Stability in 2012 Giving – Learn More at a Webinar

January 9, 2012

MCF today reported that the state’s grantmakers expect relatively stable giving in 2012. According to MCF’s 2012 Outlook Report, foundations and corporations believe their grantmaking will remain flat or possibly increase about one percent from 2011.

Seventy percent of grantmakers anticipate that their funding priorities will remain constant in 2012, which is almost a 10-point increase over what they predicted for 2011.

MCF’s 2012 Outlook Report is based on an October/November 2011 survey of 100 foundations and corporate giving programs that represent 76 percent (or about $1 billion) of all Minnesota annual grantmaking.

Subject-Area Funding
For the first time in its annual Outlook survey, MCF asked grantmakers to estimate changes in giving to the specific subject areas they support. While most respondents plan no changes to 2012 subject-area giving, one third of education funders forecast giving more to education in 2012.

Arts, culture, and humanities is the only subject area to which more grantmakers said they expect to decrease rather than increase funding. Although the respondents represent a small part of the Outlook survey sample, this finding appears to be consistent with a trend toward less arts funding as reported in MCF’s latest Giving in Minnesota report.

Learn More
To learn more about what the report findings mean for Minnesota’s nonprofit and philanthropic communities, check out the full report online and register today for one or all four of the subject-specific webinars hosted by MCF.

Webinar topics and dates are:

At each webinar, in addition to a broad overview of 2012’s giving outlook, a panel of funders will dive more deeply into subject-specific funding and answer questions like the following:

  • What are the current trends in funding for education, human services, health or arts?
  • Will funding for the area be up or down in 2012?
  • What should nonprofits be aware of as they prepare to seek funds in 2012?

We promise you’ll come away from them more knowledgeable and informed about 2012’s funding landscape in Minnesota!

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Putting Digital and Social Media to Good Use in the Arts

December 8, 2011

As MCF reported in October of this year, arts grant dollars in Minnesota decreased by 19 percent between 2004 and 2009.

Then on Tuesday the Minnesota Orchestra reported the largest annual deficit in the organization’s 109-year history, and Penumbra Theatre canceled two of five plays in its 2011-12 season due to a $500,000 shortfall on its $3.2 million budget.

But it’s not all bad news. A couple of weeks ago I read a promising guest post on Beth’s Blog regarding use of digital and social media by arts organizations and how it is helping build audiences and even raise funds. If you work in the arts, and you haven’t seen this, check it out.

The post is a summary of findings from the report, “How strong is your social net?” and is based on research done by Trudel | MacPherson, arts communications consultants.

Here are two examples to pique your interest:

  • The Alberta Bair Theater in Montana is having success promoting events online. The theater’s Marketing and Box Office Director, Jody Olson, observes: “Ticket sales spike immediately when a digital message is sent out.”
  • Georgia Shakespeare, an organization facing closure due to shortfalls in public and private funding, issued an appeal on Facebook and raised $150,000 in two weeks from more than 1,000 people all over the U.S. who had been connected to the theater at some point in the past.

Is your arts organization trying new ways of connecting with audiences and funders? Tell us about them.

- Susan Stehling, communications associate

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Emerging Trends in Corporate Giving to the Arts

November 10, 2011

Despite the recent drop in giving to the arts, Minnesota is viewed as a thriving epicenter for arts and cultural activities.  In particular, Minnesota’s businesses and corporations continue to be strong supporters.

Corporations have wide ranging programmatic and geographic interests when it comes to funding the arts, but there are some emerging trends we can see in corporate funding in Minnesota:

  1. Corporate Community Connections: Corporate funders primarily fund in communities in which they are headquartered or have operations.  Minnesota is very fortunate to have several Fortune 500 companies based in the state.  Corporate funders see a direction connection between the strength of their companies and the health and vitality of the communities in which they are based, which means strong, vibrant arts and culture opportunities.
  2. Engaging Employees:  Cultural offerings can be a powerful recruitment and retention tool for companies to attract employees to a particular community.  Corporations also involve employees through grant review committees, giving campaigns, and volunteer activities, which builds the employees’ knowledge and understanding of the nonprofit organizations in the area.  Some provide incentives for board service or to attend cultural events, designed to help employees feel more connected to their communities and the corporation’s funding priorities.
  3. Arts and Education: As many corporate funders have increased their funding and interest in education, some look for a connection between arts and education in grant proposals.  There is strong evidence of the connection between arts and success in school, so when arts and education are combined, it’s a win-win from the funder’s point of view.
  4. Making Arts Accessible:  Corporate funders also are interested in increasing the accessibility of arts to low-income and diverse communities. Many do so by funding free days at local museums, purchasing tickets for students and other groups to see concerts and theater, and funding programs that explicitly bring cultural events to communities that may not otherwise be exposed to the arts.
  5. Changing Priorities: While there is still a strong commitment among Minnesota’s corporations to the arts, as is the case with any type of funder, something may change that can adjust a company’s funding priorities.  As funding commitments in other areas of work have grown, the guidelines for arts grants have become more focused, either geographically or programmatically, in order for the corporation to continue to have an impact, even with fewer funds.

Corporations care about the communities in which they are based, and actively play a role in making those communities engaging and thriving places to live for everyone, not just their employees.  And the arts play a big role in that.

Join the conversation: How do you contribute to the arts in Minnesota?

-Stephanie Jacobs, MCF director of member services

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Arts Giving Needs to Contribute More to the Common Good

November 8, 2011

For those of you who have been following our recent article on 2009 arts giving trends, you know that arts giving in 2009 in Minnesota fell to its lowest level since 2003, but there is hope on a national level for a rebound in 2011. According to the article Arts Giving is Up, But Hold the Applause by Joel Rose from National Public Radio, charitable giving for the arts was up 5% so far in 2011. The star example of this mini renaissance is the Metropolitan Opera which had a fifty percent increase in donations this year, a record campaign bringing in over $182 million dollars.

What does the “hold the applause” refer to? The majority of money given went to serve audiences that are whiter and wealthier than the American average, and to large organizations that primarily serve Western European culture, like opera houses, art museums and classical music groups. The majority of foundations give to arts organizations with yearly budgets exceeding $5 million.

Now, I personally love the Minnesota Opera and would be thrilled to see it also have a blockbuster fundraising year, and as an individual I have every right to support what fits my tastes. But what about large grantmaking organizations? What obligations do they have to ensure an equitable, inclusive and diversified field of grantees get funding?

One solution to increasing the diversity in arts grantmaking may be to make grants available tailored to the needs and capabilities of small arts organizations, which tend to be more diverse.  Some grantmakers already offer small grants to promote community art and multi-cultural or ethnic art initiatives. At MCF member The St. Paul Foundation, the Asian Pacific Endowment specializes in funding community-based organizations and informal grassroots groups with budgets under $500,000. In 2010, this endowment funded projects that used culture, including the arts, to address social issues that affect the Asian Pacific Islander community in Minnesota. One example of the grant projects that the Asian Pacific Endowment funded is the Bon Odori pictured above, performed annually at the Japanese Lantern Lighting Festival in Como Park. Initiatives like the Asian Pacific Endowment are first steps towards ensuring that arts funding in Minnesota diversifies, truly serving the common good.

- Kaitlin Ostlie, MCF administrative assistant

Photo courtesy of the Japan America Society of Minnesota

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Grantmaking at Margaret A. Cargill Philanthropies

October 26, 2011

Margaret Cargill

Read the fall issue of Giving Forum for an update on what’s happening at Margaret A. Cargill Philanthropies, where grantmaking has started in the areas of Environment; Relief, Recovery and Development; and Arts and Cultures.

  • Environment: Grants made in June focus on land-use solutions in the Tongass National Forest in Alaska and neighboring Great Bear Rainforest in Canada; also Micronesia, to support efforts to preserve coral reefs and land-based resources. The next grants likely will be made in Asia, focused on marine- and land-use in Indonesia and Cambodia. Watch for a local subprogram focus on connecting youth with the outdoors.
    Email: environment@macphil.org
  • Relief, Recovery and Development: First “rapid response” grants made in September 2011 to Midwest community foundations, to help residents affected by flooding and tornadoes.
    Email: reliefrecoverydevelopment@macphil.org
  • Arts and Cultures – Native Arts, Teacher Education, and Folk Art: Organizations working on Native Arts in the Pacific Northwest are now being invited to apply for grants from the Native Arts program. Those doing similar work on Native Arts in the upper Midwest, including Minnesota, will soon be invited to apply.
    Email: artsandcultures@macphil.org

Other program areas that the organization will address are under development. They will include: Aging services; children and families; animal welfare; and planned health.

