Arts-Based Community Development Convening
Transforming Post-Industrial Cities through Art and Innovation
April 12 through 14, 2012 - St. Louis

George Jacobsen

Associate Program Officer – The Kresge Foundation

Moderator – 2:00pm, Wednesday, April 6th – Funding Innovation: Investing in Talent

George Jacobsen has worked in the arts at the Kresge Foundation since 2008, first on the national Arts & Culture Program and now on the Community Development/Detroit Program.  George is responsible for Kresge Arts In Detroit, one part of the foundation’s Detroit Program and a three-part effort designed to support and develop individual artists, arts and cultural organizations, and arts-infrastructure groups in metropolitan Detroit. In addition, he is also responsible for thinking through how the arts cross other sectors within the Program’s nine-part Re-Imagining Detroit Framework, an effort that identifies key building blocks of the city’s long-term vitality and works with public, private and philanthropic partners to support the revitalization of Detroit. On the Arts & Culture Program, George worked to advance the team’s strategic interests in advancing sound capitalization practices for nonprofit arts and cultural organizations, the role of artists in a place, and the integration of the arts into broader community building efforts.

Prior to joining Kresge, George worked at Metropolitan Affairs Coalition where he assisted with projects designed to create new economic opportunities, promote regional cooperation, and enhance the quality of life in Southeast Michigan. He has also worked as a planning assistant at the Southeast Michigan Council of Governments and a community organizer at Clean Water Action.

George graduated from Michigan State University and earned a master’s degree in urban planning at Wayne State University. He is a member of the Michigan Association of Planning and the American Planning Association.