By Sue Hoye

As the tight economy forces more arts and cultural groups to lay off employees, many are holding out hope that the $50-million earmarked for arts jobs in the economic-stimulus law will stem the wave of layoffs, at least in the short-term.

Arts groups have been particularly hard hit by the downturn in the economy. Many have seen reductions in private donations, as well as losses in foundation and corporate support.

Money from state and local governments has also declined, and things could get worse. The Pennsylvania Senate, for example, has proposed that the state stop providing any money for grants to cultural organizations, a possibility that has local arts organizations scrambling.

"Since typical admission fees cover less than half the cost of production, cultural organizations are walking a tightrope between increasing interest and decreasing resoures," says Peggy Amsterdam, president of the Greater Philadelphia Cultural Alliance.

The federal stimulus money can be used to preserve jobs or fulfill existing contracts with artists, as long as the groups show how losing those workers would damage their mission.

But of the 2,429 applications to the National Endowment for the Arts, the agency estimates that only 500 to 700 will receive grants.

Those awards, which will be distributed this summer, will provide a total of $29.7-million. Arts and cultural groups that received money from the NEA within the last four years were allowed to apply for one-time grants. Applications had to be submitted by the end of April.
Organizations could apply for $25,000 or $50,000 to cover salaries or money they had previously agreed to pay to artists.

Arts organizations that distribute money to local cultural groups could apply for $100,000 or $250,000 awards. (One percent of the stimulus money will remain with the NEA to cover the agency's expenses in administering grants.)

Adventure Stage Chicago, a performing-arts organization geared toward 8- to 14-year-old children, has applied for $50,000. The Illinois theater runs with a staff of five, but it would have to reduce two fulltime positions to part-time without the stimulus money because of drops in donations from individuals and corporations. That would mean the group's production manager and audience-development coordinator would become part-time positions.

Other arts groups are facing similar scenarios.

The Nashville Symphony hopes to win a $50,000 grant to preserve five part-time musicians. It has already made cuts, including eliminating nine staff positions and reducing its string section from 60 to 53. Without the NEA grant, that number would be reduced further, to 48.

"The quality of the product depends on having a significant number of string players," says Alan D. Valentine, the symphony's president. "You can play with fewer players, but at a certain point it impacts the product and it will eventually impact ticket sales."

No Overlap

Arts groups rejected by the endowment have other ways to receive stimulus money. Charities can apply to state and regional arts agencies, which received about $20-million — or about 40 percent of the stimulus money for the arts — shortly after President Obama signed the bill into law in February.

The majority of state and regional organizations are just designing their application process now, and will not make decisions on grants until after the NEA makes its award announcements in July. Because no organization can receive two grants from the economic stimulus money funneled through the endowment, the arts councils do not want any overlap between the state and national grant-making process.

By April, 63 state, territorial, and regional arts councils were granted varying amounts of money based on a formula that took population into account.

According to endowment guidelines, those groups may keep up to $50,000 of the money to help cover the costs of employees, but the remainder must be distributed to cultural groups either to help preserve staff members, or pay artist fees.

Indiana, Iowa, Florida, and several other states have started to accept applications.
And the New England Foundation for the Arts, in Boston, has starting making grants, awarding five, each $2,500 or less, to cover artist fees. The foundation received a total of $387,300 from the NEA.

Rebecca Blunk, executive director of the New England Foundation for the Arts, says the organizations that have already received grants were not eligible for NEA money and had an immediate need.

Four of the five grants provided support for performances scheduled within the next six months. These are events that Ms. Blunk says have been planned a long time, but were in jeopardy because of the economic downturn. "We really felt strongly that these small grants will be helping organizations pay artists and that it is a form of arts jobs that needs to be included in what we are helping to support," she says.

Copyright © 2009 The Chronicle of Philanthropy