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For Immediate Release
November 17, 2022
Information: Calandra Childers | 206-788-3051 | calandrachilders@artsfund.org
ArtsFund, Vice President of Strategic Initiatives & Communications
ArtsFund Announces additional Community Accelerator Grant details, including Open Dates, Community Advisory Panel Members, and Info Session
The new grant, funded by the Paul G. Allen Family Foundation, will invest $10 million into the nonprofit cultural sector, providing critical unrestricted funding to Washington’s arts organizations.
An Information Session is scheduled for all interested organizations on Friday, December 9 at 11 am.
SEATTLE, NOVEMBER 17, 2022 – ArtsFund announces members of the Community Accelerator Grant’s Community Advisory Panel, as well as the open dates for the historic investment in Washington’s arts and culture sector. Funded by the Paul G. Allen Family Foundation, the new program will provide a total of $10M in unrestricted grants for cultural nonprofit organizations in amounts of $2,500 to $25,000 across Washington state. Funding will provide essential capital to Washington’s cultural organizations, including fiscally sponsored and tribal organizations, whose primary mission is to produce or support arts and cultural activities. The funds are intended to boost arts organizations’ ability to invest in their missions and essential roles serving communities across the state. Awards will be unrestricted, allowing recipient organizations to use grant dollars in ways that they determine and prioritize for highest impact.
“We are being intentional with the make-up of this panel. Not only does the Community Advisory Panel aim to represent the geographic scope of Washington State, but the individuals who are sitting on the panel also reflect a wide array of lived experiences, including Black, Indigenous, and people of color, LGBTQ+, and people with disabilities. Through this process, we want to ensure that decision-making is closest to the impacted communities,” said Michael Greer, President and CEO of ArtsFund.
Community Advisory Panel
The program will be informed by a Community Advisory Panel, who will work to ensure decision making is as close to the impacted communities as possible. Confirmed Panelists include:
• Beth Takekawa, Wing Luke Museum of the Asian Pacific American Experience (retired)
• Ginger Ewing, Terrain
• Jane Broom, Microsoft Corporation
• Karen Hanan, ArtsWA (Washington State Arts Commission)
• Katie Carter, Pride Foundation
• Lorin Schmit Dunlop, M. J. Murdock Charitable Trust
• Manny Cawaling, Inspire Washington
• Michael Greer, ArtsFund
• Molly Sanchez, Innovia Foundation
• Shelly Wynecoop, Spokane Arts
• Stephanie Ellis-Smith, Phila Engaged Giving
• Troy Coalman, Wellspring Family Services
The panel will shape such elements as eligibility requirements, prioritization of funding, outreach and engagement opportunities, and overall program framework. The Community Advisory Panel will ensure that community voices are heard and centered in every aspect of the Community Accelerator Grant program. They will advise and inform ArtsFund on the key aspects of the program: outreach to the community; application materials and eligibility; scoring process of applications and the final distribution of the awards. The Panel will ensure that decisions reflect the best interests of the entire arts and culture sector, particularly communities that have not benefitted from mainstream funding programs.
Application Key Dates
In addition, ArtsFund is announcing that the Community Accelerator Grant program will be open from January 4 through January 31, 2023. The application will be concise and is estimated to take less than an hour to complete. Technical assistance will be available to answer questions and help organizations through the application process.
A virtual information session will be hosted by ArtsFund on Friday, December 9 at 11 am in the form of a webinar, open to all interested organizations. The information session will provide detailed information on eligibility as well as a review of the application and the application process. Application questions and prompts will be available after the Information Session. Registration for the Information Session is available at this link.
Organizations will receive an update on their status and fund distribution by end of Q1 2023.
Background
The launch of this new grant program follows two and a half years of pandemic impacts on the sector, which have included drops in revenue, challenges with reopening logistics, audience hesitation to return to pre-pandemic levels of cultural participation, and workforce impacts, as detailed in ArtsFund’s COVID Cultural Impact Study: ArtsFund.org/CCIS. This funding responds directly to the study’s recommendations to expand and sustain support for the sector as a strategy for social impact, and to provide unrestricted funding in support of the long-term adaptation of the industry.
To sign up for news about the Community Accelerator Grant, please register at Community Accelerator Grant | ArtsFund
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About ArtsFund
ArtsFund supports the arts through leadership, advocacy, and grantmaking in order to build a healthy, equitable, and creative Washington. Founded in 1969, the Seattle-based nonprofit has been building community through the arts for more than 50 years. ArtsFund was originally founded to bring corporate and civic leaders together to help establish and sustain our region’s arts and cultural institutions. Over its grantmaking history, ArtsFund has supported more than 650 arts organizations with more than $100 million in grants, and provided valuable leadership and advocacy. Learn more at www.artsfund.org.
About Paul G. Allen Family Foundation
Founded in 1988 by philanthropists Jody Allen and the late Paul G. Allen, co-founder of Microsoft, the foundation invests in communities across the Pacific Northwest to enhance the human experience of arts & culture, center under-served populations, and mobilize young people to make impact. In addition, the foundation supports a global portfolio of nonprofit partners working across science and technology solutions to protect wildlife, preserve ocean health, and create lasting change. The foundation also funds the Paul G. Allen Frontiers Group, which works to advance cutting-edge research in all areas of bioscience. Learn more at www.pgafamilyfoundation.org.