Grantmakers in the Arts

(2-16-2011) Erica Orden for The Wall Street Journal:

A year after ending a charitable program that pumped nearly $200 million into hundreds of arts and social-service organizations, Mayor Michael Bloomberg is reopening the pipeline to his personal fortune through his multibillion-dollar family foundation.

(2-14-2011) From AFTA News:

Today the Obama Administration released its much anticipated Fiscal Year 2012 Budget Request to Congress which includes funding for the nation’s cultural agencies and programs including the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA), Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS), and the Smithsonian Institution.

(2-14-2011) This report, Next Generation Organizations: 9 Key Traits, funded by the Annie E. Casey Foundation, provides a simple framework and self-assessment tool to guide nonprofits as they foster learning, identify organizational areas of strength, and focus staff and board conversations where they need to be to become next generation organizations.

(2-13-2011) Composer Christopher Tin won a Grammy for the track "Baba Yetu" title song for the video game Civilization IV. The track features GIA member, Ron Ragin, program officer at the Hewlett Foundation. Here's a clip of a live concert version, and here's the video game trailer.

(02-12-2011) My dear friend Donna died last week. She was 72. She lived in Pierre, South Dakota. She was a force of nature…an actor, director, writer, community organizer and volunteer, feminist, facilitator, mediator, leader and much more. But, mostly and always, Donna was a teacher. It’s how she started her illustrious career. She spent years in the classroom where she made students feel special, especially those students who didn’t fit the small town norm.

(2-11-2011) Next Thursday, February 17, the Washington State Arts Commission and The Wallace Foundation present a free forum at McCaw Hall (Seattle) on community engagement through digital media. Professor Hanson Hosein, an award-winning documentary filmmaker and director of the Master of Communication in Digital Media at the University of Washington, is the featured presenter. The following day, workshops (also free) will be held in Seattle and Tacoma, with instruction for organizations on filming our stories and reaching constituents through digital media.

(2-10-2011) This week, LINC and the Ford Foundation announced awards of up to $100,000 to 12 nonprofits seeking start-up funds for arts and cultural facilities. The grants were made through the Space for Change program, which is designed to help grantees deepen their planning processes and leverage a stronger position as collaborative partners with municipalities, developers, and local stakeholders, while also expanding their national network of peers.