$999K in expenses

Promote the arts for their individual, community, and economic benefits.1. Community resources: artskc provides community resources and connecting and convening opportunities for the arts community. These include leadership networking discussions, hosting first friday events, opportunities to participate at local arts festivals and other arts-related activities. During the covid-19 pandemic, artskc provided virtual meetings to over 1,000 participants on covid-19 relevant topics and specific resources. Post pandemic, it is continuing and furthering its efforts as a thought leader for the region. (continued on schedule o)promote the arts for their individual, community, and economic benefits. (continued)2. Cultural portal for the arts, now known as artskcgo.com: work began in fiscal year 2016 to launch a comprehensive cultural event calendar and resource directories that provide an easier mechanism for artists and arts organizations to promote their respective arts offerings as well as for arts patrons to access information on upcoming events. Artskcgo.com was launched in 2017. This portal is a well-used resource to the arts community this platform serves over 1,000 arts organizations and artists in the region. Artskcgo.com also provides strategic connections by allowing other organizations to share the events calendar on their own websites. 3. Audience development practice: based on the wallace foundation event held in 2016 and in the implementation of the artskcgo.com in 2017, artskc spent significant time since then to research and implement ways to address small to mid-sized arts organizations' needs as they pertain to audience development. Many of these organizations do not have full-time dedicated staffing that can focus on reaching new and diverse audiences for long-term sustainability. Artskc began this work with the goal of creating tools to help arts organizations better market their works. From this research, a multi-pronged program emerged and is now being fully developed and implemented. This includes artskcgo.com, the marketing capacity program (MCP), the arts marketers network (amn) and, in fiscal year 2022, artskc began a feasibility study to ascertain the viability of an access or discount ticketing program. This discount ticketing program, known as the drop, launched in fiscal year 2023 as a pilot phase. The drop in now fully functional. Artskc was also the key organization that led and funded the 2023 "who needs arts" marketing campaign to raise awareness of the value of all of the arts in the region to the community at large. This campaign is still being utilized.4. Other community events: events that foster support for local arts, events and art collections and serve as a conduit for greater arts appreciation, audience attendance and support. During fiscal year 2024 artskc hosted or participated in many regional and national events, such as continuing to participate in the missouri arts safety alliance, the national association of state arts agencies, participation at the downtown council, the KC chamber, the centurians and other events such as these.

$668K in expenses

Support artists and arts agencies with capacity building programs and grants.1. Artskc fund, also known as the grant-making program: this grant-making program provides grants and artist awards to arts organizations, arts education organizations, arts programs and individual artists. Funds are received through workplace giving campaigns, individuals, businesses, foundations, municipalities and civic organizations. In fiscal year 2017, grants to support arts education efforts were added. More than $7.9 million has been invested in grant-making since the program's inception in 2007. New grant categories were developed in fiscal year 2022 and launched in fiscal year 2023. (continued on schedule o)support artists and arts agencies with capacity building programs and grants. (continued)there are now 5 grant categories and in fiscal year 2024, granted out $440,800 in grants.2. Mentorship services for arts organizations and artists: artskc provides one-on-one direct assistance to arts organizations and artists on how to seek grant funding and in making the arts community aware of upcoming arts grant opportunities. 3. Now showing: close to 50 companies support the now showing program where they can select artwork from more than 150 artists for display and sale at their local businesses. This promotes art in non-traditional areas as well as providing places for these artists to display and sell their works. Artists are paid a stipend as well. Artskc awarded over $79,000 to the now showing artists in fy2024.4.fiscal sponsorships: artskc supports the growth of local artistic ventures by serving as a fiscal sponsor for arts organizations or events to expand artistic reach. The fiscal sponsorships have included sponsoring the fab arts collaborative, brush creek art walk, bob motley completes the field of legends project, the national storytelling network, the national council on education for the ceramic arts, the print society of greater kansas city, movementkc, thinking up!KC, the kansas city artists coalition and fiscal support for the performing arts marketing group (pamg), also known as KC live arts. A new fiscal sponsorship that began in fiscal year 2021 was the parade of hearts. This fiscal sponsorship was completed at the end of fiscal year 2023. This was a more than $2.7 million project in which over 150 full-size hearts were created by over 120 artists and others and were on public display with the goal of increasing community participation. Net proceeds from these activities will support not-for-profit work in many areas such as health and wellness, support small business efforts, the arts, culture and tourism. New parade of hearts endeavors continued in fiscal year 2023 but artskc was not the fiscal sponsor. In fy2024, fiscal sponsorships continued for the brush creek art walk.5.diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives: artskc works to build a more inclusive kansas city through the arts by leading dialogues designed to prepare the next generation of diverse arts leaders. Artskc has collaborated with local and national partners in these endeavors. New programming was launched or assumed in fiscal year 2022 to address this critical need in the community, such as assuming the lead role of hosting the accessible arts of greater kansas city (aagkc) group and increased training opportunities at both the board and staff member levels. Artskc is now the lead organization for aagkc.

