Mid-America Arts Alliance appoints Cunningham to 3-year board term
The board of directors of the Mid-America Arts Alliance last week voted unanimously to appoint Jimmy Cunningham Jr. to a three-year board term.
The Mid-America Arts Alliance (MAAA), a nonprofit regional arts organization representing Arkansas, Kansas, Missouri, Nebraska, Oklahoma and Texas, focuses on strengthening communities and improving lives through extraordinary cultural experiences. MAAA “stretches the boundaries of the heartland” to include national and international programs and arts activities, stated a press release.
“I am so very proud and honored to be appointed to such a prestigious organization,” said Cunningham. “The ability to tap into a network of national foundations, artists and scholars will help tremendously in developing funding streams and other opportunities for the Arkansas Delta. This will particularly impact collaborative arts/placemaking projects on the Delta Rhythm and Bayous Highway, including portions of U.S. Highway 65 South and U.S. Highway 82 East between Pine Bluff, Arkansas and Greenville, Mississippi.”
Cunningham, director of tourism development for the Pine Bluff Advertising and Promotion Commission, and executive director of the Delta Rhythm & Bayous Alliance (DRBA), has been instrumental in the collaborative efforts with the Pine Bluff/Jefferson County National Heritage Trails Task Force in the plans for the development of the Delta Rhythm & Bayous Cultural District in downtown Pine Bluff.
Work is officially underway to construct the Delta Blues & Fitness Park between Second and Third Avenues on State Street. This multipurpose park will be a memorial site honoring more blues greats than any other outdoor venue in the U.S. Once complete, the epicenter of the Cultural District is estimated to have an economic impact of $18.2 million annually.
A native of Pine Bluff, Cunningham holds a bachelor of arts degree in English from the University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff and a master of arts degree in public administration from Grambling State University. He has authored two books on African American and Delta history/culture and has published numerous articles with an emphasis on the blues.
The Mid-America Arts Alliance, the nation’s first regional arts organization in the country, was founded in 1972 and is part of a national consortium with support from the National Endowment for the Arts.