·		demonstrated ability to identify and conduct policy research and analysis of cultural issues;
·		capacity to implement field-building activities, within a single campus and among other institutions; and
·		potential to work with practitioners in cultural and policy communities outside academia.

The Center has faced the challenge of bringing together communities that have common interests but distinct territories: most advocacy groups and service organizations have thrived without direct contact with the academy, and most scholars face considerable institutional resistance to teaching or scholarship based in the local community. Yet a heterogeneous community is vital to developing the field of cultural policy, and the Center will continue to encourage partnerships between Network sites and public agencies, museums, arts consulting firms, service and professional organizations, and policy centers.

The Network met three times in 1999; see conference notes below for summaries. Members also communicate through an on-line discussion.

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Conference Notes
Over the course of 1999 the Center held three Network conferences to form a community of scholars from what was initially a group of academics with related interests. Each meeting is summarized below.

First Network Conference, February 26-27, 1999
On February 26-27, the Center held the inaugural Cultural Policy Network conference. Scholars in public policy, arts management, arts education, political science, sociology, economics, American Studies, and other fields in the humanities and social sciences met in Washington, DC to:

·		establish partnerships within the cultural sector;
·		find common ground across the many disciplines represented by Network sites; and
·		develop a way to talk about cultural policy.

The first session, “Constructing a Common Language for Cultural Policy,” gave participants the opportunity to learn about the resources and capabilities of each Network site and to explore shared areas of interest. Participants in the second session discussed needs and opportunities in research. In the third session they formed working groups based on common interests in curriculum development, research, cooperation across disciplines, and strategies for outreach to practitioners and the cultural policy community. Participants also heard presentations on policy communities and the origins of the Center.

Several attendees were excited to meet colleagues they had only known through their publications. The initiative proved its potential as a network when scholars from the same campus met for the first time at this conference.

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Conference Follow-Up
Acting upon recommendations made at this first gathering, the Center began an on-line discussion forum to facilitate Network communications. The Center also created and distributed a comprehensive directory of Network members, including profiles of their relevant scholarship and descriptions of the academic programs in which they teach.

In response to concerns expressed in February that the Network stay focused on applied research and community partnerships, the Center invited stakeholders across the cultural policy spectrum to the July conference. To spark dialogue across the academic-nonacademic divide, participants from arts organizations, research institutes, Congress, and journalism were invited to serve as panelists and attend the proceedings.

Second Network Conference, July 16-17, 1999
At the second conference on July 16-17, Network members were joined by scholars and leaders from universities, federal agencies, policy and research institutions, and arts and humanities organizations to explore partnerships and research directions in the field. Panels and discussions emphasized the importance of transmitting research to policy makers in clear and concise formats. Eighty-one people attended panel presentations, working group sessions, and lively discussions of the Network’s future. The conference sought to:

·		root research and data in the practical worlds of the arts and humanities;
·		examine ways that research can shape policy at all levels;
·		share information about programs and projects underway; and
·		identify possible future projects.

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Before the plenary sessions, Network members met in the working groups formed after the February conference to carry forward discussions begun on-line. These groups are: Developing the Network, Connecting Academia and Communities, and Curriculum and Syllabus.

Participants at the July conference heard from a range of experts on three panels: on ways that arts and culture create community (and how to measure this); on possible research partnerships with federal agencies and national organizations; and on current research in this expanding field. They also heard Congressional staffers and cultural journalists explain how research is used, and they discussed ways to transmit scholarship to decision makers and the public.

The conference’s focus on collaboration and community gave many of the participants new insights into the needs of both service and professional organizations and the media and government for concise, digestible information. Despite barriers present in most academic institutions, the meeting sparked considerable enthusiasm for collaborations with the non-profit, public, or commercial sectors.

Conference Follow-Up
The working groups identified specific projects to undertake in the coming months and report upon at the October Network meeting.

Participants at the July conference expressed concerns that the Network reflect the broadest possible ethnic and intellectual diversity. The Center is taking concrete steps to address this issue, such as identifying scholars at Network sites and selecting topics for funded research that will reflect and engage diverse cultures and communities.

Third Network Meeting, October 7-10, 1999
On October 7-10, 1999, members of the Cultural Policy Network participated in the 25th conference on Social Theory, Politics, and the Arts. This annual meeting draws together political scientists, sociologists, cultural economists and other researchers who investigate the cultural sector from a range of perspectives. The conference featured guest speakers Bill Ivey, Chair of the National Endowment for the Arts, and Stephen Urice, Officer of the Culture Program at the Pew Charitable Trust.

On Friday, three members of the Center staff- Executive Director Gigi Bradford, Deputy Director Glenn Wallach, and Program Manager Thea Petchler-presented at a panel session. They discussed the intellectual roots of cultural policy and the journey from idea to institution in the formation of the Center for Arts and Culture and its Cultural Policy Network.

Members of the Network convened on Saturday afternoon at a meeting led by Center staff and representatives from member institutions. The group discussed the future of the confederation and shared ideas about the Center’s programs. Participants agreed that the Center should serve as an enabling body and discussed specific field-building strategies: funding research projects, sponsoring conferences, and organizing a meeting on the teaching of cultural policy. To extend the scope of these endeavors, which are inevitably shaped by the Center’s location in Washington, DC and the number of network sites permitted by the project’s funding, participants suggested the Center sponsor regional workshops and fund research affiliates at non-network institutions. The Center announced its survey of Network sites, an audit of members’ current work and their departments’ support of scholarship and teaching in cultural policy. Results of this survey will inform the Center's developing research program.

At the close of the conference, organizers announced that the 2000 meeting of Social Theory, Politics and the Arts will be co-sponsored by the Center for Arts and Culture and Americans for the Arts.  Held October 12-15, 2000, in Washington DC, this was the first STP&A hosted outside an academic institution.