GIA Blog

Inside Philanthropy checks in with leaders in the arts funding sector to see how the space has changed in response to calls to fight systemic racism and what remains to be done.

The Joyce Foundation launched recently a new grantmaking strategy through 2025 for its programs, focused on racial equity and economic mobility for culture and other funding areas.

PolicyLink recently released "10 Priorities for Advancing Racial Equity Through the American Rescue Plan: A guide for city and county policymakers," suggesting municipal strategies for deploying ARP funds equitably, efficiently, and strategically.

New York City has established a new $25 million program, the City Artist Corps, to provide funding to artists, musicians, and other performers "to create works across the city, whether through public art, performances, pop-up shows, murals or other community arts projects," The New York Times reported.

On Thursday, March 11, President Joe Biden signed the American Rescue Plan (ARP) Act of 2021, a $1.9 trillion package in response to the COVID-19 crisis. Of the more than $122 billion allocated for K-12 schools, at least 90 percent of funds are required to be used by State Education Agencies (SEAs) to make subgrants to Local Educational Agencies (LEAs). Under the bill, SEAs and LEAs are required to allocate a significant percentage of funding towards evidence-based interventions – such as summer learning or summer enrichment, extended day, comprehensive after school programs, or extended school year programs – that address the social, emotional, and academic needs of students, particularly those disproportionately impacted by the pandemic.

The Mapping COVID-19 Recovery Project, a collaborative effort of 25 Chicago foundations, nonprofit organizations, and public and private groups, links historic disinvestments in some Chicago neighborhoods with COVID-19’s impact on those communities, reports WBEZ.

"With 2021 designated the United Nations International Year of Creative Economy for Sustainable Development, there can be no better time for museum leaders to follow the example set by their university and foundation peers by aligning capital with values and mission. Inaction risks reputation, as well as financial return," wrote recently Laura Callanan, founding partner of Upstart Co-Lab.

For the month of May, GIA’s photo banner features work supported by the National Association of Latino Arts and Cultures (NALAC).

The National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) announced more than $52 million in funding for state and jurisdictional arts agencies and regional arts organizations, the first recommended awards of the American Rescue Plan (ARP). The announcement states these funds are designed to support the arts sector as it recovers from the devastating impact of the COVID-19 pandemic.

The Posse Foundation has launched a new arts initiative, to connect students who are focused on arts and culture from cities across the country to top arts-oriented colleges and universities, in partnership with Lin-Manuel Miranda and the Miranda Family Fund, with CalArts as institutional partner.