This article contains content that is written like an advertisement .(November 2020) |
Formation | 1960; 62 years ago |
---|---|
Headquarters | Washington, D.C. |
Interim CEOs | Jamie Bennett and Suzy Delvalle |
Website | https://www.americansforthearts.org/ |
Americans for the Arts is a nonprofit organization whose primary focus is advancing the arts in the United States with offices in Washington, D.C., and New York City, and more than 50 years of service. Americans for the Arts is dedicated to representing and serving local communities, and creating opportunities for every American to participate in and appreciate all forms of the arts.
Americans for the Arts was founded in 1996 as a result of a merger between the National Assembly of Local Arts Agencies (NALAA) and the American Council for the Arts (ACA). In 2005, the two merged again with Arts & Business Council Inc., also known as Arts & Business Council of New York. [1]
Its mission is to serve, advance, and lead the network of organizations and individuals who cultivate, promote, sustain, and support the arts in America. Americans for the Arts focuses on four primary goals:
Americans for the Arts achieves these goals in partnership with local, state, and national arts organizations; government agencies; business leaders; individual philanthropists; educators; and funders throughout the country. In addition, Americans for the Arts produces annual events to heighten visibility for the arts, including the National Arts Awards, which recognize those artists and arts leaders who exhibit exemplary national leadership and whose work demonstrates extraordinary artistic achievement; BCA 10,[1] which recognizes ten U.S. companies for their exceptional commitment to the arts through grants, local partnerships, volunteer programs, matching gifts, sponsorships, and board membership; and the Public Leadership in the Arts Awards[2] (in cooperation with The United States Conference of Mayors) honoring elected officials in local, state and federal government for their support of the arts.
Through national visibility campaigns and local outreach, Americans for the Arts strives to motivate and mobilize opinion leaders and decision-makers who can ensure the arts thrive in America. As host of the national Arts Advocacy Day on Capitol Hill, Americans for the Arts annually convenes arts advocates from across the country to advance federal support of the arts, humanities, and arts education. The Americans for the Arts Action Fund[3] is its affiliate 501(c)(4) organization that seeks to mobilize one million grassroots advocates to advance pro-arts public policies at the federal, state, and local levels. Membership in the Arts Action Fund is free.
To inform decision-makers about the arts, Americans for the Arts gathers, generates, and disseminates data, information, and the tools needed by arts industry stakeholders. Its areas of focus expand the conversation about arts policy, foster greater awareness of the role and value of the arts in community life, and promote greater access to the arts by advancing community-based cultural organizations nationwide. Americans for the Arts conducts both quantitative and qualitative research studies on segments of America’s nonprofit and for-profit arts industries.
Americans for the Arts serves more than 150,000 organizational and individual members and stakeholders. Local arts agencies throughout the United States comprise Americans for the Arts’ core constituency. It also serves a variety of unique partner networks with particular interests, including public art, united arts fundraising, arts education and emerging arts leaders.
An October 2023 study released by Americans for the Arts found that "nonprofit arts and culture organizations and their audiences generated $151.7 billion in economic activity—$73.3 billion in spending by the organizations, which leveraged an additional $78.4 billion in event-related spending by their audiences." This spending supported 2.6 million jobs and generated $29.1 billion in local, state and federal tax revenue." 224,000 audience members and over 16,000 organizations in all 50 states and Puerto Rico were surveyed over an 18 month period to collect the data. [2]
In the United States, federal grants are economic aid issued by the United States government out of the general federal revenue. A federal grant is an award of financial assistance from a federal agency to a recipient to carry out a public purpose of support or stimulation authorized by a law of the United States.
The U.S. Economic Development Administration (EDA) is an agency in the United States Department of Commerce that provides grants and technical assistance to economically distressed communities in order to generate new employment, help retain existing jobs and stimulate industrial and commercial growth through a variety of investment programs. EDA works with boards and communities across the country on economic development strategies.
The National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) is an independent agency of the United States federal government that offers support and funding for projects exhibiting artistic excellence. It was created in 1965 as an independent agency of the federal government by an act of the U.S. Congress, signed by President Lyndon B. Johnson on September 29, 1965. It is a sub-agency of the National Foundation on the Arts and the Humanities, along with the National Endowment for the Humanities, the Federal Council on the Arts and the Humanities, and the Institute of Museum and Library Services.
The National Wildlife Refuge System (NWRS) is a system of protected areas of the United States managed by the United States Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS), an agency within the Department of the Interior. The National Wildlife Refuge System is the system of public lands and waters set aside to conserve America's fish, wildlife, and plants. Since President Theodore Roosevelt designated Florida's Pelican Island National Wildlife Refuge as the first wildlife refuge in 1903, the system has grown to over 568 national wildlife refuges and 38 wetland management districts encompassing about 859,000,000 acres (3,476,200 km2).
A grant is a financial award given by a government entity, foundation, corporation, or other organization to an individual or organization for a specific purpose. Unlike loans, grants do not need to be repaid, making them an attractive source of funding for various activities, such as research, education, public service projects, and business ventures. Examples include student grants, research grants, the Sovereign Grant paid by the UK Treasury to the monarch, and some European Regional Development Fund payments in the European Union.
The American Institute of Biological Sciences (AIBS) is a nonprofit scientific public charitable organization. The organization's mission is to promote the use of science to inform decision-making and advance biology for the benefit of science and society.
