Coalition gets creative with commerce

Alliance recasts creativity in terms of economic, educational opportunities

About 40 local creative professionals, including key players from the business, political and nonprofit communities, gathered recently to kick off a fundraising and awareness-raising campaign for the Alliance for Creative Commerce. The alliance is working to change the focus of the local economy to develop educational and economic opportunities based on creativity, communications and commerce.

“We want to change the economic basis for this region to rely on what comes out people’s heads instead of what comes out of the ground,” said Patrick Gregston, executive director of the alliance, explaining that much of the group’s philosophy comes from a book called The Rise of the Creative Class, by Richard Florida.

“Our vision is to take this creative class, which we can say encompasses virtually all of the people that do academic research, all the people that write, all the people that do graphics … and how do we generate that as a synergy that will make more of this business,” Gregston said.

One of the things the alliance would like to do is brand Santa Barbara as an area known for creativity, art and ideas, similar to Santa Fe, N.M., where people travel specifically to enjoy the vibrant art scene and culture of the area.

Another goal of the group is to create a strong enough network within the community to allow the people who commute to Los Angeles and elsewhere for jobs in the entertainment industry to work here.

One of the group’s first tasks will be to conduct a survey to discover the scope and economic impact of the creative community and establish a database of members, said Mark Sylvester, owner of Mixed Grill.

The creative commerce sector, according to the alliance, would come not just from traditional arts and entertainment, but also from other creative enterprises such as fashion, graphics, music, software, telephony and academic research.

With a fund-raising goal of $250,000 for the year, the money would enable the alliance to hire Gregston, currently a volunteer, as a full-time employee as well as to hold a brainstorming summit with members of the creative community. Right now the alliance is primarily supported by partnerships with the city and county of Santa Barbara, UCSB, SBCC and a few local businesses.

Membership costs $50 per year and includes regular networking mixers. The next one is scheduled from 5 to 7 p.m. Wednesday at Restaurant Nu, 1129 State St. It is free to members and $10 for nonmembers. For more information, visit www.thealliance.us or email info@thealliance.us.

Originally published in South Coast Beacon

Hope principals set goals high

Students aren’t the only ones that have to make the grade to be successful. Last week principals from the three Hope District schools presented their goals and plans to the Board of Trustees.

One of the themes that resonated throughout all of the presentations was the desire, as Monte Vista principal Judy Stettler put it, “to better address the individual needs of each child by challenging all students while meeting the academic needs of the high, average and low achievers and also teaching and valuing the whole child through the cultural arts, technology and health and fitness.”

That includes addressing the special needs of English learners, students with disabilities, those who are economically challenged, as well as GATE (gifted and talented education) students.

“It’s really a mandate that comes out of our data. It has to do with making sure that we are able to fulfill the performance goals for our significant subgroups,” said Vieja Valley principal Barbara LaCorte, who is working with staff to create a new model for the school’s GATE program.

To develop and promote moral and character education is another priority for the schools. While both Vieja Valley and Monte Vista plan to address concerns about bullying on campus this year, Hope School principal Patrick Plamondon said, “I don’t feel we have a bullying problem. I attribute a lot of behavior on the playground to the Character Counts program.”

Plamondon also said Hope School has a school-wide commitment to “every child a reader,” a program he attributed in part to librarian Mary Jo Chrestenson. “We have more volumes at Hope Library than at La Colina Junior High School,” he said.

All three principals praised their teaching staffs and gave kudos to parents for being involved in the schools both in terms of working in the classrooms and helping to fund many of the enrichment programs.

These presentations are part of a comprehensive process to better inform the Trustees and the community about each school’s yearly progress and goals, said Board President Joseph Liebman. The next board meeting will be on Monday at 7 p.m. in the Hope District Board Room, 3970 La Colina Road.

Originally published in South Coast Beacon on December 2, 2004.