NEWS RELEASE
For Immediate Release
Oct. 6, 2009
FOR MORE INFORMATION, CONTACT:
Ann Dee Lee
Public Information Director
Oklahoma Arts Council
(405) 521-2931
anndee@arts.ok.gov
MICHAEL E. JOSEPH TO RECEIVE
GOVERNOR’S ARTS AWARD
Sponsored by the Oklahoma Arts Council, 16 individuals and five organizations will be honored for their contributions to the arts in their communities or throughout the state. The ceremony is scheduled for 4:00 p.m., Tuesday, October 20th in the 4th Floor Rotunda of the State Capitol and is open to the public. Presiding at the ceremony will be Council Chair Kym Koch Thompson and Oklahoma Arts Council Executive Director Suzanne Tate. A reception on the first floor of the Capitol will follow the 4 p.m. ceremony.
Supporters of Mike Joseph say he always makes time to write a letter, make a call or open a door to a new opportunity that could ultimately bring about a better quality of life in Oklahoma no matter how busy he is with his law practice.
A leader in the community, Mike serves on numerous community, civic and educational boards, advisory boards, selection committees and task forces and is a frequent speaker on the topics of board member responsibilities, regulatory compliance, tax-exempt status issues, and other matters specifically related to charities and nonprofit organizations.
He is currently the President of the Oklahoma Arts Institute and on the board of directors for Leadership Oklahoma City, Oklahoma City Philharmonic and numerous other civic organizations. Separate from his board service, Mike has also provided pro bono legal representation to numerous Oklahoma charitable and civic organizations, including the Regional Food Bank of Oklahoma, Oklahoma City Wind Symphony, Center for Nonprofits and the Oklahoma City Philharmonic Foundation.
Joseph has been influential in the area of Public Art in Oklahoma City. He chaired a committee for the Dean A. McGee Eye Institute and the Oklahoma Health Center that created an international competition to select an artist to create a public art piece at the Eye Institute. He serves on a committee for the Oklahoma Health Center Foundation to bring significant works of public art to the campus of the Oklahoma Health Sciences Center. He is also chairing a committee to place public art on the Civic Center’s Bicentennial Plaza.A complete list of Governor’s Arts Awards recipients and their photos are available at www.arts.ok.gov. For more information about the Governor’s Arts Awards, please contact Ann Dee Lee at (405) 521-2931 or at anndee@arts.ok.gov.
ABOUT THE OKLAHOMA ARTS COUNCIL
The Oklahoma Arts Council is a state agency whose mission is to improve lives through the arts by promoting and sustaining the development of a thriving arts environment, which is essential to quality of life, education and economic vitality for all Oklahomans.
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