Most, if not all, of these areas will include a component of local giving. Terry Meersman, vice president of programs for Margaret A. Cargill Foundation, explains:

“We’re clear about our program areas, and we’re clear there will be local giving. As much as possible, we’d like to be consistent in the areas we’re defining for national and global giving, but until we have things laid out completely, it’s hard to say that there will be an exact parallel structure locally.”

Read the Giving Forum article for much more information.

- Susan Stehling, communications associate

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St. Paul Arts Journalism Projects Recognized

October 11, 2011

Thanks to the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation, five projects that offer innovative models for local arts journalism will receive support of up to $20,000 to develop an Idea to Action plan. These finalists will then be eligible for up to $80,000 to implement their project.

Each of these projects competed in the Knight/NEA Community Arts Journalism Challenge, founded this summer to find new ways to use technology to inform and engage people in the arts.

Six projects, including two in St. Paul, received honorable mentions and $1,000 each.  The local winners are:

  • Minnesota Public Radio/American Public Media: to expand its multimedia arts coverage of the Latino community, including reporting shared with Spanish- and English-language publishing partners.
  • The St. Paul Pioneer Press: to provide a fresh perspective on the local arts scene by hiring comic book artists to cover arts and culture.

Congrats to the winners and to the Knight Foundation, an MCF member, for their efforts to foster arts journalism in our communities.

- Susan Stehling, communications associate, MCF

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Grantmaking to the Arts Drops to Lowest Level Since 2003

September 22, 2011

Minnesota grantmaking to the arts decreased by 10 percent in 2009 from 2008 – and dropped 19 percent from 2004 levels – according to new research by the Minnesota Council on Foundations (MCF).

The research sample gave $105.7 million to the arts in 2009, the most recent time period for which complete data are available. The sample includes 100 of Minnesota’s top grantmakers and a portion of their grants that represent about two thirds of the state’s philanthropic giving for the year.

The share of Minnesota grant dollars going to the arts has decreased steadily in recent years, from 15 percent in 2004, to 11 percent in 2009. Arts grantmaking falls behind giving to education, human services, and public affairs/society benefit.

“The poor economy and changing priorities at foundations have hit arts organizations especially hard,” says Bill King, MCF President. “Many funders have reduced arts giving and prioritized human services and education giving during tough times.”

Corporate grantmakers, private foundations and community/public foundations all decreased their giving to the category of arts, culture and humanities. Corporate grantmakers, who gave just over half of the arts grant dollars in 2009, decreased their funding by 7 percent.

Private grantmakers, who gave about one-third of arts dollars, decreased their funding by 5 percent to $37.6 million. And community/public foundations reduced giving by 32 percent to $11.8 million.

Minnesota Community Foundation and The Saint Paul Foundation was the state’s third largest arts grantmaker in 2009.

Sharon DeMark, program officer, explains, “At our foundations, we remain committed to supporting the arts as an important part of a vibrant community.”

As in past years, in 2009 the performing arts subcategory received the largest share – just over one-third – of arts grant dollars. Grantmaking to arts, culture and humanities includes contributions to the performing arts, museums, media/communications, cultural organizations, historical societies, visual arts, humanities and arts services.

“The arts are an essential part of life for all Minnesotans,” stresses Vickie Benson, arts program director at The McKnight Foundation, Minnesota’s second largest arts funder. “Artists help us find meaning and make sense of the world around us.”

In 2009, the Minnesota Legislature appropriated approximately $93 million from the Arts and Cultural Heritage Fund for projects starting between July 1, 2009, and July 1, 2011. This new taxpayer-funded source of arts funding is not included in MCF’s philanthropic research.

MCF conducts Giving in Minnesota research annually to examine long-term trends in charitable giving. MCF’s complete Giving in Minnesota, 2011 Edition, will be released in October.

This year’s summaries on giving to arts, education and human services, and complete research from prior years, can be found at www.mcf.org/research/giving.

- Susan Stehling, communications associate

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