Arts Administration faculty contribute to groundbreaking book

Four faculty members from the University of Kentucky's Department of Arts Administration have contributed to a new publication exploring innovative approaches to teaching arts and cultural management.

Innovative Pedagogy in Cultural Management Education, published by Routledge, includes chapters by Department Chair Rachel Shane, lecturer Kathryn Mullen, assistant professor Michael DeWhatley and assistant professor Leah Hamilton. Along with Jay Pension, the UK contributors authored four of the book's 15 chapters. Their chapters cover topics from emotional intelligence in arts administration to arts emergency management and critical access as core pedagogy.

The book's editors, Anthony Rhine, Richard Maloney and Pension, highlighted UK's contributions and the breadth of perspectives within the department.

“The book brings together new approaches to teaching arts and cultural management at a moment when the field is actively reconsidering how we prepare its future leaders," the editors said. "The University of Kentucky’s contributions reflect a distinctive strength: a community of faculty and emerging scholars whose diverse perspectives and shared commitment to teaching are helping shape the field’s pedagogical future.”

For Shane, the department's contributions demonstrate how its faculty are connecting teaching, research and developments in the industry.

“Having our faculty contribute four of the 15 chapters in this volume reflects the work underway in the University of Kentucky’s Department of Arts Administration," Shane said. "We approach arts administration education as something that must evolve alongside the field itself. Our faculty are developing new approaches to teaching while contributing to the scholarship that informs arts administration education. I am proud that our department is helping shape the future of the field.”