GIA Blog

From Mellon Foundation: Asali DeVan Ecclesiastes was no stranger to the significance of Ashé Cultural Arts Center when she joined the non-profit as chief equity officer in January 2020.

“This was the first place that paid me to write a poem in my early 20s,” says Ecclesiastes of the New Orleans non-profit organization that celebrates its 25th anniversary next year. “This is an organization that I have been around since its inception. I grew up alongside it.”

From ARTnews: "For the first time in two decades, the American Alliance of Museums, an organization that oversees policies around museums in the U.S., will update standards that apply to museum workforces related to diversity, equity, accessibility, and inclusion (DEAI)"

"The museum group has detailed plans to establish a new initiative meant to implement the standards. The organization will appoint an advisory panel made up of six to eight experts in the museum space to draw up the new DEAI standards over the course of the next three years. The initiative, the organization said in a statement, is backed by a $740,000 government grant distributed by the Institute of Museum and Library Services."

In the latest episode of Art Restart with the Thomas S. Kenan Institute for the Arts, they are joined by Trey McIntyre, "a graduate of the UNCSA School of Dance, [who] went on to the Houston Ballet Academy whereupon finishing his training, he was given the position of Choreographic Apprentice at the Ballet..."

"In this interview with Pier Carlo Talenti, Trey discusses why and how he has always pushed himself past comfort zones in order to feed his voracious curiosity and wonders what it will take for dance companies to remain equally curious and nimble in the digital age."

From Philadelphia's Cultural Treasures: "The Pew Center for Arts & Heritage in collaboration with The Barra Foundation, Neubauer Family Foundation, William Penn Foundation, and Wyncote Foundation announced today $1,170,000 in fellowships to 12 Philadelphia-area artists and cultural practitioners of color through the Philadelphia’s Cultural Treasures (PCT) funding initiative.  These fellowships are awarded as part of the regional component of America’s Cultural Treasures, an initiative created by the Ford Foundation. The PCT efforts specifically support Black, Indigenous, and People of Color (BIPOC) cultural groups, artists, and organizations with exceptional significance to Greater Philadelphia."

From AgitArte: "¡Saludos! For the first time AgitArte is hosting a funders briefing to share our most recent work and celebrate the last 25 years of cultural solidarity work, popular education, agitation and arts for our collective liberation. We are inviting all of our foundation and philanthropic supporters and partners to join us in imagining the next 25 years of AgitArte’s critical work. Details and RSVP information below. We hope you can make it and we can’t wait to see you!"

From Native Americans in Philanthropy: "There is a growing recognition that many public policy issues are more complex than one sector can address alone. One path towards lasting, systemic change? Public-private partnerships. Public-private partnerships are not new – the government and the private sector often work together on a shared mission. However, there’s a long way to go in leveraging these types of collaborations to support Tribal Nations and Native-led work. This week, Native Americans in Philanthropy (NAP) joined the White House and the Department of the Interior to announce a new, historic Office of Strategic Partnerships (OSP)."

From Rockefeller Philanthropy Advisors: "How might philanthropy better support efforts to build and preserve democracy given the deep-seated and persistent problems of racial injustice and inequity, especially in light of recent elections and societal trends? Democracy-Focused Philanthropy: Choosing Operating Models for Deeper Impact, a new publication released today by Rockefeller Philanthropy Advisors (RPA), seeks to address this question, and to highlight the central role of equity and racial justice in democracy-focused philanthropy. Based on research commissioned by the  Democracy Fund  for its own strategic planning process, the report is the result of extensive research on more than a dozen democracy funders as well as interviews with leaders of ten additional foundations deeply engaged in democracy-related issues, and six experts on racial justice and DEI."

From Ruth Foundation for the Arts: "The formation of Ruth Arts’ multi-year Thought Leaders program is inspired by the breadth of Ruth DeYoung Koher II’s life and giving—non-hierarchical and committed to structural change with an unwavering generosity and a dedication to the unexpected. Through a substantial, sustained level of support, our multi-year program uplifts organizations undertaking ambitious, transformative initiatives with long-term impact. Organizations that are dedicated to the complex work of forming new possibilities through experimentation, capacity building, and deeper understandings and investigations of our histories, environments, or the full arc of an artist’s life."

"Recovering from the worst days of the pandemic has been daunting for America's 1,800 regional theaters. But some, thanks to philanthropic help, are using this moment as an opportunity for reinvention," said Neda Ulaby for NPR. "Take, for example, Penumbra Theatre in St. Paul, Minn., which is grounded in a historically African-American neighborhood with aesthetic roots in the Black Arts Movement. Since Penumbra started staging plays in the early 1970s, it's developed a national reputation for growing Black talent that's changed theater worldwide."

From Common Field: "As a national network, Common Field served as a catalyst for work happening on the ground by increasing access and sharing of resources across regions. As we come to the end of our time as an organization, we are reflecting not only on the life of Common Field, but also on the future that lies ahead for our work and communities. When Common Field decided to close, we wanted to commit to a process that would leave the field with tools to shape the possibilities ahead. And with that in mind, we are so pleased to share our final two sunset initiatives with you!"