ISPA’s Community Building Program is an opportunity to match New Members with Current Members for the purpose of welcoming them into the broader ISPA Network.  At its heart, the Community Building Program facilitates an environment for new members to experience the value of being an ISPA member.  Both participants increase their network connections and expand their knowledge base through participation in the program.  Through the Community Building Program, ISPA strives to create a cohesive culture of diverse individuals, where everyone contributes their varied experiences and backgrounds to the task of envisioning and creating the future of the performing arts.

Benefits of the Community Building Program

"Knowledge is embodied in people gathered in communities and networks. The road to knowledge is via people, conversations, connections and relationships. Knowledge surfaces through dialogue, all knowledge is socially mediated and access to knowledge is by connecting to people that know or know who to contact."
- Denham Grey, Knowledge Management Expert

“I think that this is a hugely important part of ISPA and I gladly contribute to it. I had a wonderful "host" when I started, so I know it works!"
-  2009 Current ISPA Member Testimonial

The Community Building program offers rich rewards to both participants and to the larger ISPA community. 

The Current Member:

• Renews enthusiasm
• Enhances skills of listening, relationship building and networking
• Strengthens leadership skills
• Expands his/her ISPA network
• Knows that they are supporting ISPA’s mission and building the ISPA community
• Receives new contacts, new perspective

The New Member:

• Begins the process of integrating into the ISPA network
• Develops skills for their professional development
• Receives new contacts
• Receives assistance with new ideas

Program Requirements

The Community Building program is for Full and Affiliate ISPA Members only.

Current Members: A Current Member who is interested in working with a New Member should be willing to invest the time to meet, be committed to the process of integrating the New Member, and possess strong communication skills.  The Current Member will be expected to:

• Make time in their schedule for meeting with the New Member
• Have strong communication skills
• Be committed to including the New Member in the network
• Share their knowledge of the performing arts field
• Be generous with their professional contacts
• Have a clear idea of what they have to share, and be honest about what they cannot do

The Current Member is expected to give their time, attention and knowledge to the process of introducing the New Member to ISPA’s large network of professionals.  This can take the form of introducing the New Member to contacts virtually (conference calls, introduction emails/letters), in-person meetings or the Congresses.  The Current Member is expected to be available to the New Member at a frequency to be mutually determined. 

New Members: It is the role of the New Member to come to the Current Member with clearly defined goals for the relationship.  The New Member is expected to come to the relationship open to receiving new information and making new contacts in order to get the most out of their time in the Program.  The New Member should:

• Clarify their goals for the relationship
• Maintain an openness to new experiences/relationships/suggestions
• Be willing to put forth effort in making new contacts

Duration of the Program

Participation in the program will take place over a 12 month period.  Depending on a New Member’s join date, the ISPA office will contact you to begin the program in February, May, August or December.

New Member Reception at the Congresses

At each of ISPA’s yearly Congresses, there is a New Member Reception.  It is strongly recommended that you attend this event if you attend the Congress.  It is an opportunity for the New Member and the Current Member to meet in person if they have not been able to do so and begin the work of facilitating the New Member’s integration into the network.  It is an excellent time to revisit goals and create a working strategy for the Congress and the rest of the relationship, as well as meeting other New and Current Members.

Evaluation of the Community Building Program

There will be a survey for both current and new members at the end of the program to report their experiences and indicate their suggestions for how the program can be improved.

Contact with the ISPA Office

ISPA will contact partners at quarterly intervals to see if the ISPA office may be of any assistance.  Any significant challenges can be discussed at any time.  ISPA encourages the partners to address any challenges directly with one another.  However, if a simple conversation is not enough to address a particular challenge, both partners may feel free to contact the ISPA office to request assistance.  If it becomes necessary, the New Member and Current Member may be reassigned.