$375K in expenses

Advocate for the arts by educating the community, building relationships with government officials, and supporting the development of public funding for the arts. 1. Advocacy overall: this strategic initiative has been a priority of artskc since 2015, but our most effective impact has been in fiscal years 2021 through 2024. With the leadership of an expert and influential advocacy committee, chaired by strong board members and coupled with countless hours of outreach by the artskc staff and volunteers, artskc has achieved much since 2015. A formal advocacy agenda has been developed for six full years with the position that the arts contribute toward inclusive prosperity in workforce development, entrepreneurship, and affordable housing. (continued on schedule o)advocate for the arts by educating the community, building relationships with government officials, and supporting the development of public funding for the arts. (continued)in fiscal year 2019 and fiscal year 2020, artskc partnered with regional agencies to elevate the importance of the design and integration of public art in the kci plans. In fiscal years 2021 through 2024, it has worked with key leaders in one of its key focus areas for development of a strategic plan for greater arts infrastructure within this county. We are currently focused on the activation and support of asset mapping and other key strategies in the other counties being served. 2. Annual awards luncheon or major event: in past years, artskc would host an annual luncheon in which individuals, arts organizations, schools and elected officials are provided awards and recognized for their contributions to the regional arts ecology. More than 900 people typically came together each year to support for the arts. Due to covid-19, this luncheon was not held in fiscal year 2021. In fiscal year 2022, artskc shifted to a new format that was known as the arts moves us celebratory events. This included a full-length documentary, in partnership with the kansas city PBS, on the value and importance of the arts for the region, among other events. In the fiscal years of 2023 and 2024, its key event each year was the thought leadership summit. These events, discussed the important intersection between art and well-being. This work is in collaboration of artskc's work with johns hopkins university's neuroarts blueprint, a roadmap for integrating arts, health, and well-being.,3. Hosting and sponsoring advocacy events: artskc provides meeting space and resources for the hosting of events that raise the awareness of the economic value and quality of life that the arts provide to the kansas city region. It typically hosts one event per year. Artskc, with mca, coordinates a group of residents and civic leaders to attend the missouri arts legislative day in jefferson city, missouri. Typically, more than 40 people participate each year. Fiscal years 2021 and 2022 were both held remotely due to covid-19. In fiscal years 2023 and 2024, participation was in person with artskc hosting the local attendees. In 2024, artskc worked with local arts organizations for the formation of the 2026 world cup task force. This task force is working together to ensure that arts and culture are fully recognized when the 2026 world cup games come to kansas city in 2026.4. Arts & economic prosperity study: artskc has worked with the americans for the arts (afta) on its national economic study of the benefits of the arts, both at local and national levels. Artskc has been the regional entity that has worked with afta for this study known as the arts and economic prosperity (aep) study since at least the fourth study was produced (aep4). The aep is typically produced every five years but did experience a delay in 2020 due to the covid19 pandemic. This data is vital to advocacy work to educate elected and government officials and the community about the arts' economic impact. Artskc has again taken the lead role in the sixth such study with afta for the metropolitan region. The work for this study was done in fiscal year 2023 and was completed in fy2024. Artskc hosted serval meetings with community, municipal and civic leaders to roll-out the data from the sixth arts and economic prosperity study (aep6), still in conjunction with afta. Artskc was the lead organization to collect data and survey results that were accumulated with national data for a clear reporting of the economic impact of the arts, both locally and nationally. As advocates for the arts, we know the arts are uniquely positioned to contribute to the improved quality of life of everyone in our region.