creating
healthycommunities2025
With the overarching aim of amplifying the power of arts and culture to connect communities and enhance health and well-being, the Convocatoria para la creación de comunidades saludables will bring together more than 500 people from across the United States who are thinking, working and innovating at the intersections of arts and culture, public health and community development.
Set against a vibrant backdrop of arts and cultural practices, the two-and-a-half-day convening will begin with opportunities to engage in arts activities across Newark from NJPAC’s ArtsRx partner organizations, followed by two days of proceedings that will inspire bold ideas and advance progress while highlighting diverse and effective practices, research and policy models from around the world. Designed to foster connection, dialogue, strategic thinking and learning — Creating Healthy Communities is a place for artists, arts organizations, public health and healthcare professionals, civic leaders and community organizers to come together to envision a healthier tomorrow through arts and culture.
Presented by the University of Florida Center for Arts in Medicine and New Jersey Performing Arts Center (NJPAC)
Discounts/Reduced Fees
Applications for no-fee and reduced fee applications are now closed.
Keynote speakers
Maria Rosario Jackson, Ph.D.
Urban Planning and Cultural Policy Expert
Keynote Speaker
Oct 15
Marc Bamuthi Joseph
Artista de la palabra hablada | Escritor & Libretista | Estratega cultural
Orador principal
16 de octubre
We are grateful to the following leaders and innovators who have helped guide the vision of Creating Healthy Communities 2025.
Teri Abstein, PhD
Financial Administrator, FL Division of Arts and Culture
Karen Alexander, MPA
International Arts + Mind Lab, Johns Hopkins School of Medicine
Andrew Binger (he/him)
Program Officer – Community Partnerships, NJ State Council on the Arts
Dyllón Burnside
Actor, Filmmaker, Founder of Burnside Artist Retreat
Samantha Clarke (she/her)
Program Officer for Arts Education & Lifelong Learning, NJ State Council on the Arts
Deborah Cullinan
Vice President for the Arts, Stanford University
Hannah Drake
Co-Founder, (Un)Known Project
Georgia Gempler (she/her)
Program Manager, Health & Wellbeing, National League of Cities
Bloomberg Fellow, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health
Alana Jackson
Spoken Word Artist, Arts in Public Health Strategist
Frederick Johnson
Community Engagement Specialist, Artist in Residence, The David A. Straz Center for the Performing Arts
Ian Koebner, PhD
Associate Professor and Endowed Chair, Arts & Health at Mason Gross School of Art, Rutgers University
Strategic Advisor, Health & Wellness Carnegie Hall
Jennifer Kuo, MPH, CHES®
Arts & Health Initiative Consultant, California for the Arts
Samuel Livingston
Weill Music Institute at Carnegie Hall, NYC
Dr. Kate Mulligan
Canadian Commonwealth Fund Harkness Fellow in Health Care Policy and Practice, CCNY
Ellen Oh
Director of Interdisciplinary Arts Programs, Stanford Arts
Margery Pabst Steinmetz
Author, Philanthropist,Co-Founder, Pabst Steinmetz Foundation
Martine Philippe
Director, City of Dallas: Office of Arts and Culture
Nisha Sajnani, PhD
Co-Director, Jameel Arts & Health Lab, New York University
Patrick T. Smith, PhD
Kenan Institute for Ethics, Duke University
Clyde Valentín
Co-Founder, One Nation/One Project
Kate Villa
Arts and Wellbeing Consultant Curator, Lincoln Center
Program at a glance
Metas
- Convocar with colleagues dedicated to creating healthier, more equitable communities through cross-sector collaboration in arts in public health.
- Aprender about the latest research and policy models, diverse and effective practices, and tools to advance the field — with an emphasis on arts prescribing.
- Participar in dialogue, strategic thinking and learning in a vibrant, arts-infused setting.
- Construir partnerships and networks across diverse fields to address shared goals.
temas
- Intersections of Arts and Culture, Public Health and Community Development
- Understanding Arts Participation as a Health Behavior
- Establishing Access to the Arts as a Social Determinant of Health
- Economics of Arts in Health
- Arts Prescribing in the US
2 – 5 PM
ArtsRx Activities: Opt-In for free arts activities across Newark and Essex County including programs at GlassRoots, The Newark Museum of Art, the Newark Public Library, the Montclair Art Museum, and more!
5:30 – 7:30 PM
Opening Reception: Featuring live music, networking, welcome remarks, and hors d’oeuvres
9 AM
Coffee, tea, and check-in
10 AM
Welcome performance and remarks
10:45 a.m.
