I was really heartened to read your piece in Post and equally dismayed by the comments, (though I believe there can be a tendency to go to the extreme in the anonymity of blog comments).

I am particularly interested the net impact of this economic crisis on future non-profit arts leaders.

Over the past year, I've been involved in many gatherings discussing the "crisis in future arts leadership." Whether or not one believes that a crisis was imminent (as predicted by some foundation reports), I recognize that many of my Gen X peers were struggling with similar professional issues (e.g., lack of "stepping stone" institutional salaried positions (either at mid-size or larger organizations), life/work balance challenges including identifying ways of consistently making a living wage, limited opportunities for growth (within an organization or a specific city), desire for deeper professional development and a lack of a cohesive networking structure.)  Luckily, we were able to engage in national gatherings, conversations about generational issues, networking opportunities and began strategizing next steps in addressing these concerns.

However, now that momentum has stopped and the focus has understandably shifted from long-term sustainability to short-term viability and I am concerned about the impact on myself and my peers.

I think the decisions made in this moment will have enormous impact. Those of us who are mid-career (more or less the Gen X-ers) are vulnerable as the current executive leadership are forced to reassess their strategy, scale back, and focus on core values. The few who have associate director level positions or are the #2’s within a department are at particular risk to layoffs and restructuring, potentially being replaced by fresh college grads that, while inexperienced, will be eager for work and cheap. That restructuring coupled with the lack of resolution of the structural and professional development issues could result in a large wave of trained, qualified professionals leaving the field. While institutions are often accused of being top-heavy, the elimination of many of these mid-level positions does not allow for long-term sustainability. Without experienced leaders actively training in the wings, there will truly be a leadership crisis in 5-10 years after we’ve emerged from the recession and the baby boomer leaders are finally ready to retire. But who will be around and prepared to take those jobs if we’ve sent the Gen X-ers away and neglected to address the systemic issues?

While I recognize that this is a small subset of the overall issues facing the arts today, I would love to see some time and thought placed not just on how to get through the next 12 months, but how to emerge healthy, sustainable and prepared to face the next 10 years.

Rachel Fink