It has been approximately a year and five months since I began working as the Communications Coordinator at the Rozsa Foundation and with each passing day I am astounded by the history, the legacy and the results of the transformational work accomplished for the foundation in support of the arts sector in Alberta.
It is impossible to begin communicating about the Foundation without touching on the legacies of Drs. Lola and Ted Rozsa who arrived in Calgary in 1949. The history of the Rozsa family and the beginnings of the Foundation are covered extensively in Dr Lola Rozsa’s memoir My Name is Lola.
As Catherine Ford of the Calgary Herald states, “I am Lola is Calgary’s story.” It is at times a humorous story of revelation as told by Lola but most importantly a tale of revolution through the work done by pioneers of the province to help shape and guide art and culture in Calgary as well as surrounding areas. I am Lola presents a clear history on the development of the arts sector in Calgary and a book I strongly urge all patrons of the arts and arts administrators in Alberta to spend some time with as the last days of Summer roll out.
Today, the Foundation continues to build on the Rozsa legacy with Mary Rozsa de Coquet as our Board Chair and continues to reward organizations by highlighting and giving recognition to the administration and board chairs through the Rozsa Awards. The Foundation has also continues to solidify it’s status as a transformational leader of the arts through our grants and professional development courses focused on Arts Leadership.
As the Foundation continues to evolve, we have fully adopted the new way of communicating by adapting to new technology and have fully incorporated social media into our communication tactics.
Through Instagram, we are able to visually present life behind the scenes in a fun and creative way, this also allows us to highlight events and organizations we interact with on a daily basis.
Twitter, allows us to keep an eye on the conversations that are of importance to the Arts sector while giving us the chance to share about or programs and important information. Twitter also allows us to add our voice to community to show we are in support of the arts sector and we here to also listen with intent to see how we can be further effective in the sector.
Facebook and LinkedIn allow us to maintain professional boundaries with our Arts Leadership Alumni and corresponding audience within the sector.
This year we have also focused on highlighting on our Arts Leadership programs as well as the arts leadership alumni through partnership with Roadwest Pictures and have rolled out promotional videos that can be viewed through our YouTube channel. At this time, we have coverage of our Rozsa Arts Fundamental Training (RAFT) program as well as the Rozsa Arts Management program (RAMP) which features some of Alberta’s well-respected arts administrators and leaders.
We also released our Annual Report live on our website earlier this year which we worked in partnership with GOOD Company to produce. The Annual Report features a round up of information on our growth and development from the previous year.
Through our bi-weekly newsletter The Rozsa Foundation Review, members of the team, our Arts Leadership Alumni as well as myself shed light on the learnings of the foundation gained from interacting with the arts sector in Alberta and beyond as well as lessons learned from our Arts Leadership programs. Through the Rozsa Foundation Review we also provide a classifieds section that provides job opportunities professional development opportunities and board leadership opportunities.
A boost in online presence has occured for the Foundation over the last year and we are seeing good results with an increase in social media numbers as well as organic reach. We are hitting new targets with program applications and garnering the attention of organizations and arts administrators not just in Alberta but Canada as a whole and across the world.
In the new year, it is my goal to continue telling the stories of the foundation with Rozsa pride.
Do you have legacy stories of Drs. Lola and Ted Rozsa to share with us? Do you have an interaction with the Rozsa Foundation that has been transformational for you and your organization? Has our Board Chair Mary Rozsa de Coquet influenced you as an arts administrator or board chair? I’d love to hear these stories and of course share with our audience, alumni and partners.
Do you have questions about the Foundation? Need to know more about how to nominate or be nominated for the Rozsa Awards? Want to hear more about our programs? I would be more than happy to have you down at the Foundation conveniently located at cSPACE King Edward for a coffee at Barrow so we can discuss!
I am also always available via e-mail at kim@rozsafoundation.org. I look forward to telling more stories of the Foundation and shedding more light on the history as well as the current work that is being done to ensure the Arts in Alberta is sustainable and healthy.
