Deans and executive fine arts administrators with a shared commitment to leadership and advocacy excellence in arts higher education

ICfAD: for the creative leader in you

MEMBER BENEFITS

ICfAD’s Leadership Development Committee presents a series of discussions: Perspectives in Leadership
These programs are free for ICfAD members. Please register here for one, two or all three programs. Not a member yet and would like to be? Please click here to join as an individual dean. Please click here to join as a group of colleagues from a single arts academic unit. Please contact [email protected] with any questions or log in challenges

SelfLess Leadership
Wednesday, March 19, 2025 at Noon Eastern / 11 Central / 10 Mountain / 9 Pacific
In this talk,  Len Jessup describes proactive, selfless leadership and the impact it plays in driving organizational change. Through a set of compelling personal examples, he makes the case that "self less" leadership is a better way to lead people through change, and that it is also the right thing to do for those whom we lead and for one’s legacy as a leader. Based on his best selling book on selfless leadership with Forbes, Len guides the audience through a series of insightful questions and thought provoking examples. Participants are sure to rethink their approach to leadership and impact.

Communications Professionals Affinity Group Online Program
Adapting Communications Strategies for Changing Cultural Environments
Thursday, March 20, 2025 at 1 – 2 Eastern / Noon – 1 Central / 11am – Noon Mountain / 10- 11am Pacific
Inclusive and respectful language is an ever-evolving landscape, and laws around the country prohibiting the use of certain key terms like “diversity,” “equity,” and “inclusion” make it even more challenging to a strike a welcoming and understanding tone. Join us for a session with University of Utah’s Pamela Bishop, an expert on EDI communications, about shifting language for compliance while maintaining core values. As always, members will have ample opportunity to share their experiences and best practices, too. Registration coming soon. Click here to become a member of this affinity group.

Gallery & Museum Directors and Curators Affinity Group Online Programs
Thursdays, March 20 and April 17, 2025 at 4 – 5 Eastern / 3 – 4 Central / 2 – 3 Mountain / 1 – 2 Pacific
How do we Challenge the Perception that Campus Galleries and Museums are just for students?
with Lissa Cramer, Director of Boston University Art Galleries
Registration coming soon. Click here to become a member of this affinity group.

Advancement Officers Affinity Group Online Programs
Tuesdays, March 25 and April 29, 2025 at 4 – 5 Eastern / 3 – 4 Central / 2 – 3 Mountain / 1 – 2 Pacific
March: Nancy Uscher, Dean, College of Fine Arts, UNLV and Martin Camacho, Dean, Talkington College of Visual & Performing Arts, Texas Tech University will share information about their institutions’ highly regarded cultural immersion offerings designed to build donor support of arts programs on their campuses. We will learn what goes into the thought, planning and preparation of these travel opportunities and hear about the relationships built because of the programs. Register for the program here.
April: An Open Discussion between Advancement Officers. Please join us to discuss what’s on your mind.
Registration coming soon. Click here to become a member of this affinity group.

A/R/Tography as Leadership: Embodying Artful Inquiry in Administrative Practice
Thursday, April 3, 2025 at 3 Eastern / 2 Central / 1 Mountain / Noon Pacific
In this innovative one-hour workshop, arts administrators and deans will explore how A/R/Tography—a methodology interweaving Artist, Researcher, and Teacher roles—can transform leadership practice in higher education arts contexts. Building on selfless leadership and ego-free administration themes, participants will discover how this arts-based approach offers fresh perspectives on decision-making, stakeholder engagement, and institutional vision. Through guided discussion and reflection, participants will examine how the core principles of A/R/Tography align with effective arts leadership practices, explore practical applications of artistic knowing in administrative contexts, consider how embracing a multiplicity of roles can enhance decision-making and community engagement, and develop strategies for implementing arts-based inquiry in day-to-day leadership scenarios. This workshop is particularly valuable for arts administrators seeking to bridge their artistic foundations with their leadership responsibilities. Participants will leave with concrete strategies for incorporating A/R/Tography's reflexive practices into their leadership approach, fostering more dynamic and responsive institutional environments. Presentation by Jennifer deCoste, author of this article in Higher Education Digest.

