From the National Endowment for the Arts: Welcome to the Careers in the Arts Toolkit— an online resource promoting equity, access, and inclusion for people with disabilities seeking careers in the arts.
Every day, people with disabilities add significant value and talent across the spectrum of arts careers. They are performers, visual artists, teaching artists, cultural workers, administrators, and more. Yet, historically, people with disabilities have not had access to the same career opportunities as people without disabilities. Reasons for this range from inaccessible facilities to disability benefit earning limitations to misconceptions about the skills and talents of people with disabilities. Through a variety of initiatives, the National Endowment for the Arts has worked to bridge this inequity, for the benefit of not only people with disabilities, but also America’s arts institutions and their patrons.
In this spirit, the Careers in the Arts Toolkit empowers individuals with disabilities to explore arts careers and access resources to support their success. It also educates arts employers, educators, and grantmakers about the critical role they play in fostering disability inclusion and the resources available to help them successfully do so. Learn more about the toolkit.
What You’ll Find in This Toolkit:
Resources for Artists, Cultural Workers, and Youth with Disabilities. This section features tips on pursuing careers in the arts, best practices for obtaining the supports people with disabilities need to succeed on the job, and background on types of arts careers.
Resources for Arts Employers. This section explains the benefits of disability inclusion in the arts, ways for arts leaders to ensure their institution is disability inclusive, and how to take proactive steps to hire, present, cast, and advance people with disabilities in arts workplaces. Â
Resources for Arts Educators. This section explores how arts educators can prepare students with disabilities for careers in the arts, and best practices for fostering disability inclusion within their educational institutions.
Resources for Arts Grantmakers. This section will help grantmakers understand their role in practicing equitable philanthropy that is inclusive of people with disabilities.