Californians Awarded Honors from Arts Council

For Immediate Release
November 26, 2002

Number: 02-21
Contact: Adam Gottlieb (916) 322-6588

SACRAMENTO - California Arts Council Director Barry Hessenius today recognized the achievements and contributions of five Californians who work in the nonprofit arts field to receive the annual Director's Awards. He also announced two Southern California legislators to receive the Arts Council's Legislator Award. Awarded annually, these honors recognize individuals for extraordinary commitment to the arts and dedicated support for arts and culture in California.

This year's awardees are: Gordon Davidson, Artistic Director of the Center Theatre Group/Mark Taper Forum (Los Angeles); Alma Robinson, Executive Director of California Lawyers for the Arts (San Francisco); Gail Silva, Executive Director of the Film Arts Foundation (San Francisco); Eugene Rodríguez, Executive Director/Founder of Los Cenzontles Mexican Arts Center (San Pablo); Hugo Morales, Executive Director and Co-Founder of Radio Bilingüe (Fresno). Legislator Awardees are Senator Jack Scott (D-Altadena) and Senator Sheila James Kuehl (D-Santa Monica).

"The individuals honored embody the highest commitment to culture and creativity that California has to offer," said Arts Council Chair Barbara George.

BIOGRAPHIES

Gordon Davidson - Artistic Director, Center Theatre Group/Mark Taper Forum
Mr. Davidson has led the Mark Taper Forum throughout its 32-year history. He has guided more than 250 major productions. He is the recipient of numerous awards including a Tony Award for theatrical excellence, Los Angeles Drama Critics Circle (LADCC) Award for distinguished achievement, the Margo Jones Award for the encouragement of new plays and playwrights, The Governor's Award for the Arts, and the 1993 Casting Society of America Lifetime Achievement Award, among others. He is a member of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences and is on the board of the Non-Traditional Casting Project.

Hugo Morales - Executive Director and Co-Founder, Radio Bilingüe
Mr. Morales has worked over the past 25 years to bring Radio Bilingüe from a grassroots operation to a network of stations with more than 60 affiliates in the United States, Mexico, and Puerto Rico at the same time maintaining the original vision of quality, integrity, and independence of productions. His numerous awards include the Excellence Award from the National Federation of Community Broadcasters, a MacArthur Foundation Fellowship, The Edward R. Murrow Award-the highest honor of the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, and the Susan J. Hadden Award from the Alliance for Public Technology. He received a J.D. from Harvard Law School.

Alma Robinson - Executive Director, California Lawyers for the Arts
Ms. Robinson has served as Executive Director since 1981. She joined the organization as Director of Arts Arbitration and Mediation Services in 1980. Previously, Ms. Robinson worked as a lawyer, university professor, and journalist. She received a B.A. with honors in history from Middlebury College and a J.D. from Stanford University School of Law.

Gail Silva - Director, Film Arts Foundation
Ms. Silva's dedication to the creation, exhibition, and distribution of independent film and video is proven by her 23-year relationship with Film Arts Foundation. She currently serves as a Board Member for Cine Acción; and was a former Board Member for the National Alliance of Media Arts and Culture, the Funding Board for the Paul Robeson Fund for Independent Media, the National Asian American Telecommunications Association, and Frameline. She has served as a panelist for the National Endowment for the Humanities, the National Endowment for the Arts, Rockefeller Foundation Intercultural Fellowships, California Arts Council, and San Francisco Art Commission/Cultural Equity. Ms. Silva is the recipient of a Gerbode Fellowship for Professional Development.

Eugene Rodríguez - Executive Director/Founder, Los Cenzontles Mexican Arts Center
Mr. Rodríguez formed the youth group Los Cenzontles in 1989 and incorporated the Arts Center in 1994. In 1987, He received a Master's degree in Classical Guitar performance from the San Francisco Conservatory of Music. In 1995 he was nominated for a Grammy for Best Musical Album for Children for his production of Papa's Dream a bilingual recording with Los Lobos and Lalo Guerrero. In addition, he has produced ten CDs for Los Cenzontles. He has received recognition and awards from the Contra Costa County Arts Commission, the National Latino Children's Agenda, the California Arts Council, and two grants from the U.S./Mexico Fund for Culture. He served as a nominator for the Creative Work Fund and as a panelist for the Ford Foundation's Arts International, California Arts Council's Touring Panel, and the Contra Costa County Blue Ribbon Arts and Culture Planning Committee.

Senator Jack Scott (D-Altadena)
Senator Jack Scott represents the 21st Senate District serving the cities and communities of Pasadena, Glendale, and Burbank. He chairs the Joint Committee on the Arts, Senate Revenue and Taxation Committee, and the Subcommittee on Higher Education. He is a member of the Senate Committees on Education, Transportation, Insurance, and Banking, Commerce and International Trade. He is also a member of the Select Committees on School Safety, College and University Admissions and Outreach, and Genetics, Genetic Technologies and Public Policy.

He was named Legislator of the Year by many organizations, including the California Federation of Teachers, the Association of Independent Colleges and Universities, Association of California Community College Administrators, California State University, and California Association of Health Facilities.

Senator Sheila James Kuehl (D-Santa Monica)
A former pioneering civil rights attorney and law professor, Senator Sheila James Kuehl represents the 23rd Senate District in Los Angeles County. She previously served six years in the State Assembly. During the 1997-98 legislative session, she was the first woman in California history to be named Speaker pro Tempore of the Assembly. She is also the first openly gay or lesbian person to be elected to the Legislature.

She chairs the Natural Resources and Wildlife Committee, the International Trade Policy and State Legislation Committee, and the School Safety Committee. She also serves as a member of the following committees: the Budget and Fiscal Review Committee, Environmental Quality, Health and Human Services, Judiciary, Industrial Relations and the Joint Committee on the Arts.

Senator Kuehl was a law professor at Loyola, UCLA, and USC Law Schools and co-founded and served as managing attorney of the California Women's Law Center. She graduated from Harvard Law School in 1978. In her youth, she was known for her portrayal of the irrepressible Zelda Gilroy in the television series, "The Many Loves of Dobie Gillis."