Arts administration is a field in the arts sector that facilitates programming within cultural organizations. Arts administrators are responsible for facilitating the day-to-day operations of the organization as well as the long term goals by and fulfilling its vision, mission and mandate. Arts management became present in the arts and culture sector in the 1960s. Organizations include professional non-profit entities. For examples theaters, museums, symphony orchestras, concert bands, jazz organizations, opera houses, ballet companies and many smaller professional and non-professional for-profit arts-related organizations. The duties of an arts administrator can include staff management, marketing, budget management, public relations, fundraising, program development evaluation, community engagement, strategic planning, and board relations.
The Joint Ocean Commission Initiative is a bipartisan, collaborative group in the United States that aims to "accelerate the pace of change that results in meaningful ocean policy reform." The Joint Initiative was established by the members of two major U.S.-based oceans commissions: the Pew Oceans Commission and the United States Commission on Ocean Policy. It was originally co-chaired by former White House Chief of Staff Leon Panetta and former Chief of Naval Operations Admiral James D. Watkins, chairs of the Pew and U.S. Ocean Commissions, respectively. Currently, the Joint Initiative is led by a Leadership Council, which is co-chaired by Christine Todd Whitman, former EPA Administrator under President George W. Bush and former governor of New Jersey, and Norman Y. Mineta, Secretary of Commerce under President Bill Clinton and Secretary of Transportation under President George W. Bush.
NMAC, formerly known as the National Minority AIDS Council, is a nonprofit organization that works for health equity and racial justice to end the HIV epidemic in America. The nonprofit organization, located in Washington, D.C. was founded in 1987. The organization changed its vision and mission in 2015 to reflect their efforts better. NMAC represents over 3,000 community and faith-based organizations across the US. The agency advances its mission by providing minority and minority-serving faith and community based organizations with capacity building assistance programs, online and classroom-based trainings, printed and electronic resources, grassroots organization and political advocacy. These activities improve the delivery of HIV/AIDS services, helping to mitigate the impact of HIV/AIDS in underserved and marginalized communities.
The American Council for an Energy-Efficient Economy (ACEEE) is a nonprofit, 501(c)(3) organization. Founded in 1980, ACEEE's mission is to act as a catalyst to advance energy efficiency policies, programs, technologies, investments, and behaviors in order to help achieve greater economic prosperity, and environmental protection.
The North Carolina Arts Council is an organization in the U.S. state of North Carolina that provides grants to artists, musicians and arts organizations. The group's mission is "arts for all people." It was founded by executive order in 1964 by Governor Terry Sanford, and it became a statutory state agency on April 11, 1967. It is an agency of the North Carolina Department of Natural and Cultural Resources, which is the United States' first cabinet-level state agency for the arts, history and libraries. It operates from headquarters in Raleigh.
The Office of Social Innovation and Civic Participation was an office new to the Obama Administration, created within the White House, to catalyze new and innovative ways of encouraging government to do business differently. Its first director was the economist Sonal Shah. The final director was David Wilkinson.
The Pennsylvania Housing Finance Agency is a non-profit organization which serves the people of Pennsylvania by offering affordable housing resources, including loans and rent assistance. PHFA was created by an Executive Order by the Pennsylvania General Assembly in 1972.
The Agricultural Science and Technology Indicators (ASTI) is a comprehensive source of information on agricultural research and development (R&D) statistics.
The science policy of the United States is the responsibility of many organizations throughout the federal government. Much of the large-scale policy is made through the legislative budget process of enacting the yearly federal budget, although there are other legislative issues that directly involve science, such as energy policy, climate change, and stem cell research. Further decisions are made by the various federal agencies which spend the funds allocated by Congress, either on in-house research or by granting funds to outside organizations and researchers.
A sustainability organization is (1) an organized group of people that aims to advance sustainability and/or (2) those actions of organizing something sustainably. Unlike many business organizations, sustainability organizations are not limited to implementing sustainability strategies which provide them with economic and cultural benefits attained through environmental responsibility. For sustainability organizations, sustainability can also be an end in itself without further justifications.
El Pomar Foundation is a private, general purpose foundation established in 1937 by Spencer and Julie Penrose. With a mission to "enhance, encourage, and promote the current and future well-being of the people of Colorado," El Pomar Foundation provides more than $22 million annually in grants and programs throughout the state.
Invest in US is an early childhood education initiative and public awareness campaign spearheaded by the bi-partisan, non-profit First Five Years Fund and funded by foundations, corporations, and individuals. The initiative works to expand high quality early childhood programs and research, as well as to offer resources to community leaders working to increase access to early learning.
The Hispanic Federation (HF) is a U.S based non-governmental organization focused on supporting Hispanic communities through local, state, and national advocacy. The Federation was founded in New York City in 1990 by a small group of Latino leaders, establishing initiatives to advocate for the interests of the Hispanic community and has expanded to establish programs, and policies in 16 states. The organization's objective is to empower and advance the Hispanic community primarily through service pillars, membership services, advocacy, and community programs. The Federation has formed relationships with a network of 100 Latino grassroots nonprofits, as well as collaborating with organizations, government officials, and private sector partners to enact systemic change related to a variety of socioeconomic issues for Hispanic communities. The Federation has gained national recognition for its work in areas of education, health, immigration, economic empowerment, civic engagement, environment, and organizational development to strengthening Latino institutions to ultimately increase the quality of life within Hispanic communities.
The Congressional Hispanic Caucus Institute (CHCI) is a Hispanic nonprofit and nonpartisan 501(c)(3) leadership development organization established in 1978 by organizing members of the Congressional Hispanic Caucus (CHC) and is headquartered in Washington, D.C.