Special Guest - Karen Kwan "Grant Writing For The Arts"

Karen Kwan will share her secret tips for arts organizations seeking grants. She will also show how storytelling can make a powerful difference.

Karen Kwan specializes in institutional giving and grants management, having served as an independent grant writing consultant and development staff at various non-profit arts organizations in Silicon Valley, including San Jose Repertory Theatre, Bay Area Glass Institute, Palo Alto Art Center, Dimension Performing Arts and California Philharmonic Youth Orchestra, and raised over $5.5 million in the past six years. Karen joined Community School of Music and Arts (CSMA) in May of 2010 as its Institutional Gifts Officer.

A dedicated advocate in the arts, Karen has served on the Arts Council Silicon Valley’s Collaborative Arts Marketing Partnership Steering Committee, the Advisory Board at Santa Clara University’s de Saisset Museum as Board Member and later as Board President, and the Advisory Board at Silicon Valley Open Studios. She was a grant review panelist for Arts Council Silicon Valley’s Organizational Enhancement Fund in 2006 and Community Arts Fund in 2010, and a panelist for the “Writing Successful Grant Proposals” workshop at the 2007 San Francisco Fundraising Summit. Karen is a founding steering committee member and serves as Professional Development Chair at genARTS—1stACT Silicon Valley Emerging Arts Leaders Initiative. In March of 2011, she served as an advisor for the Creative Capacity Fund’s NextGen Innovation Grant Program.