Photo by LaTur

This summer, the Kennedy Center made drastic reductions in programs, funding and staff to VSA, the nation’s leading arts education organization for the disabled. VSA programming has shown up from time to time in DCist’s Arts Agenda.

The organization’s D.C. affiliate is located at the intersection of 16th and L Streets NW, and you may have noticed some of their artists’ work in the Caribou Coffee nearby.

The Kennedy Center said they had to adjust to stark cuts to arts and education programs made by Congress in its 2011 budget. VSA affiliates say knew cuts were coming, but they didn’t anticipate they’d be as severe.

The D.C.-based office has been reduced from 35 staff members to seven.

“The Kennedy Center has essentially signed the death warrant for VSA,” said Scott Stoner, who served as VSA’s vice president before he was laid off July 15. “It will no longer be a leading international arts organization, and they understand that.”

Officials at the Kennedy Center said they hope to build back VSA and explained the cuts made to VSA staff were meant to focus funds on programs rather than on employees. Many VSA programs will be merged into Kennedy Center programs.

“A lot of money has been taken out of overhead,” said Michael M. Kaiser, the Kennedy Center’s president. “We want to maintain the core programming of VSA and then build that back up over time. It’s obviously a very painful situation for everyone, and we have to make the best of it.”