CARRBORO, NC – The Board of Directors of The ArtsCenter has named veteran non- profit leader Art Menius its new Executive Director, board chair Betsy James announced. Menius will begin work on April 10.

    “With a full time Executive Director leading the way, we can now start moving toward that bright future we all foresee for The ArtsCenter,” James said. “Thanks go to the Search Committee, to Interim Executive Director Jay Miller, our faithful volunteers, to the staff and to the Board for keeping us moving in the right direction up until this point.”

“I could not be happier or more excited to be coming home to Carrboro to join the team at The ArtsCenter,” Menius said. “The Board and staff with Jay Miller have done the heavy lifting and toting to get The ArtsCenter on solid footing.”

    Menius, a Raleigh native, received both BA and MA degrees in history from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and lived in the Triangle until 2004. Since 1983, he has written about roots music for publications including The Independent and the News & Observer. In 1985, after working on the cable TV series “Fire on the Mountain,” Menius helped create the International Bluegrass Music Association and became the new trade association’s first executive director.

    The first president of the Folk Alliance, Menius became its first manager in April 1991, serving in that capacity until June 1996. Menius became Associate Festival Coordinator for Merlefest, the enormous outdoor folk festival presented by Wilkes Community College in Wilkesboro, NC. Following a decade there, Menius served as Director of Appalshop, the acclaimed Appalachian media and arts center in Whitesburg, Kentucky from July 2007 until March 2010. He served as president of the Durham-based Old-Time Music Group, publishers of the Old-Time Herald, from 1992 until 1998, and currently belongs to the Folk Alliance International Board of Directors.

    “The future looks exceptionally bright for The ArtsCenter,” Menius said. “We have a bold vision for our growth that will be converted by our staff and Board this summer into specific action plans. The community will be amazed at how far we have come when we celebrate the 40th birthday of the vibrant cultural asset in 2014.”

For interviews with Art Menius, please call 919-675-2787.

Painter Jacques Menache founded the institution in 1975 to encourage artistic development, experimentation and collaboration as ArtSchool comprised of a single painting class above what is now The Armadillo Grill. After moving to Carr Mill Mall and adding vibrant performing arts to its ever expanding classes, it became The ArtsCenter. Continued growth resulted in a move to its current 20,000 square foot location off East Main Street in Carrboro.

One of the most all-inclusive arts centers in the country, offering performance, exhibition and education all under one umbrella and mostly under one roof. The ArtsCenter features two theatres, seven studios and two galleries. The organization serves 60,000 people annually through classes for adults and children, after school programs and presentation of the visual and performing arts. For more information about The ArtsCenter, call 919-929-2787 or visit www.artscenterlive.org.

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