AGENDA

Breakout Sessions

Each of the 10 breakout sessions will be held twice during the convention on Saturday afternoon and Sunday morning. Attendees, therefore, will have the opportunity to participate in the discussion of two different characteristics of livable communities.

The instructional design of each breakout session is being shaped initially by a curator, who is a "lead expert" on the issue, the session facilitator, an overall instructional design advisor and staff. Each characteristic will also include approximately four content experts and a recorder. All breakout sessions will be highly interactive, and the design will be authentic to the content. For example, the format for "elected officials understand the importance of supporting the arts and do so," might be a town hall meeting.

Regardless of the design of each breakout session, the outcome goals are to provide attendees with:

• a sense of what successful implementation looks like;
• barriers to that successful implementation;
• indicators of potential problems along the way; and
• a list of actions or strategies that they can use as soon as they go home.

Attendees have the opportunity through this Web site to begin considering the issues surrounding each characteristic. Review key questions in "10 Characteristics/Breakout Sessions" and start a discussion with colleagues before arriving in New York. Information shared in advance will also be folded into the breakout sessions.

Convention Report

The lists and strategies that attendees discuss will provide the foundation for a convention report, which will be created by a group of "listeners." The listeners are responsible for working with the breakout session facilitators and recorders to develop a convention report that includes collective strategies for advancing the impact of the arts on livable communities. Listeners will draw on their own expertise; observations and experiences during the convention; and the information from the sessions provided by the facilitators and recorders. They will also utilize the information submitted by individual attendees at the computer kiosks or in writing directly to the listeners. At the end of the convention, attendees will have an opportunity to reflect and comment on the strategies-not to prioritize or agree on them-in a plenary session.