ARTSOK IS a Non-Profit Organization dedicated to raising awareness of arts & culture and encouraging the arts within the Broken Arrow community AND BEYOND.
About
The partnership between Broken Arrow Public Schools, community leaders, Kristin Chenoweth and the Broken Arrow Performing Arts Center Foundation has proven to be a unique and rare collaboration that has brought many amazing opportunities and gifts to Broken Arrow’s students, teachers and citizens.
As the focus on the arts in Broken Arrow grows, so does the need for a unified organization to help in the development of its continued success. ARTSOK, the Regional Arts Alliance of Broken Arrow, is an organization combining the strengths of the former Broken Arrow Performing Arts Center Foundation and the Broken Arrow Arts and Humanities Council of Broken Arrow.
This merger creates a unified arts organization with a broader reach and greater impact for the community. ARTSOK’s creation unifies fundraising efforts, provides greater diversity in programming, offers more grant opportunities and gives a stronger voice to arts advocacy at the local, state and national level.
Future plans for ARTSOK include maintaining all the great programming currently offered at the BAPAC and programs such as Art After Hours, Art in Public Places, Chalk it Up, Poetry Slam, Tuesdays in the Park, UpClose Concert Series, The Spotlight Series, Kristin Chenoweth’s Broadway Boot Camp and Master Class events, after-school programs and many others.
ARTSOK will also be an integral part in the construction of a new arts center in downtown Broken Arrow, bringing an even bigger impact of the arts to Broken Arrow, and enhancing arts education for its students and community.
Board of Directors
President
Mark Frie, Executive Director of the BA Performing Arts Center, has a broad background in performance experience, directing experience, and theatrical management.
He has performed throughout North America in musicals, operas, and concerts. He made his solo debut at Carnegie Hall in 2006 and has enjoyed performing with symphonies across the country.
He has performed and directed in such venues as Radio City Music Hall, North Shore Music Theatre (Boston), Music Theatre Wichita, Dallas Theatre Center, Casa Manana Theatre in Ft. Worth, Denver Arvada Arts Center, The Majestic, Bass Hall, Fair Park Music Hall, and the Morton H. Meyerson Symphony Center.
Mark is very proud of the partnership that he has created with Kristin Chenoweth. Together, along with a host of volunteers and staff, they hope to impact students on a local, state, and national level by giving kids opportunities to hone their craft, find their passion, and reach for their dreams through summer camps, master classes, and after school programs.
Mark believes in community service and does that by serving on the Broken Arrow Chamber of Commerce Board of Directors and executive committee and by serving on the Broken Arrow Convention and Visitors Bureau Board.
Vice President
Ed Tackett, Arts Education Consultant
Ed Tackett is a recently retired Arts Education Administrator who served in the Union School District for more than 40 years. At Union, he led a vibrant arts program that involved 90% of the student body. He founded the Union YOUTHARTS! Festival which has showcased arts excellence in music, visual arts, drama and competitive speech annually for more than 36 years. Ed also managed the 2,000 seat Union Performing Arts Center for most of his tenure at Union.
He has served on arts education committees for the Oklahoma State Department of Education, Tulsa Opera, Tulsa Ballet, Philbrook, Gilcrease and Tulsa Youth Symphony. He is currently a board member of Tulsa Symphony Orchestra and a member of the TSO Education Committee. He currently serves as Vice President of the Broken Arrow Arts and Humanities Council and is a member of the Center for Arts Innovation and Creativity Committee which is committed to development of a visual and performing arts center in the Rose District. Ed also serves as Music Director for Traditional Worship at Kirk Of the Hills Presbyterian Church in Tulsa where he directs choirs, instrumentalists and music ministries.
Secretary
Scott Eudey is the Managing Partner of Ross & Eudey, PLLP, Attorneys and Counselors at Law and is also City Councilor for Broken Arrow's Ward 4. He is a Leadership Broken Arrow alum and was Chairman of the Broken Arrow Chamber Board of Directors in 2012. In 2011, he stepped down from the Broken Arrow Rooster Days Committee where he had served for 13 years, 6 years as Chair. He is also an active Member of the Broken Arrow Rotary, a founding member of the Board of Directors for Keep Broken Arrow Beautiful, and is starting his second three year term on the Board of Broken Arrow Seniors, Inc. where he serves as its President.
Treasurer
A Certified Public Accountant for over 30 years, Jeff is a partner in the Brown Kinion & Company CPA firm which he joined in 2002. Prior to that, he held the position of chief financial officer and controller for various companies in the banking, manufacturing and construction industries in both the public and private sector. He earned two degrees from the University of Tulsa, BS in Accounting and an MBA. He is also holds several volunteer positions: Treasurer of the Friends of Broken Arrow, the sponsoring organization for Wine, Eats, and Easels; Tulsa Little League Baseball; and Ridgepoint Villas Homeowners Association. He is also active in Rotary. He and his wife, Teresa, have five children between them, ranging in ages from 19-27 and three dogs. When he is not supporting the Broken Arrow Arts, he enjoys watching sports and is a fan of TU athletics and vacationing in Sanibel.