The 2025 Barnett Symposium: Fostering Global Understanding and Cooperation will be held on Oct. 9–10. This international gathering will bring together scholars, arts leaders, students, and faculty to explore issues related to cultural policy. Keynote speaker Dr. Beatriz García, will discuss the intersections of cultural policy and the Olympics, while scholars from Columbus, Ohio, as well as England, South Africa, Australia, and South Korea, will share perspectives on fostering global understanding.
On May 7, 1993, endowed funds were established by Lawrence R. Barnett and Isabel Bigley Barnett to support the Arts Policy and Administration Program at The Ohio State University. Specifically, the Lawrence and Isabel Barnett Distinguished Visiting Professor Fund supports the biennial Barnett Arts and Public Policy Symposium. The Barnett Symposium concept was created to facilitate in-depth inquiry and analysis of public and not-for-profit sector policies and practices. The inaugural symposium in May 1993 brought together two key figures from the J. Paul Getty Trust, two highly regarded state arts council directors, university experts in public policy, artists, and arts administrators to discuss the broad topic of Public Policy and the Arts. The 2025 Barnett Symposium continues the tradition thanks to the generosity of Lawrence R. Barnett and Isabel Bigley Barnett.