Anne Romens (she/her/hers) has been working at Arts Midwest since 2009 and is the Vice President. Before that, she worked across various nonprofit sectors with roles in museums, higher education, and social services.
At Arts Midwest, Anne spends her days leading national and regional arts programs, building and supporting teams, and making big ideas actionable. She works across the leadership, development, communications, grants, program, and research and evaluation initiatives to support those teams in advancing Arts Midwest’s mission, vision, and values. She does this by using skills in program development, fundraising, communications, public relations, financial management, strategic planning, and impact assessment to direct initiatives that drive innovation and growth for the organization, advance Arts Midwest’s partnership and donor strategy, and test new ideas that celebrate Midwestern creativity in all its forms. Anne serves as a primary staff leadership liaison to the Board of Directors and to its member State Arts Agencies.
Anne has held a variety of positions during her tenure at Arts Midwest, including roles in development and fundraising, as well as communications. From 2015 to 2021, she directed Arts Midwest’s national Creating Connection program, where she presented at more than 20 national conferences and workshops hosted by organizations such as the National Assembly of State Arts Agencies, Chorus America, Michigan Museums Association, Ohio Arts Council, Michigan Arts and Culture Council, Barr Foundation, Minnesota State Arts Board, League of American Orchestras, Western Arts Alliance, and Grantmakers in the Arts, among others. She has been a panelist for the Metropolitan Regional Arts Commission and the National Endowment for the Arts.
Prior to her work at Arts Midwest, Anne served as an AmeriCorps VISTA for CommonBond Communities and held a variety of fundraising and support positions at the Art Institute of Chicago, the School of the Art Institute of Chicago, and the Peggy Notebaert Nature Museum.
A couple of Arts Midwest resources Anne loves to share include
- Creating Connection: A Report to Build Public Will for the Arts
- Tools and Resources to activate Creating Connection at your organization
- 5 Ways to Strengthen Arts Marketing
A little more about Anne:
Anne is a lifelong Midwesterner and is excited to celebrate Midwestern creativity in all its forms. She loves to learn about new creative efforts and hear big ideas about how we can collaborate to honor this incredible and vibrant region. She also loves a good coffee chat, both in-person and virtual, and welcomes a chance to connect.
When Anne isn’t working, she can be found dabbling in the visual arts, taking walks in nature, and spending time with her husband and her two kids, who all share her passion for theater, music, and making art. She was proud to serve as President of the Board at Sunshine Montessori School in Minneapolis and currently enjoys volunteering her time at her children’s school whenever she’s able.
You can connect with her on LinkedIn.
