NEWS RELEASE
For Immediate Release
Sept. 25, 2008

FOR MORE INFORMATION, CONTACT:
Ann Dee Lee
Public Information Director
Oklahoma Arts Council
(405) 521-2931
anndee@arts.ok.gov

KEN BUSBY TO RECEIVE
GOVERNOR’S ARTS AWARD

Oklahoma City, OK -- Ken Busby, Tulsa, will be honored by Governor Brad Henry at the 33rd Annual Governor’s Arts Awards. Busby will receive a Community Service Award which recognizes individuals for significant contributions to the arts in specific Oklahoma communities in the areas of leadership and volunteerism.

Sponsored by the Oklahoma Arts Council, 15 individuals and three organizations will be honored for their contributions to the arts in their communities or throughout the state. The ceremony is scheduled for 4:00 p.m., Thursday, October 23rd in the 4th Floor Rotunda of the State Capitol and is open to the public. Presiding at the ceremony will be Council Chair Jim Tolbert and Oklahoma Arts Council Executive Director Suzanne Tate. A reception on the first floor of the Capitol will follow the 4 p.m. ceremony.

Busby’s creativity and executive talent have impacted the arts far beyond his defined duties. As the Executive Director and Chief Executive Officer of the Arts & Humanities Council of Tulsa the Council’s programs reach more than 120,000 youths and thousands of adults each year. The Council produces the Oklahoma Chautauqua, the largest public humanities program in the state, and maintains the historic Harwelden Mansion. The Council is also a service organization for more than 60 Tulsa cultural organizations.

He has been described as the rare volunteer who works like a professional. Busby also serves as chair of Mayfest and is on the executive committee for Leadership Oklahoma and the Tulsa Symphony Orchestra. He is immediate past chairman of the board of Tulsa Global Alliance and immediate past president of the Oklahoma Museums Association. He currently serves on the boards of the Oklahoma Foundation for Excellence and Workforce Tulsa as well as on the Tulsa Performing Arts Center Trust Program Committee and Tulsa Metro Chamber’s Convention and Visitors Bureau Executive Committee. He is a member of Americans for the Arts, the Association of Fundraising Professionals, and the American Association of Museums.

 
Busby believes that a vibrant downtown is key to rejuvenation and economic development for a community and has been actively involved in the revitalization of the Brady Arts District. One of Tulsa's oldest areas, the Brady District is characterized by two-story brick warehouses and home to two historic arts venues, the Brady Theater and Cain's Ballroom. Busby’s efforts are leading the way for the creation of a Visual Arts Center that will provide classroom, gallery, and studio space to enhance the Council’s current arts education programming. The studio space will also assist both emerging and professional artists working in a variety of visual media, and the galleries will exhibit the artwork of studio, regional, national, and international artists. The space will also include equipment, classrooms, and community meeting space for visual arts instruction including lectures, workshops, and discussion groups.

He is an adjunct professor at the University of Tulsa and serves as a consultant in the areas of fundraising, grant writing, strategic planning, and board development for nonprofits across the state.  In 2004, Busby was appointed by the Mayor to the Arts Commission of the City of Tulsa, where he is now Chairman.  In 2007, Busby was named One of Six People to Watch by the Tulsa World.  And in 2008, Busby received the Global Vision Award from Tulsa Global Alliance.

Previously, he was the Director of Development for Tulsa Zoo Friends.  Prior to that, Busby was with Gilcrease Museum for eight years, serving as Membership Director and Director of Communication. A native of Tulsa, Busby holds a dual Bachelor of Arts degree in communication and French from the University of Tulsa.  He has a Master of Arts degree in journalism from Indiana University at Bloomington. A member of Phi Beta Kappa, Busby is also a graduate of Leadership Oklahoma Class XVII.

A complete list of Governor’s Arts Awards recipients and their photos are available at www.arts.ok.gov.

For more information, contact Ann Dee Lee, Public Relations Director, Oklahoma Arts Council, (405) 521-2931 or anndee@arts.ok.gov.

ABOUT THE OKLAHOMA ARTS COUNCIL

The Oklahoma Arts Council is a state agency whose mission is to improve lives through the arts by promoting and sustaining the development of a thriving arts environment, which is essential to quality of life, education and economic vitality for all Oklahomans.

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