2004 National Accessibility Leadership Award

New Jersey State Council on the Arts

Recognizing the challenges facing its constituency, the New Jersey State Council on the Arts (NJSCA) formed the Cultural Access Network in 1992, in partnership with the New Jersey Theatre Alliance. The Cultural Access Network was created as an advisory committee to assist more than 600 cultural organizations in making their programs, operations, and facilities accessible to the more than 1.4 million individuals in the state with disabilities. Since its inception, the Cultural Access Network has been the primary resource for New Jersey's arts community as they make structural, attitudinal and programmatic changes in order to comply with the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) and ensure access for all. To emphasize the importance of this work, the council, beginning in 1996, required a long-range ADA plan from each applicant organization for council funding. In addition, they modified their grant evaluation criteria to emphasize that all applicants would be measured on their attention to increasing accessibility.

Instantly, accessibility became a priority for arts organizations across New Jersey and the Cultural Access Network became their critical support system. Over the next two years, workshops, mentoring, technical services, conferences, and a statewide newsletter were developed to provide practical advice on how to interpret the ADA, increase programmatic and physical access through a variety of innovative and inexpensive solutions, and develop short- and long-term goals for their ADA plan, all to prepare applicants for this new requirement.

As a result of the Cultural Access Network, all organizational grantees of the council now have a plan for accessibility with a person designated to coordinate ADA compliance, a grievance procedure, and short- and long-term goals to establish compliance in the areas of physical access, policy, employment, marketing, effective communication, and programs and services.

All state arts agencies and regional arts organizations are eligible for the National Accessibility Leadership Award, which recognizes exceptional and effective programs or initiatives that make the arts accessible and inclusive to individuals with disabilities and/or older adults. Sponsored by the National Endowment for the Arts, The Coca-Cola Company and the National Assembly of State Arts Agencies, the grant award of $30,000 must be used to advance the recipient's accessibility work.

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