ICfAD’s Communications Professionals presents . . .Maximizing the Impact of Your College’s Website
Thursday, April 17, 2025 at 1 – 2 Eastern / Noon – 1 Central / 11am – Noon Mountain / 10- 11am Pacific
Your college’s website is often a prospective student or faculty member’s first impression of your institution. It’s where students go to learn about your faculty, where the media goes to get basic facts about your college, and where you showcase your most important news. Learn how to balance aesthetic and navigability when you have complex and varied content and audiences with Jamie Rager, Communications Manager for Florida State University’s College of Fine Arts and Ian Evenstar, CEO of UNINCORPORATED, a communications firm experienced in designing websites and more for higher ed clients. Join us for this inside look at FSU College of Fine Arts’ recent rebrand and a discussion on what makes a strong website, including security and accessibility considerations. As always, members will have ample opportunity to share their experiences and best practices, too.
This program is free for members of ICfAD’s Communications Professionals affinity group and $80 / person for all others. Register for the program here. Join this affinity group here.

International Symposium
the last week of May 2025 in Doha, Qatar
optional add-on cultural immersion in the United Arab Emirates
Itinerary and registration information appears above, on this webpage.

Rethinking the Fundraising Cycle, From Identification to Solicitation
an in-person or online day-long workshop for deans and their advancement officers
Tuesday, October 14, 2025 in Santa Fe, New Mexico, 10:00am – 4:00pm
In light of rapidly changing philanthropic realities, Jim Langley, President of Langley Innovations, will revisit the traditional fundraising cycle, showing what is and is not working as well as it once did and what new approaches need to be adopted to achieve both significant and sustainable fundraising results in the years ahead. In this day-long workshop, each phase of the traditional cycle will be reviewed, including prospect identification, engagement, cultivation, pre-solicitation, solicitation and stewardship, with the participants determining how much time is spent on each phase.
Register for the program here or using this fillable PDF.

61st Annual Conference
Tuesday, October 14 - Thursday, October 16, 2025
Santa Fe, New Mexico
Save the date

ICFAD’s Commitment to Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, Belonging

The International Council for Arts Deans (ICFAD), a multinational alliance of deans, directors and chairs, and other arts executives, provides leadership opportunities for members and advocacy for the arts in higher education. This has been ICFAD’s primary mission since its founding in 1964, with goals of mentoring new administrators and attracting additional international members.

The ICFAD Board of Directors, in applying this mission, believe that arts and creative industries, through practice, exhibition, performance, and scholarship, have a responsibility to actively create a diverse and inclusive artistic and educational community that reflects the people we serve, now and in the future­—a shared culture of equity and belonging where everyone feels empowered to realize and live their full, authentic selves as a valued and contributing member. 

The ICFAD Board of Directors believe that the arts in our educational institutions should express diverse viewpoints that work towards building diversity, equity, inclusion, and belonging among the students, faculty, staff, and leadership at our universities and in our schools and colleges. We accept as our top priority the imperative of confronting racism, homophobia, sexism, ageism, classism, and all other forms of social oppression and bigotry in our country and the world. As the Board, we dignify and respect the individual; we advance the practice of inclusiveness and acceptance of differing cultures, philosophies, identities, religions, and ways of life; and, we actively encourage our members to address these critical issues in this organization, their home institutions, and communities.

Furthermore, we acknowledge the historical, cultural, and social struggles to embrace diversity in this nation and the world, higher education, the arts, and this organization. We recognize that arts executives are in a unique position to identify and implement positive change in education and our communities through the arts. ICFAD therefore pledges to take actions to facilitate socially conscious change for this organization; to celebrate the full range of diverse experiences and accomplishments that its members bring to the world for arts and creative industries; to continue addressing all forms of social oppression and bigotry through thoughtful programming and shared resources; and to recognize our privileged and complicated past while growing a more diverse and inclusive organization that fully represents our society today, with a fervent commitment to build a more equitable and just tomorrow.