R. William Mitchell, Senior Consultant
The North Group Inc.

Senior Consultant with The North Group Inc., Bill Mitchell is President of MITCHELLworks LLC, a management consulting firm specializing in strategic planning, board development, facility development, management, fundraising and feasibility studies. He has over 35 years of experience in arts management, arts education, programming, facility development and operations, and fundraising.

Prior to starting MITCHELLworks in early 2000, Mitch was President/CEO of the Clay Center for the Arts and Sciences Ð West Virginia, a 400,000 square foot facility in downtown Charleston. He led the organization for 3 years through architectural design development, new architect selection, development of construction documents, and successful bidding for general contractor. Mitch raised over $40,000,000 in addition to a like amount raised prior to his arrival. The Clay Center, under his successor's leadership, opened July 12, 2003 and contains a 1,883 seat Maier Foundation Performance Hall; a 150-200 seat black-box Walker Theater; the Avampato Discovery Museum and Juliet Museum of Art (the former Sunrise Art and Science Museums); The ElectricSky™ Theater – which presents Planetarium shows, 70-mm large-format films, and laser shows; Douglas V. Reynolds Intermezzo Cafe; and the BB&T Little Shop of Wonders Gift Shop.

Before he was recruited to West Virginia in 1997, Mitch spent 6 years developing plans and raising money to build the Walton Arts Center in Fayetteville, Arkansas, and the next 6 years leading that organization through its opening and first years of operation. He helped acquire the land and worked with the architects and engineers prior to the first lines drawn on paper. In addition to the main building – Baum Walker Hall, Joy Pratt Markham Gallery, McBride Studio, the black-box Starr Theater, and the Bradberry Amphitheater, Mitch oversaw the creation of a separate education building (Nadine Baum Studios) and administrative offices (Just Off Center). Mitch and Walton Arts Center have played significant roles in revitalizing downtown's Dickson Street and Northwest Arkansas. In 2003, Mitch was recognized for his efforts as recipient of the Fayetteville Rotary Club's "Act with Integrity" award.

Prior to 1985, Mitch held staff leadership roles with Tennessee Performing Arts Center in Nashville; Association of Performing Arts Presenters in Washington, DC; and the Commons in Columbus, Indiana.

Mitch holds a Bachelor of Science degree in art education/speech and drama and a Master of Arts in Education both from Ball State University in Muncie, Indiana.

PROFESSIONAL SERVICE
In January 2011, Arkansas Governor Mike Beebe appointed Mitch to the Arkansas Arts Advisory Council for a term ending June 30, 2014. This statewide group assists the professional staff with oversight of the panel review process that awards arts funding throughout the state.

Active in the Association of Performing Arts Presenters, Mitch is a Past President, chairperson of the 2000 national conference, recipient of the prestigious Fan Taylor Distinguished Service Award, and chair of the successful origination of the national "Bill Dawson Endowment" designed to help fund internships in arts administration.

RELATED EXPERIENCE
Walton Arts Center, Fayetteville Public Library, Butterfield Trail Village Foundation, and The New School in Fayetteville, AR | Horses for Healing in Bentonville, AR | Opera in the Ozarks and The Writer's Colony in Eureka Springs, AR | Rogers Historical Museum in Rogers, AR | with the Wal-Mart Foundation, the Northwest Arkansas Children's Shelter in Vaune, AR | with the Donald W. Reynolds Foundation, Domestic Abuse Shelters in Fayetteville, Fort Smith, and Jonesboro, AR and Miami, OK | Gallo Center for the Arts, Modesto, CA | Garde Arts Center in New London, CT | Idaho Falls Arts Council/Willard Arts Center/Colonial Theater in Idaho Falls, ID | Orpheum Performing Arts Centre in Wichita, KS | Colonial Fox Theatre Foundation, Pittsburg, KS | The Midland Theatre Association in Newark, OH | Renaissance Performing Arts Center in Mansfield, OH | Scranton Cultural Center in Scranton, PA | Proctors Theater in Schenectady, NY | The Stanley Performing Arts Center, Utica, NY | Overture Center for the Arts, Madison, WI