ArtsFund and the Paul G. Allen Family Foundation today announced a program that again will distribute $10 million in unrestricted funding to organizations across Washington whose primary mission is to produce or support arts and culture activities.
The 2024 Community Accelerator Grant program is a second round of funding that builds on the program’s 2023 pilot, which provided a total of $10 million to 671 organizations. The program will continue to prioritize organizations that center BIPOC, the LGBTQ+ community, and people with disabilities, as well as those located in rural communities, according to a news release.
Grants will range from $2,500 to $25,000, according to ArtsFund’s website, which noted average grant size in this year’s pilot was $14,909. Grants will be issued by June 30. Applications for the 2024 program will run from Feb. 5-March 5. Further details about the application process, the advisory panel, and criteria will be released in January.
The program funded every eligible applicant in 2023, including organizations in 35 of Washington’s 39 counties. While funding could be used for any aspect of grantees’ work, recipients indicated their greatest needs were for salaries and labor, programming, and rent and facility costs.
Arts and culture have a big economic impact in the state.
Almost $73 billion was added to Washington’s economy from arts and cultural production in 2021 and 187,196 workers were employed in the arts and cultural industries, according to the National Endowment for the Arts website, citing 2021 data from the Arts and Cultural Production Satellite Account produced jointly by NEA’s Office of Research & Analytics and U.S. Department of Commerce’s Bureau of Economic Analysis.
This chart shows the diversity of programming among Community Accelerator Grant recipients this year.
“The initial round of the Community Accelerator Grant taught us so much about the positive impact unrestricted funding has on arts and culture organizations,” ArtsFund President and CEO Michael Greer said in today’s news release. “Empowered by the unrestricted funds provided by the Paul G. Allen Family Foundation, recipients have been able to address their specific needs, and invest in their missions and essential roles serving communities across Washington state.”
The low-barrier application and relatively fast turn-around time between application and funding also played an important role in supporting organizations as they bounced back from the pandemic, the release said. It added that ultimately, 97% of 2023 grant recipients reported they believe this program will help them raise additional revenue, supporting the “accelerator” concept.
“The Community Accelerator Grant shows the power of this community-driven model, and the impact that can be made when organizations themselves choose how to use urgently needed funds,” Lara Littlefield, executive director for partnerships and programs at the Paul G. Allen Family Foundation, added in the release. “Arts and culture organizations are central to vibrant and healthy communities and we recognize the broader need to empower these organizations and all that they do for Washingtonians across our state.”