Organizational Background

Date of Incorporation: 1991

Mission: This body shall be a nonprofit cultural and educational agency to support, encourage, coordinate, and promote high-quality activities and programs in the arts and humanities for the Chickasha area community..

Organization overview: The Council was incorporated in 1991 as the Washita Valley Arts Council until its reorganization in 2000 as the Chickasha Area Arts Council.

The council was revitalized as a direct response of community strategic planning through the Oklahoma Community Institute in 2002 with the responsibility of providing a focus to area arts activities. Specific initiatives addressed identified community weaknesses in the following areas:

• Community Pride (stemming from oil busts from the 20's and 80's)
• Arts Access to Classes and Workshops (due to rural nature of community.) Activities resulting from board directives is and has addressed these issues with the following activities:
• Public Art collaborations with local city government
• A cultural/history tour of the local cemetery featuring actors portraying community citizens
• Annual arts festival for families in the local park
• Annual workshops based on community input (including Ballroom Dancing, Poetry, Creative Writing, Theatrical Improvisation, and Music Therapy)
• Enhancement and support of a children's multi-disciplinary arts camp called ArtScope. FY2007/08, CAAC significantly reduced activities to enable community strategic planning