IN THE NEWS DCA BUDGET HEARING IN MARCH
The City Council's Cultural Affairs, Libraries & International Intergroup Relations Committee's fiscal year 2007 preliminary budget hearing is tentatively set for March 23. A bulletin will be sent out later this month when the City Council sets an exact date and time, as well as a contact number.

CREATIVE CAPITAL GIVES 2006 GRANTS TO 15 NYC ARTISTS
The Creative Capital Foundation, based in New York City, released its list of 2006 grantees in mid-February. Of those chosen, 15 artists, or a little over a third of all grantees, are based in New York City. The organization has awarded more than $5 million to over 240 emerging artist projects around the country since its founding in 1999.

ART ASIAPACIFIC WILL HOST SYMPOSIUM AT SOTHEBY'S
Art AsiaPacific magazine will host a symposium at Sotheby's on March 26 from 4:30 to 6 pm called The Growing Importance of Asian Contemporary Art. The panelists will be Tsong-sung Chang, director of the Hanart T Z Gallery in Hong Kong; Alexandra Munroe, Alliance boardmember and newly appointed senior curator of Asian Art at the Guggenheim; and Shumita and Arani Bose, directors of the Bose Pacia Gallery. The panel will be moderated by Simon Winchester, publisher of Art AsiaPacific. Please call (212) 606-7111 to register; seating is limited. Eric Shiner, the Alliance's coordinator of New York State arts projects, is senior editor of the publication.

SECOND ALLIANCE PRIZE TO BE AWARDED TO DIANE COFFEY
The second annual Alliance for the Arts prize will be awarded to Diane Mulcahy Coffey at the Spring Party on May 23. Dignitaries, colleagues and friends--including Mayor Michael Bloomberg--will gather at the Rainbow Room for this fun and deserved tribute to Diane, one of the most steadfast supporters of the arts in New York City.

PEOPLE
Lee Koonce is the new executive director of Third Street Music School Settlement, effective June 2006. Mr. Koonce is currently executive director of Opus 118 Harlem School of Music.

Peter I. Rushefsky is the new executive director of the Center for Traditional Music and Dance. Mr. Rushefsky was previously the executive director of Univera Healthcare-Southern Tier in upstate New York.

Adi Shamir is the new executive director of Van Alen Institute: Projects in Public Architecture, effective summer 2006. Ms. Shamir was previously the dean of undergraduate studies at the California College of the Arts in San Francisco.

NEW YORK TIMES CULTURE WRITERS 2006
This information is provided as a service to the cultural community. The culture staffs of other New York publications will be provided in the future.

Culture Editor: Sam Sifton, sifton@nytimes.com
Deputy Culture Editors: Jim Schachter, jims@nytimes.com; Myra Forsberg, forsberg@nytimes.com
Arts & Leisure Editor: Ariel Kaminer, kaminer@nytimes.com
Deputy: Scott Veale, veale@nytimes.com
Weekend Editor: Jan Benzel, weekend@nytimes.com
Deputy: Mike Hale, mikehale@nytimes.com
Daily Assignment Editor: Ed Marks

VISUAL ARTS
Editor: Nancy Kenney, nakenn@nytimes.com
Beat Reporters: Carol Vogel, Randy Kennedy

CLASSICAL MUSIC & DANCE
Editor: James Oestreich, jimo@nytimes.com
Deputy Editor (Dance): Diane Nottle, nottle@nytimes.com
Beat Reporter: Daniel Wakin

POP MUSIC
Editor: Tom Kuntz, kuntz@nytimes.com
Beat Reporter: Jeff Leeds (Los Angeles)

TELEVISION
Editor: Steve Reddicliffe, redd@nytimes.com
Deputy Editor (Television guide/grids): Jody Alesandro, joales@nytimes.com
Beat Reporters: Bill Carter, Jacques Steinberg, Felicia Lee, Seth Schiesel (video games)

MOVIES
Editor: Michael Cieply (Los Angeles), cieply@nytimes.com
Deputy Editor: Ann Kolson, kolson@nytimes.com
Beat Reporters: Sharon Waxman (Los Angeles), David Halbfinger (Los Angeles)

THEATER
Editor: Patricia Cohen, patcohen@nytimes.com
Beat Reporter: Jesse McKinley

BOOKS/PUBLISHING/IDEAS
Editor: Amy Virshup, virshup@nytimes.com
Beat Reporters: Edward Wyatt, Dinitia Smith

Chief Media Writer: Lorne Manly
General Assignment Reporters: David Carr, Charles McGrath, Lola Ogunnaike, Robin Pogrebin (New York cultural institutions), Alan Riding (Paris)
Arts, Briefly: Lawrence Van Gelder

CRITICS

ART
Chief Critic: Michael Kimmelman
Roberta Smith, Holland Cotter

ARCHITECTURE
Nicolai Ouroussoff

DANCE
Chief Critic: John Rockwell
Jennifer Dunning

BOOKS
Chief Critic: Michiko Kakutani
Janet Maslin, William Grimes

THEATER
Chief Critic: Ben Brantley
Charles Isherwood

TELEVISION
Chief Critic: Alessandra Stanley
Virginia Heffernan

FILM
Chief Critics: A.O. Scott, Manohla Dargis
Stephen Holden

CLASSICAL MUSIC
Chief Critic: Anthony Tommasini
Bernard Holland, Allan Kozinn

POP MUSIC
Chief Critic: Jon Pareles
Kelefa Sanneh, Ben Ratiliff, Stephen Holden

CRITICS AT LARGE
Caryn James, Edward Rothstein