There's a lot of buzz at the National Endowment for the Arts (headquartered in the Old Post Office Pavilion) about Michigan Governor Jennifer Granholm's (Dem.) decision to cut the state's arts budget. Teacher Margaret Charette, a Poetry Out Loud advocate, testified before the Michigan State Senate Appropriations Subcommittee in defense of the arts budget today, [...]

Leslie Liberato and Maryrose Flanigan of the National Endowment for the Arts are brainstorming marketing strategies for the Poetry Out Loud finals coming up in late April. Their list reads:

Making fliers for teachers
Contacting school groups
Getting stories in the traditional press and reaching out to bloggers
Finding bookstores still in business
Find judge for semifinal slot

One problem: There's [...]

In between bursts of reporting on the National Endowment for the Art's inner workings, Andrew Beaujon decided to eat an average lunch in the Old Post Office Pavilion. His thoughts: The food court is aswarm with students visiting D.C. The NEA's Maryrose Flanigan says tour groups visit the Pavilion because there's good tour-bus access. Onstage, [...]

Native Washingtonian Georgianna Paul has a job title that most college music majors probably don't realize exists, but would covet if they only knew: "Opera expert." Paul, a trained singer who's also racking up credit hours for her Georgetown MBA, oversees the Nea Opera Honors (the opera equivalent of the Jazz Masters program), the Access [...]

 
National Endowment for the Arts employees who work in the Old Post Office Pavilion have to pool their money to pay for the treated water in the office water cooler–their budget is that tight. Yes, there's also a free water fountain, but according to Maryrose Flanigan, a "Do not drink" sign hung over the fountain [...]