A partnership's size, scope and vision are determined by the needs and resources of its various partners. Partnerships often begin with a simple transaction, such as a field trip or artist residency, in which a school in effect purchases a service from a cultural group. The residencies featured in the Spotlight section of this newsletter are examples of successful joint ventures. A partnership may form a network for sharing ideas, information or schedules. The Boston Cultural Partnership regularly convenes representatives from Boston Public Schools and local cultural organizations to exchange information about current events in the schools and in the cultural community.
Partnerships can coordinate tasks that involve all of the partners.
The Boston Cultural Partnership publishes a catalogue for schools describing the cultural organizations' educational programs and how they relate to the city's learning standards. In its most developed stage, a partnership engages in ongoing collaboration. In fact, it can become so institutionalized that a separate organization is created to carry out partnership activities. Many schools and their communities are at different stages of using partnerships to achieve their goals. Four projects funded through the MCC's Education Partnership Initiative offer their strategies for establishing successful partnerships.