Keynote Speaker: Maria Rosario Jackson, PhD
Followed by a conversation with Maria Rosario Jackson and Marjorie A. Paloma
11:40
Responding to the Moment: Arts in Public Health in a Time of Change
Moderator: Jill Sonke, PhD
Speakers: Hannah Drake, Nisha Sajnani, PhD, Tooshar Swain, Clyde Valentín
12:25 PM
Lunch (provided)
13:35
Arts Participation as Health Behavior: Emerging Evidence and Insights
Presenter: Alex Rodriguez, PhD(c), MPH
Moderator: Nisha Sajnani, PhD
Panelists: Dr. AZA Allsop, Dr. Torian Easterling, Alex Rodriguez, PhD(c), MPH, Ayesha Williams
14:30
Arts, Culture and Social Drivers of Health
Moderator: Tasha Golden, PhD
Panelists: Michelle Browder, Larry Edmonds, Dr. David O. Fakunle, Jill Sonke, PhD
15:45
Breakout Sessions
- Creative Connections: Arts in Health Speed Networking
- Building the Field of Neuroarts
- Metrics Beyond Numbers: Meaningful Evaluation Strategies
- Mindfulness and Gentle Movement Practice
5 PM
Closing Performance and Reflections
19:30
Well-Being Concert, presented by Carnegie Hall at NJPAC
7:30
Breakfast (provided)
8:30
Welcome performance and remarks
8:55 AM
Investing in Well-being: The Economic Case for Arts in Health
Presenter: David Erickson
Moderator: Randy Cohen
Panelists: David Erickson, Fox Spears
10:20 AM
Arts Prescribing in North America: What’s Working, What’s Next
Presenter: Dr. Kate Mulligan
Moderator: Tracy Parris-Benjamin, LMSW, FHELA
Panelists: Michael J. Bobbitt, Aly Maier Lokuta, Dr. Kate Mulligan
11:20
Lunch (provided)
12:20 PM
Arts Prescribing Breakout Sessions
What Matters to You? Social Prescribing 101
Let’s Get it Started: Building Your Arts Prescribing Pilot
Advancing Arts Prescribing Through Policy and Advocacy
Arts for Every Body: Groundbreaking Findings on a National Scale
14:15
Closing Keynote: Marc Bamuthi Joseph
14:50
Closing Remarks
15:00
Open Networking
CHC 2025 Performers Include:
- Maurice Chestnut, Tap Artist
- Leah Hinton, NJPAC Teaching Artist
- Alana Jackson, Spoken Word Artist
- Fred Johnson, Jazz Vocalist, Sacred Chanter, Storyteller, Author and Educator
- Johnny Knollwood & the Church of Mad Love
- The Young Picassos, Steel Pan Drum Band
Preguntas frecuentes
- Artists, arts professionals, arts educators, arts activists, creative arts therapists and arts researchers
- Public health, community health, healthcare, mental health, social services and human services professionals, educators and researchers
- Local, state and national government workers and policymakers
- Funders and philanthropists in the arts, public health, healthcare and community development sectors
- Miembros de la comunidad, agentes de cambio social, organizadores y líderes culturales que abogan por la salud y el bienestar de sus comunidades
- Educators, students and interdisciplinary researchers working at the intersections of arts, health, equity and community
- By air: Newark International Airport
- By train: Newark Penn, Broad Street Station
- En coche: Military Park Garage (los asistentes recibirán vales de estacionamiento con descuento de $3 por día)
Find more information about visiting NJPAC AQUÍ.
A discounted rate of $169+ tax / night is available at TRYP by Wyndham Newark Downtown, which is a short walk from NJPAC.
Discounted rates are available through September 23, 2025 or until rooms sell out, whichever comes first.
Use code 101425CRE when reserving online or by phone. RESERVE UNA HABITACIÓN AQUÍ
Additional hotel recommendations include:
- Approximately a 12 minute walk or short ride to NJPAC:
- 15-30 minute drive or ride via Lyft/Uber to NJPAC pending traffic
- NJPAC is about a 12-minute walk from Newark Penn Station, should you wish to explore hotel options in New York City, Jersey City, or along other stops on the New Jersey Transit.
We are offering over 200 reduced and no-fee registrations, made possible by support from the New Jersey State Council on the Arts and the Pabst Steinmetz Foundation. Find more information and the application here.
Arts & Well-Being at NJPAC is made possible through foundational support from RWJBarnabas Health, Horizon Blue Cross Blue Shield of New Jersey, and Women@NJPAC, with additional support provided by Merck Foundation, National Endowment for the Arts, Gilead Sciences, Celia Lipton Farris and Victor W. Farris Foundation Home Community Fund, M&T Bank, JPMorgan Chase, S. Dillard & Adrienne Kirby Family Philanthropic Fund, DoorDash, and Lyft.
Generous support for our Reduced and No-Fee Registration is supported by the New Jersey State Council on the Arts and The Pabst Steinmetz Foundation.