a2ru Announces New Membership Model

Jul 30, 2021

For a2ru’s first decade, membership was only available on an institutional basis to large, Research I and II universities. That changes now!

With the debut of our new website, we are also unveling a new membership model designed to be more flexible, more inclusive, and more accessible as we continue our mission to advance the arts and arts-integrative practices across higher education.

Here are some key features of the new model:

• Membership is now open to all higher education institutions–including art and design schools, liberal arts colleges, and community colleges–not just Research I and II universities.
• Institutional memberships can now have either a one- or three-year term.
• There are two different price levels for institutional memberships, for both four- and two-year institutions, to accommodate different financial resource levels.
• Academic departments, or groups of departments, can now become a2ru members if their institution as a whole is not an a2ru member.
• Individuals memberships are now available to academic leaders, administrators, full-time faculty, adjuncts, retirees, independent scholars/artists, and students.

a2ru Executive Director Maryrose Flanigan says, “We are thrilled to open a2ru membership up to better reflect and serve the full spectrum of higher education today. For years, we’ve heard from people who participated in our events and wanted to become a2ru members, but who didn’t fit into our old model. Now, we’re so happy to be able to welcome them into the network, and are grateful for the experience, perspective and creativity that they will bring to this community.”

She continues, “The COVID-19 era has also made us very sensitive to the economic realities being faced by both institutions and individuals, and we wanted to create a range of opportunities to work with us, in the hopes that membership is accessible to anyone who wants one.”

a2ru membership involves access to member-only content on a2ru.org, free access to our webinar and online conversation series, free or discounted registration to our annual conference and Emerging Creatives Student Summit; access to faculty and student grants; and discounts on job listings, event promotion, and a2ru print research materials. Visit our Membership Page to view detailed benefits and pricing information for each membership type. Institutional and Departmental Memberships will be invoiced to your school; individual memberships can be purchased directly on this site.

Any questions? Please contact us!

Image: Students at a2ru partner Boston University.