Get Your Vote On! Guest Blog by Candidate for Governor Jeff McCormick
As part of MALC’s Get Your Vote On! series, we invited four of the five gubernatorial candidates* to guest blog about their policies and share their thoughts about our sector.
Our first guest blogger, presented below, is Candidate Jeff McCormick.
The Arts have always been an important part of my life and I believe we need to make sure that public policy reflects the importance of the Arts in our society. When I moved to Boston almost 27 years ago, I lived with a number of artists in Jamaica Plain. Although my work in the private sector is not focused on the creative arts in particular, I have always believed that entrepreneurs and innovators have to use strong creative problem solving capabilities to solve problems in new and different ways. As your Governor, I will make sure that including the Arts in my policy agenda is a priority because creativity and innovation is one of our strong suits as a state.
I have spent my entire career working with small companies trying to solve problems in areas like healthcare, biotech, education, and the environment. Creativity plays a crucial role in building small companies. For entrepreneurs to be successful, they need to work extremely hard, but also creatively set themselves apart from the status quo, as so many of these companies have to show the world why they are different.
I believe this creativity starts with education. Our students need exposure to the Arts from a very early age to make them more well-rounded people and members of society. School is more than books and facts and figures. Even as a pre-med student at Syracuse, I received special permission from the Dean of the Performing Arts School to take art classes. Children need to learn how to express themselves in different ways and the Arts are a major avenue of expression. I have seen the importance of creativity in business and it only enhances a person’s ability to be successful with the opportunities in life.
As Governor, I see my role in promoting the Arts as twofold. First, we need to include the Arts in our STEM programs (STEAM) to make sure the Arts are emphasized in curricula. I currently serve on the board of the CitiCenter for the Performing Arts and believe our Government can partner with local venues and institutions to highlight the contribution that the creative economy makes to our state. I will also focus on creating housing and opportunities for artists to live in affordable neighborhoods and continue to be a vital part of our communities. Having lived with a number of artists, I have seen firsthand the financial struggles that some artists endure. We can’t overlook the contributions of the creative economy to our everyday landscape as artists are often the pioneers in revitalizing neighborhoods and communities. Artists need to be able to make a living and enjoy the communities in which they want to live. As your Governor, I will always have an open door policy to the Arts and the creative economy.
I hope this gives you insight into my philosophy on the importance of the Arts and what I will do as Governor to promote the creative economy and artistic community. To learn more about my campaign, please visit my website www.JMacForGov.org and don’t forget to vote on November 4th.
— Jeff McCormick
Candidate info:
Jeff McCormick (Independent)
Campaign Website: www.JMacForGov.org
MALC’s analysis of Candidate McCormick’s campaign platform: ( http://wp.me/p2W9Iu-11y)
Running Mate: Lt. Governor Candidate: Tracy Post (Independent)
Answered Lt. Governor MALC questionnaire (PDF): http://www.artistsunderthedome.org/Post.pdf
Campaign website: http://www.postforlg.org/about_tracy
*MALC invited four of the five candidates for Governor to guest blog and the candidates will be featured in reverse alphabetical order. (MALC did not reach out to the Lively/Saunders Campaign.):
Tuesday, October 28th Candidate Jeff McCormick
Wednesday, Oct. 29th Candidate Evan Falchuk
Thursday, October 30th Candidate Martha Coakley
Friday, October 31st Candidate Charlie Baker
MALC does not endorse candidates for office, but seeks to provide needed and timely information about candidates’ platforms and policies that impact artists of all disciplines, the art, and cultural and creative economies. Nor does MALC take positions on the statewide ballot questions.