The Far Right Has Been At This Work For Over 30 Years!
We are so excited – we delivered our inaugural training session! Our 8 week online program took place in the fall of 2025. The 100K Project proudly partnered with the National Guild for Community Arts Education and the Cleveland Arts Education Consortium to produce this leadership development program. The above image is from Session 6, when we showed a clip of Mayor Michelle Wu of Boston addressing the Boston Mayoral Forum on Arts & Culture (July 2025). Our guest was one of the organizers of the Forum, Richeline Cadet, Director of Organizing for MASSCreative. Previous guests were Vermont State Representative Zon Eastes (musician and conductor); Amy Dooley (ceramacist, studio owner), candidate for Ulster County Legislature (who won her race with 58%!); and Rob Pabon (organizer, nonprofit leader), City Councilman for Berwyn, IL. Below is the outline for the eight sessions.
Theresa Hubbard, CEO of Fractured Atlas, attended the final session where three teams presented creative rallies – each with a speaker, platform, power map, and creative materials to advance their campaigns. One team fashioned a ballot initiative to add a Citizen’s Budget Commission to their city government, one team presented a candidate for Boston City Council and one team presented a candidate for Mayor of Cleveland! Theresa said: “I was inspired by the presentations! I loved the infusion of creativity and passion for civic work, all toward the goal of making the world a better place. It doesn’t get much better than seeing creative-types in their element, coming up with unique solutions to problems that impact so many. I’m curious to know what’s next for the participants! ” – So are we!
WATCH THE VIDEOS FROM THE THREE TEAMS – MINI RALLY PERFORMANCES!
Download a summary of our first training!
Here is a flyer from a training Tom Tresser did for Arts Midwest in 2005 (with some updates).
We also offer shorter workshops in person and online!
Curious about how our government works and where you fit in? Watch this nifty three-minute video from our colleagues at Fix Democracy First and She Should Run.
We hope you will consider running for local office or helping someone you respect run. We also encourage you attend your local school and library board meetings and your city council meetings and to make comments when they are called for.
We are working on our training offerings! Please check back.
INPUT YOUR ADDRESS AND SEE WHAT OFFICES ARE AVAILABLE TO RUN FOR + VOTING INFORMATION! from BallotReady
We are working to revive the energy and spirit of the Artist Campaign School from 2017-2019!
Here are some organizations that offer canidate training experiences:
- RunForOffice.org – “Our democracy depends upon citizens deeply engaging in the democratic process and choosing to lead by running for office. Today, 40% of state legislature races go uncontested and the problem is worse at the local level. There is a crisis of leadership occurring in our democracy. We need more people to lead. We need more people to run for office. Run for Office is a free service that provides all the tools you need to launch a successful campaign whether you are a seasoned veteran or first-time campaigner.
- The Campaign School – “The Campaign School exists to provide candidates with the knowledge and skills needed to run a serious political campaign that can win on Election Day. The advice and expertise you’ll find here focus on the fundamentals of running for office.”
- Run For Something – “You don’t have to wait your turn. We’ve got the tools, trainings, and real-world support to help you run — and win. Sign up now to get everything you need to start your journey: How to choose the right seat, Campaign strategy and messaging tips, Insider advice from real candidates who’ve been there. Your community is ready for new leadership. Is it you?”
- Vote Run Lead – “Vote Run Lead trains women to run for office and win, reaching over 55,000 women across America. Our alumni serve on city councils, county boards, state houses, supreme courts, and Congress. We unleash the political power of women as voters, candidates, and leaders to create and sustain an equitable democracy. Launched in 2014, today, Vote Run Lead is four times the size of our start, reaching tens of thousands of women—nearly 60% of whom are women of color and 20% of whom are from rural America.”
- Emerge America – “We are the nation’s premier organization that recruits and trains Democratic women to run for office. We are the only political organization that focuses on effective state and national programming that gives women the tools they need to run and win, as well as building an inclusive sisterhood of alums and a network of alumnae, staff, boards, and volunteers who are on-the-ground 365 days a year to support women through their candidacies at every level and once they are elected.”
- The LGBTQ+ Victory Fund – “We are the only national organization devoted to electing pro-equality, pro-choice LGBTQ+ leaders to public office at every level. These officials fight for equality in the halls of power, ensuring our community’s voice is heard.”
- Campaign School for Social Workers at the University of Connecticut – “The Campaign School for Social Workers is a two-day workshop for anyone who wants to be more politically knowledgeable and active as a candidate, staff member, nonprofit leader, volunteer, and/or advocate for social change. Attendees learn from political social workers and national experts why we all belong in politics, how to use the NASW Code of Ethics as a guide, and how supporting a more inclusive democracy is central to social work’s mission, impact, and a more just society. Now in its 29th year, the Campaign School for Social Workers has a strong network of over 2,900 alumni from across the country and world, many of whom have gone on to serve as elected officials, leaders, advocates, and organizers.”
Our Lead Organizer, Tom Tresser, has been training cultural and nonprofit workers to lead in public life, including running for local office since 1991. The statement below was issued in 1997 and revised in May of 2025.
Cleck here to review some of this work.
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