Join us on August 14, 2024 from 12 - 1PM for the CA for the Arts Wonky Wednesday Webinar, where we will dive into the implementation of Proposition 28 in school districts across California. This engaging discussion will feature insights from Abe Flores, Deputy Director of Policy & Programs at Create CA, Lindsey Kunisaki, Laura Zucker Fellow for Policy & Research at Arts for LA, Samantha Theisen from San Gabriel Unified School District, and Tracy Hudak, Director of Field Engagement at CA for the Arts. Don't miss this opportunity to learn about the latest developments in arts education policy and how Prop 28 is shaping the future of arts in our schools.

Meet our Speakers

Tracy is an artist, advocate and consultant who has worked at the intersections of art and economic and community development for over twenty years. She is a painter and theatre artist who specializes in collaborative devised works. Her artistic practices have informed the numerous creative placemaking and civic imagining platforms she has produced. Some of her favorite projects include developing the Creative Community Thomas Fire Recovery Programs, producing and facilitating the Westside Community Innovation Exchange, serving as Arts Impact Director for Downtown Oxnard and directing WeSource, a youth-led devised theatre project. As a consultant, she has contributed to the success of creative businesses and cultural nonprofits through the design and management of programming, marketing, fundraising and organizational development systems. As a creative economy advocate, she has organized campaigns and forums, developed policy language for local land use and economic development plans, produced cross-sector collaborations, published reports and articles and has served as a keynote speaker in various venues. Tracy has a Masters in Public and Policy and Administration from California Lutheran University and a BFA in Performance Art from the School of the Art Institute of Chicago. She was called from Chicago to Los Angeles to work as an intern at Highways Performance Space and never left. After 13 years in LA, she and her husband John moved to Ventura County in 2006 to raise their daughter Ruby in the wild. They currently call Santa Paula home.

Abe Flores is an advocate, administrator, and organizer who is “paying it forward” by advancing the arts in schools and communities. He grew up in Boyle Heights, with the arts as the spark that lit his passion for education and community. Seeing first-hand the inequitable access to a well-rounded education in his community and others like it – he dedicated his career to ensuring all youth benefit from the arts as he did. He has organized local, state, and national advocacy efforts for the arts. He was the Program Director for a youth development program focused on creativity and wellness in Boyle Heights, where he grew up. In 2013, he won the American Express Emerging Leader Award for organizing communities throughout LA County to advocate for the arts in their schools. In his current role as Create CA’s Deputy Director of Policy & Programs, he oversees the organization’s programs, public will campaign, collective impact efforts, and policy work - all to ensure that a quality arts education is part of every student’s life. He is married to his high school sweetheart, raising two boys, has visited over 30 national parks, and plays in a punk band.

Lindsey Tomiko Kunisaki (she/her/hers) is a researcher, evaluator, and curriculum designer exploring the intersection ofcultural sustainability, educational equity, and creativity development.

Lindsey is Arts for LA’s 2024 Laura Zucker Fellow for Policy & Research. She also works as Research & Evaluation Specialist with the UCLA Visual and Performing Arts Education (VAPAE) program and an independent evaluator and curriculum designer. Currently a Ph.D. candidate in the School of Educational Studies at Claremont Graduate University, Lindsey previously earned a Master's degree (Ed.M.) in arts education at Harvard University and a Bachelor’s degree (B.A.) at UCLA.

Since 2010, Lindsey has been working in arts education with local and international organizations (including UNESCO, Herbie Hancock Institute of Jazz, Sustainable Little Tokyo, and local governments, among others). For her work she has also been awarded Gates Millennium Scholarship, Gilman International Scholarship, Gluck Fellowship, and others.

Samantha Theisen has been in public education for over 30 years, and has served as an administrator in the San Gabriel Unified School District since 2015, currently overseeing Arts, CTE, and Dual Enrollment. She designed and implemented the award winning Music Immersion Experience Program at Roosevelt Elementary, which provides music education every day to every student and was recently featured on PBS. Previous to her time in San Gabriel, Samantha was a music teacher at Moorpark High, Mesa Verde Middle, and La Canada Elementary Schools, and was the Director of Education for the New West Symphony. Samantha holds degrees or certificates from Cal State Northridge, Southern Oregon University, and the UCLA Principal Leadership Institute, and holds a Masters degree in Conducting. She is a professional saxophonist and jazz musician who performed and recorded extensively in a past life, and periodically in this one.  She is a mother of three and wife of a high school music teacher.

Register for our August Session Here.

Wonky Wednesday is a program designed specifically for folks who want to dig deeper to understand cultural policy, state budget, and legislative processes. Join us on the second Wednesday of every month at noon for a lunchtime, casual meeting with our CEO, Julie Baker, and special guests throughout the summer, including staff, board members, legislators, lobbyists, and issue area experts. Got a question on how to advocate effectively locally or a problem you think legislation should solve, or just want to ask what’s up with funding for the arts in California, this is your chance to ask and engage monthly in arts advocacy. Recordings will also be made available.