The Cultural Coalition of Wisconsin consists of state agencies and affiliated statewide organizations working for the hearts, minds and spirits of the people of Wisconsin.
Formed in 1993, the purpose of the Coalition is to acquire and maintain an understanding of each other: what our organizations have in common, how they are different; and perhaps most important, when our organizations may engage in common action.
The Coalition's eight members, while retaining their distinctive individual missions, work together to advance the state's culture, arts, humanities, and history.
The member agencies/organizations of the Cultural Coalition of Wisconsin are:
PBS Wisconsin
PBS Wisconsin enriches, educates and entertains diverse audiences of all ages through their work across media and in Wisconsin's communities. They share history, culture, news and educational resources that make Wisconsin unique. PBS Wisconsin's mission is to boldly enrich, educate and entertain diverse audiences of children and adults through the innovative use of television production and broadcasting, other communication technologies and community outreach. PBS Wisconsin provides access to local and national content, extending its reach and impact in the communities they serve.
Wisconsin Arts Board
The Wisconsin Arts Board is the state agency which nurtures creativity, cultivates expression, promotes the arts, supports the arts in education, stimulates community and economic development and serves as a resource for people of every culture and heritage. The Wisconsin Arts Board vision is inspired by a quote from the late Robert E. Gard, Professor Emeritus of Community Theatre, University of Wisconsin:
"If we are seeking in America, let it be for the reality of democracy in the arts. Let art begin at home and let it spread through the children and the parents, and through the schools and the institutions, and through government. And let us start by acceptance, not negation-acceptance that the arts are important everywhere, and that they can exist and flourish in small places as well as large, with money or without it, according to the will of the people. Let us put firmly and permanently aside the cliché that the arts are a frill. Let us accept the goodness of art where we are now, and expand its worth in the places where people live."
We embrace this vision: it guides our belief that the arts are basic to human life and essential to the human spirit.
Wisconsin Historical Society
The Wisconsin Historical Society is simultaneously a state agency and a private membership organization whose purpose is to maintain, promote and spread knowledge relating to the history of North America, with an emphasis on the state of Wisconsin and the trans-Allegheny West. Founded in 1846 and chartered in 1853, it is the oldest historical society in the United States to receive continuous public funding.
Wisconsin Humanities
Established in 1972 as an independent affiliate of the National Endowment for the Humanities, Wisconsin Humanities is a nonprofit, nonpartisan organization governed by a volunteer board of directors who come from across the state.
Wisconsin Library Association
The Wisconsin Library Association is a nonprofit, professional membership organization that has provided service to the library community and Wisconsin’s citizens since 1891. WLA represents librarians and library staff from school, public, academic and special libraries as well as students, trustees and library friends. Because of its broad membership base, WLA is concerned about the needs of all types of libraries in the state. WLA is a chapter of the American Library Association.
Wisconsin Public Radio
University of Wisconsin Professors William Bennett and Earle M. Terry founded WPR’s predecessor, 9XM. The station, which became WHA, began broadcasting information to the public in 1917 and launched an institution committed to sharing the educational resources of the university with the state’s residents.
Today, WPR’s news, music, conversation and entertainment programs inform, inspire and build communities throughout Wisconsin and around the world on two networks — WPR News and WPR Music — and 39 stations. Our commitment to the highest standards of news and cultural content reflects our belief that people and communities thrive with an open exchange of ideas and information. Find all the ways to listen here.
Wisconsin Veterans Museum
The Wisconsin Veterans Museum is rooted in the 1901 founding of the Grand Army of the Republic (GAR) Memorial Hall in the Wisconsin State Capitol. Today, the museum has risen to become Wisconsin’s premier military history museum and is a key educational activity of the Wisconsin Department of Veterans Affairs. The museum staff showcases the stories of Wisconsin veterans of all branches service from the U.S. Civil War to present, demonstrating the enduring relevance of every veteran experience.
This information was originally featured in the twenty-second edition of Creative Copy, a free service of the Wisconsin Arts Board.
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