In our December 2021 Community Spotlight, NAS caught up with Suzan Jenkins, CEO of the Arts and Humanities Council of Montgomery County, Maryland, advocate, leadership coach, and strategic consultant. Suzan is a critical voice in anti-racist work and operationalizing racial equity in the arts and culture sector, calling on her professional experience in the performing and visual arts, retail, banking, the recording industry, the federal government and higher education. Take a peek below at what Suzan is currently focused on and where she’s found some bumps in the road:
What are you most proud of in your work life right now?
I am most proud that my organization, including my staff and board, are able to authentically exercise and practice what we preach. With racial equity at the top of our values, our board and staff mirror the communities we serve, and we have provided technical assistance, professional development and historic financial support to those communities with grace and conviction during the pandemic, all while working completely from home. With changes in our evaluative criteria for grant making a few years ago, we now see changes in the community that reflect intentional moves toward equity both administratively and programmatically. I’m proud to see our vision become reality.
We also recently incorporated social justice project considerations into our public art program, which supports the work that I do as a member of the Remembrance and Reconciliation Commission for the County. All of this work ties into and dovetails seamlessly with the racial equity principles that I worked with my colleagues in the Chief Executive Program at National Art Strategies to develop, and I’m very proud of the tapestry that we’ve woven, here in Montgomery County, MD and through NAS’ network, together.
What are you most struggling with?
I have always struggled with time management in that I always want to do more. But sometimes my capacity allows me only to do what I can do. And currently I am providing much more hands on support to my elderly parents than ever before. Learning how to balance my expanded role as a caregiver coupled with my own desire to meet certain goals has been both challenging and rewarding. As a lifelong learner I am taking this opportunity to learn what to hold onto, and what to let go.
Is there anything this community can do to support you?
This community has been an incredible support for me both from the arts management practitioners, confidants, and coaches perspective. I look to this community for support and solace as I strengthen my practices.
Is there anything you want to offer to this community?
I love to share. And I love to share with this community. If there is any thing I ever can do to support the work that we do in this community, I’m only an email or phone call away.