Record Donations for Oregon Cultural Trust Means More Funds for Local Nonprofits

Salem, OR. A new mix of marketing strategies attracted 55.2 percent more new donors and 6.7 percent more total donations – a record $4.9 million – to the Oregon Cultural Trust in 2017. The funds will support fiscal year 2019 grants to cultural organizations across the state. Recent grants have helped fund projects like transforming a major gallery at Portland Children’s Museum into The Studio – a clay, maker and multi-purpose art space for families.

The FY2019 Cultural Development Grant Guidelines, with budget form, are now posted here. The online application will open March 1, 2018 with an application deadline of April 13, 2018. The FY19 Cultural Development grant cycle are for projects taking place August 1, 2018 – July 31, 2019. Grant seekers interested in applying for Cultural Trust grants are encouraged to attend the 2018 Conversation with Funders & Partners workshops.

Executive Director Brian Rogers explains how the Cultural Trust attracted more donors. “We changed it up a bit, investing more of our resources in grassroots marketing. The goal was to have as many one-on-one conversations with cultural donors as possible. These results validate that strategy. We are looking forward to investing the increased funding in cultural activities throughout Oregon.”

“People are the best communicators of how the cultural tax credit works,” said Cultural Trust Board Chair Chuck Sams. “Our teams attended countless cultural events to talk with patrons about using the tax credit to double the statewide impact of their cultural giving. It is gratifying that Oregonians answered the call to continue strengthening Oregon’s cultural community and overall quality of life.”

The Cultural Trust contracted with bell+funk of Eugene and Artslandia of Portland to help plan and implement its 2017 marketing campaign. Working with Trust staff, they launched a new Ambassador program, a comprehensive online toolkit, a Make-a-Match game to engage event patrons and a first-ever Cultural Trust phone bank. They also adjusted campaign creative to better tell grant impact stories and helped to strengthen promotional partnerships with cultural and media partners.

Cultural Trust board members actively participated, hosting Ambassador events and submitting letters to the editor to media outlets across the state.

The $4.9 million fundraising total – up from just shy of $4.6 million in 2016 – includes 9,767 donations and 1,642 new donors, up from 1,058 in 2016. It also includes $406,827 raised through the Willamette Week Give!Guide, a 3 percent increase over 2016.

More than half of the money raised will be distributed directly to Oregon’s cultural groups this summer; the remainder will grow the Cultural Trust permanent fund. Cultural Trust grants are distributed through five Statewide Cultural Partners – Oregon Arts Commission, Oregon Heritage, Oregon Historical Society, Oregon Humanities and the Oregon State Office of Historic Preservation – as well as to 45 county/tribal coalitions and directly to cultural nonprofits via Cultural Development Grants.

The more than 100 projects supported by Cultural Development Grants in FY2018 include:

• Theater lighting and sound equipment upgrades for the Florence Events Center;
• The renovation of the historic Baker Orpheum Theatre to become a community performing arts center in Baker City;
• Exhibits and programs that highlight the LBGTQ community and Native youth as part of a Cultural Diversity Initiative by the High Desert Museum in Bend; and

View a full list of Cultural Trust grant projects and links to Cultural County Coalitions with lists of county projects they fund.

Again, here are the details about applying for the grants:

The FY2019 Cultural Development Grant Guidelines, with budget form, are now posted here.

The online application will open March 1, 2018 with an application deadline of April 13, 2018. The FY19 Cultural Development grant cycle are for projects taking place August 1, 2018 – July 31, 2019. Grant seekers interested in applying for Cultural Trust grants are encouraged to attend the 2018 Conversation with Funders & Partners workshops.

Grants are awarded in four categories and are intended to fund arts, heritage, history, preservation and humanities programs.

Cultural Development Grants are for project activities that:

• Protect and stabilize Oregon’s cultural resources;
• Expand public awareness of, access to and participation in quality cultural experiences in Oregon;
• Ensure that Oregon cultural resources are strong and dynamic contributors to Oregon’s communities and quality of life; and
• Build an understanding of the value and impact of culture to Oregonians.

The four grant categories are:

• Access: Make culture broadly available to Oregonians;
• Preservation: Invest in Oregon’s cultural heritage by recovering, preserving and sharing historic assets and achievements;
• Creativity: Create and/or present cultural or scholarly work; Support the development of artists, cultural experts, or scholars who promote culture as a core part of vibrant communities; and
• Capacity: Strengthen cultural organizations to increase stability, improve sustainability, or measure/share cultural impacts.

In considering funding requests, the Cultural Trust seeks proposals that will expand the public benefit of Oregon’s culture through:

• Positive impact on, or improvement of, cultural resources and activities and the expansion of public and private support for culture;
• Preservation of the past or investing in the future, by commissioning new work that continues Oregon’s strong artistic, literary and humanistic presence;
• Enhancing cultural opportunity and understanding by creating or sustaining model programs that can be replicated elsewhere; and
• By creating opportunity for every community to invest further in its culture, stimulating new ventures that could not be tried without Trust help.

The Trust’s two non-competitive grant programs fund the Trust’s five statewide Cultural Partners and 45 County and Tribal Cultural Coalitions.

Have questions? Contact Aili Schreiner at aili.schreiner@oregon.gov or 503.986.0089. You may schedule a 30 minute grant application conversation before April 13, and may submit draft applications for feedback by March 31.

FY19 Cultural Development Grants

As part of the grant agreement (sent directly to recipients), FY19 CDV grant recipients must complete and submit the following to cultural.trust@oregon.gov:

• Communication Partner Profile
• Communication Partner Menu

FY18 Cultural Coalition Grants

FY18 Cultural Coalition Grants have been awarded!

Cultural Coalitions may now submit their FY18 Contact Form to cultural.trust@oregon.gov. Please include as attachments:

• Updated Board Roster: Include names and contact information
• Grant Guidelines & Application: Have you updated your grant guidelines or application since last year? If yes, please attach your new versions (PDF format)
• Cultural Plan: Have you updated your Cultural Plan? If yes, please attach your updated plan (PDF format). For tribal coalitions, your Cultural Resource Department Plan can be submitted instead.

Questions? Please contact Kat.Bell@oregon.gov or (503) 986-0082 or Aili.Schreiner@oregon.gov or (503) 986-0089.

FY17 Cultural Participation (Coalition) Sub-Grant Forms

Please submit your completed form and send to: cultural.trust@oregon.gov. Questions? Call us at (503) 986-0082.