Mid-America Arts Alliance Board of Directors Confirms Nomination of Juanita Dunn

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

November 24, 2003

Mid-America Arts Alliance Board of Directors Confirms Nomination of Juanita Dunn

Kansas City, MO – Mid-America Arts Alliance has selected Juanita Dunn as a new member of the M-AAA board of directors.

Mrs. Dunn, of Fayetteville, Arkansas, had an extensive career as a college educator, teaching clothing, textiles, and interior design in Oklahoma and North Carolina. She also worked as a commercial printing specialist with Xerox Corporation in Cincinnati. She later relayed her knowledge and love of textiles into the creation of Sola Silks, a Fayetteville-based company through which she sold her one-of-a-kind, hand-painted and handwoven clothing.

An established civic leader, Mrs. Dunn conceived and chaired the Integrated Arts Project for the Walton Arts Center, an arts facility in Fayetteville that includes a performance theater, exhibition spaces, a studio for classes, and an outdoor amphitheater. Through her Integrated Arts Project, artists from Arkansas, Oklahoma, Kansas, and Missouri submitted proposals for original works of art to be incorporated into the Center. As part of this venture, Mrs. Dunn raised funds to purchase and install a mural by Ken Stout.

Her initial involvement with the Walton Arts Center began when she co-chaired the corporate fundraising committee during its initial campaign. Mrs. Dunn also co-chaired the annual fundraising auction for the North Arkansas Symphony.

Mrs. Dunn earned her BA in clothing, textiles, and merchandising and her MA in adult education, both from Oklahoma State University in Stillwater, Oklahoma. She is married to Jack Dunn, a General Manager at Tyson Foods.

The M-AAA Nominating Committee is responsible for recruiting and nominating new board members. Current Nominating Committee members include Committee Chair Nancy Meinig of Oklahoma, Carolyn Dillon of Kansas, June Freeman of Arkansas, Kay Goebel of Oklahoma, Ruth Keene of Nebraska, Ann Liberman of Missouri, and Terry Pruden of Texas.

Mid-America Arts Alliance, founded in 1972, is a nonprofit regional arts organization based in Kansas City, Missouri. It is governed by a board of directors drawn from its partner states of Arkansas, Kansas, Missouri, Nebraska, Oklahoma, and Texas. Major support is provided by the National Endowment for the Arts, participant state arts agencies, and leading foundations and corporations. For further information, visit the Mid-America Arts Alliance Web site at www.maaa.org or contact Sarah McGreer at (816) 421-1388.