Arts Council
Lori Meadows Named Executive Director of Kentucky Arts Council

FRANKFORT, Ky. – At the December 2, 2005 board meeting of the Kentucky Arts Council, it was announced that Lori Meadows has been selected as Executive Director of the Kentucky Arts Council.  This announcement follows an extensive national search by the executive search committee chaired by board member James R. Voyles.   “Lori was the unanimous choice of the committee after carefully reviewing nearly twenty applications of highly qualified arts professionals from across the country,” says Voyles.  “The committee felt that Lori’s combination of experience and skills made her uniquely qualified.  In addition, reference checks with the staff of the Arts Council revealed that they were fully supportive of her candidacy.”

Meadows has been on staff with the Arts Council since 1994, most recently serving as Interim Director.  Since 2001, Meadows had been Executive Staff Advisor to director Gerri Combs, overseeing technical management of all branches of the agency and assisting with policy development.  In this capacity, Meadows also directed the Arts Council’s START (State Arts Partnership for Cultural Participation) Initiative funded through the Wallace Foundation.  Prior to that, Meadows was Individual Artist Program Director from 1997-2001 and Technical Assistance Coordinator from 1994-1997. 

Meadows is a 1985 graduate of the University of Kentucky and has served as a public art juror, grant panelist and exhibition curator in Kentucky, for other state arts agencies and on the national level.  She is currently a member of the Kentucky Lincoln Bicentennial Commission Advisory Council and the State Arts Partnership for Cultural Participation National Leadership Learning Community.

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The Kentucky Arts Council is a state agency in the Commerce Cabinet that invests in programs that develop vibrant communities, provide lifelong education in the arts and support arts participation.  Every $1 in grant funds awarded by the Kentucky Arts Council helps grantees secure $15 in earned income and matching funds from individuals, philanthropic sources and other levels of government. Kentucky Arts Council funding is provided by the Kentucky State Legislature and the National Endowment for the Arts, a federal agency, which believes that a great nation deserves great art.