Craig Watson
Coalition Member
Craig Watson served as the Director of the California Arts Council from August 2011 through March 2017. Under his leadership, the budget of the California Arts Council increased from $5 million to nearly $25 million and the Council took on many new initiatives. These included new grant programs to serve veterans, at-risk youth, public media stations, after-school arts, arts research and creative placemaking. In addition, the Arts-in-Corrections (A-I-C)program was re-established and rose to $8 million during Craig’s tenure. The program continues to bring teaching artists into all 35 California prisons and is the largest such program in the U.S. A-I-C has proven to be an effective way to reduce recidivism in the state. Also while at the CAC, landmark legislation was passed, including the creation of a state-wide Cultural Districts program. Through this program, the Arts Council recognized the first co-hort of rural, suburban and urban communities where the arts serve as a community catalyst for economic, cultural and social vibrancy.
In 2015, Craig was named one of the 40 most influential U.S. arts leaders by Barry’s Blog of the Western States Arts Federation. Previous to the CAC, Craig was the executive director of the Arts Council for Long Beach, where he oversaw a significant expansion of the agency into the community, including creation of the largest local celebration of Arts and Humanities Month in the nation.
Watson started his career in the arts field at local arts agencies and arts-services organizations, and later built a career in the telecommunications industry before returning to the arts as Executive Director of the Arts Council for Long Beach. He held senior executive positions in the telecommunications field in Rhode Island, New York and California with oversight of thousands of employees and the early launches of Voice Over Internet Protocol telephone services in highly competitive markets.
After leaving the CAC in 2017, Craig helped to re-position and expand a family business in Southern California. Then in 2018, he and his wife relocated to the central coast of Maine to help their daughter, son-in-law and their first grandchild establish a new farmstore and cafe as they pursue their dreams around the “farm to table” economy and food security. Upon landing in Maine, they have quickly built connections with both the arts and social justice communities.