative that equips communities with hands-on tools and frameworks for activating arts as a driver of local economic vitality and cross-sector collaboration.
The YES! House
A model for building community-owned creative spaces that serve as hubs for intergenerational connection, local storytelling, and arts-led civic life.
Who You'll Learn From
Ash has 20 years of experience working with rural communities to activate stories, connect neighbors, and exercise collective imagination. She is Creative Executive Officer of the Department of Public Transformation, a rural-based, arts-led nonprofit working at the intersection of creativity and civic life. Founder of PlaceBase Productions, a theater company creating original site-specific musicals celebrating small-town life, she was an Artist-in-Residence with both the City of Minneapolis and the Southwest Minnesota Housing Partnership. Named both an Obama Foundation and Bush Foundation Fellow, Ash holds an MA in Applied Theater with a focus on Rural Community Development from the University of Manchester (UK).
Vivian is a community-engaged artist and Engage and Amplify Rural Program Coordinator with the Department of Public Transformation. A producer and curator of interdisciplinary and cross-sector arts initiatives, her practice sits at the intersection of storytelling, asset-based community development, and social and environmental sustainability. She holds a BA in Performing Arts and MS degrees in Community Development and Sustainable Agriculture. Over the past decade, Vivian has worked across theatre direction, arts education, community development, climate justice, and regenerative agriculture. She also serves as Community Engagement Director and Artistic Producer with The EcoTheatre Lab and is a member of the national Pleiades Network.
Geoffrey is the inaugural director of the low-residency MFA in Arts Leadership program at Randolph College, and the lead for Small Town Big Arts. He served as CEO of the Academy Center of the Arts for over a decade and was a founding member and Artistic Director of the Endstation Theatre Company — recipients of Virginians for the Arts' Rising Star Award. Under his leadership at the Academy, the organization increased need-based scholarships by 124%, grew its operating budget by over 400% between 2015 and 2024, and completed a multi-million dollar capital campaign for a historic theater restoration. A National Arts Strategies 2014–2015 Chief Executive Fellow, Geoffrey currently serves as Chair of Virginians for the Arts and is a board member of the Mid-Atlantic Arts Foundation.
Ready to build something
remarkable?
Space is limited. RSVP today to secure your place at the table — lunch is on us.
RSVP Now