It may come as a surprise, but the Austin Area Commission for the Arts is not just about the arts.

We support, encourage and develop creativity in our community to fulfill a larger goal of making Austin an awesome place to live and work. Most of our activities cannot happen without generous financial donations from our community.

Currently we are raising funds to support the arguably hottest event in town, the 2015 Austin ArtWorks Festival. Gifts to make this fun, free event possible can be made online at austinareaarts.org or mail to 300 N. Main St., Austin, MN 55912.

As one can imagine, fundraising is critical to our existence. However, finding staff time to focus on it can be a challenge as we continue to grow and improve our program. The AACA Board of Directors has decided to hire a full time development director to assist in our future fundraising needs.

The duties for this position will include: creating an annual development plan, b-uilding donor and sponsor relationships —including maintaining our current relationships and finding new, and helping research and prepare grant applications. The complete job description can be found on our website austinareaarts.org.

Qualified candidates should send a cover letter, resume, and list of three references including email addresses and phone contact information by email to jennie@austinareaarts.org or regular mail to: Austin ArtWorks Center, Jennie Knoebel, 300 N. Main St., Austin, MN 55912. Deadline for applications is June 30, 2015.