Rock Hill woman honored with top S.C. award for work in the arts

Betty Plumb has been a longtime advocate for the arts in public schools and for funding and policies that promote art. This week, she received a top state honor for her work.

The Rock Hill woman, who has a 25-year tenure as executive director of the South Carolina Arts Alliance, is a recipient of the 2016 Elizabeth O’Neill Verner Governor’s Award for the Arts, the highest state recognition for work in the arts.

Plumb, 69, transformed the grass-roots advocacy organization into a champion of the arts in the public arena, according to the S.C. Arts Commission, which honors artists, government organizations, businesses and individuals with the awards.

“The alliance is really a grass-roots group of supporters, and it takes somebody like Betty, who is organized and diligent and won’t take no for an answer, to do that,” said Milly Hough, communications director for the arts commission.

Awards will be presented during a May 11 Statehouse ceremony in Columbia. Recipients will be honored that evening during the S.C. Arts Gala fundraiser.

Plumb, who works from an office in the Gettys Center in downtown Rock Hill, said she is pleased to cap her career with such an honor. She plans to retire in September.

Plumb said the alliance’s accomplishments include securing two separate increases of $1 million in new, recurring commission money for arts education and grants. It also lobbied for legislation that ensures art is part of the school curriculum.

“We feel like we are part of the solution for reaching districts of poverty, the underserved areas,” Plumb said. “The arts need to be for everyone. Access for all is one of the main tenants of the arts commission, and I believe it’s one of the most important things they do.”

Rose Sheheen, chair of the arts alliance, said Plumb keeps arts groups across the state up to speed on changes in legislation and funding. Plumb also is in touch with arts on the national scene, she said.

Plumb said arts education, which includes theater, vocal and instrumental music, creative writing, visual arts and media arts, is linked to better school attendance and fewer behavior problems.

“Students are so involved and engrossed, and I think that’s what keeps them coming back to school,” she said. “They find a place where they can be engaged and can do good, hard work.”

Plumb said art has been important in her own life. She said her mother raised her to know and enjoy the arts, and her two daughters, Emily and Amanda, benefited from classes in art and theater. Plumb is a pianist who sings in her church choir, and she and her husband, retired Herald Editor Terry Plumb, collect local art.

Betty Plumb has received other honors for her work. She has twice been listed among the 50 Most Powerful and Influential Leaders in the Nonprofit Arts in America by Barry’s Blog, a website published by the Western States Arts Federation.

She received the Alene Valkanas State Arts Advocacy Award from Americans for the Arts and the Medal of Honor in the Arts from Winthrop University.

This story was originally published March 2, 2016 at 3:11 PM with the headline "Rock Hill woman honored with top S.C. award for work in the arts."