Communications Professionals

Deans, directors, and chairs work closely with communications professionals to maximize visibility and contribute to their institutions reputation. Together, you collaborate on strategic communications, crisis management, and telling the institution's story through print and digital platforms.

To augment your International Council of Fine Arts Deans membership, a Communications Professionals Network is being formed. It is designed to create a network for communications professionals working in the visual and performing arts, design, and creative industries in higher education. The Communications Professionals Network will engage throughout the year to share challenges and successes, best practices, strategies, research, communication models, and trends that support communications efforts in the creative, higher education space.

Benefits of membership in ICFAD’s Communications Professionals Network include, but are not limited to: 

  • a network of colleagues who specifically work in the arts, design, and creative industries in higher education communications for professional development, information sharing, peer review, exchange and mentorship – Communications Professionals Helping Communications Professionals 
  • quarterly online conversations for sharing information and best practices
  • workshops virtually
  • ICFAD Communications Professionals membership directory for mentorship, consultancy and exchange
  • on-going communication through a listserv information exchange
  • opportunities for surveying colleagues related to communications programs, addressing issues and best practices
  • opportunities to advertise communications searches in ICFAD's Career Center

Suzanne Silitch, Executive Director for Strategic Communications, VCU School of the Arts, invites your college’s Communications Professional to join her for an inaugural conversation about this group on Thursday, October 29 at 1:00 p.m. Eastern. In the meantime, Suzanne can be reached at (413) 652-7843 or [email protected]. Register here, if you would like to attend this first meeting.

Membership is $200 annually and is only open to those whose institutions hold an active Institutional membership. Click here to add your Communications Professionals, if you are already an Institutional Member. Or, click here to renew your Institutional Membership. If you prefer to share your p-card information by phone for either, please call (561) 514-0810 or e-mail [email protected] for additional information.