The Regional Arts & Culture Council (RACC) announced today that 48 local arts organizations have been awarded a total of $1,728,290 for FY13. These organizations, headquartered in Clackamas, Multnomah, and Washington Counties, submitted proposals through RACC’s competitive “general support” grant program, which helps fund the overall mission of qualified arts organizations that are delivering year-round services in the community. Funds are awarded based on an applicant’s ability to demonstrate artistic excellence, fiscal responsibility, and broad community support including a stable base of audiences and donors.
“These are stellar organizations that have extraordinary impacts in our community,” said Eloise Damrosch, executive director of RACC. “We are honored to invest in all of the work they do to inspire and provoke us; to bring our communities together; to support the economy; and to enhance our children’s education.”
Damrosch pointed out that this year’s general support total is 5% higher than FY12, including support for four new organizations – Bag & Baggage Productions, Independent Publishing Resource Center, NW Documentary Arts & Media, and PHAME Academy. Funding for RACC general support grants is provided by The City of Portland; Clackamas, Multnomah and Washington counties; the Oregon Arts Commission; Metro; and Work for Art, RACC’s workplace giving program. The City of Portland is by far the largest contributor to RACC, although budget cuts resulted in a 1.2% decrease in FY13. Clackamas County investments were reduced by 20% in FY13, while funding from Washington County was up 14%, and funding from Work for Art was up 8%.
Despite the record size of these awards, RACC still provides less local public funding support than comparable metropolitan areas. Said Damrosch: “We look forward to increasing the size and number of grants for organizations that are based in Portland if the Creative canadapharmacymedonline.com Advocacy Network’s proposal for a new Arts Education and Access Fund is approved by voters in November.”
General support grants are awarded every year, but applications are only accepted every two years; the next opportunity for arts organizations to apply will be in the spring of 2014. In addition to competing on the criteria mentioned above, organizations must meet minimum eligibility requirements, including 501(c)(3) status; a mission centered on producing or presenting art; having one or more paid administrative staff members; and annual revenues of at least $80,000.
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Organizations receiving RACC general support in 2012-13 are:
Artists Repertory Theatre $56,920
Bag & Baggage Productions $11,600
Blue Sky Gallery $13,890
Bodyvox $24,890
Broadway Rose Theatre Company $36,740
Cappella Romana, Inc. $13,350
Chamber Music Northwest $53,450
Children’s Healing Art Project $12,760
Do Jump Movement Theater $29,740
Ethos Music Center $17,700
Film Action Oregon $17,970
Friends of Chamber Music $21,140
Imago Theatre $29,750
Independent Publishing Resource Center $11,040
Lakewood Center for the Arts $37,320
Literary Arts, Inc. $45,070
Live Wire! $12,710
Metropolitan Youth Symphony $30,330
Miracle Theatre Group $29,990
Northwest Children’s Theatre $28,390
Northwest Dance Project $16,000
NW Documentary Arts & Media $11,040
Oregon Ballet Theatre $85,900
Oregon Children’s Theatre $60,280
Oregon Repertory Singers $26,630
Oregon Symphony Association $143,860
PHAME Academy $11,040
Playwrite, Inc. $16,730
Portland Art Museum and NWFilmCenter $193,740
Portland Baroque Orchestra $25,500
Portland Center Stage $90,560
Portland Chamber Orchestra $15,710
Portland Columbia Symphony Orchestra $14,090
Portland Gay Men’s Chorus $16,790
Portland Institute for Contemporary Art $29,000
Portland Opera $140,060
Portland Piano International $15,630
Portland Taiko $37,420
Portland Youth Philharmonic $31,050
Profile Theatre Project $23,360
Tears of Joy Theatre $31,310
The Portland Ballet $18,510
The Third Angle New Music Ensemble $11,500
Third Rail Repertory Theatre $13,400
White Bird $51,460
Wordstock, Inc. $14,780
Write Around Portland $20,140
Young Audiences of Oregon $28,050
RACC provides numerous other grants and services throughout the year, including project grants for schools, arts organizations and individual artists, which will be announced in December.