ADA Certification Statement and Accessibility Inventory

ADA Certification Statement and Accessibility Inventory

Accessibility and Access Statement

The West Virginia Commission on the Arts affirms that without equal accessibility there can be no equal opportunity. And, without equal opportunity the values that the arts bring to the citizens of West Virginia are diminished. Accessibility and equity are expansive matters, and ones that are bound by both legal and ethical requirements. Legally, the WV Commission on the Arts must comply with Federal regulations set forth with Title VI of the Civil Rights Acts of 1964, Title IX of the Educational Amendments of 1972, Section 504 of the Rehabilitation act of 1973, the Age Discrimination Act of 1975, the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) of 1990, and all directives published by the National Endowment for the Arts. Specifically, Title VI, Section 504 and Title IX prohibit discrimination with regard to age, race, color, national origin, disability or sex. As the WV Commission on the Arts administers funding from the National Endowment for the Arts, the Commission is legally obligated to ensure that all of these mandated requirements are met. Ethically, the WV Commission on the Arts asserts that to achieve the obligatory goals of equal opportunity and accessibility then protections against discrimination must be expanded to include ancestry, marital or family status, pregnancy, veteran status, religion, creed, sexual orientation, genetic information, gender identity and gender expression.

Our Objectives

The State Arts Office and the West Virginia Commission on the Arts strive to achieve several goals related to the accessibility of the arts.

  • Increase participation in the arts among all populations throughout the state.
  • Increase programming throughout the state that focuses on underserved populations, which includes at-risk youth, aging, veterans, and people with disabilities.
  • Connect artists and arts organizations who are currently working with underserved populations.
  • Work with WVCA members to assess policy, procedures, programming, and guidelines with the intent to increase access, inclusion, diversity, and equity within our grant programs.
  • Increase web presence and implement an online grant application process.
  • Work to make grant guidelines clearer and easier to follow.

Resource Folder Link

As part of this work, we maintain a folder of resources to assist artists and arts organizations in their own efforts to increase inclusion, access, diversity, and equity. In the “Equity and Access” folder, you’ll find an often-updated document with links to all kinds of resources from government agencies and arts organizations regarding equity and access in the arts.

Full Resource Folder Specific Equity and Access Resources