Two local arts organizations just received a boost from Gov. Mike DeWine.
This week, the governor announced the third round of recipients of the Ohio Arts Economic Relief Grant Program. More than $2.4 million was awarded to 16 organizations in 12 counties.
In Summit County, the Akron Art Museum and the National Center for Choreography at the University of Akron made the list, receiving $472,036 and $86,826, respectively.
“The state support over the past couple years through COVID, it’s been a true lifeline to arts and cultural organizations, including the Akron Art Museum, so that we can continue to support the community and offer programs,” said Alexandra Vukoder, chief advancement and communications officer for the Akron Art Museum.
NCCAkron saw steady growth over the past few years, both in its staff and in the number of artists it hosts, said Executive Director Christy Bolingbroke. This grant will allow the nonprofit to cover the crucial expenses that come with expanding an organization.
“The COVID-19 pandemic could have crushed a relatively young arts organization like NCCAkron,” Bolingbroke said via email. “Programs like these affirm and assure arts and culture as a necessary contributor to the regional ecology and economy, at the city, county, and state levels.”
The grant program is funded by the American Rescue Plan Act, the 2021 pandemic-era stimulus package Congress passed to aid in the country’s economic recovery. In its first two rounds, the Ohio Arts Economic Relief Grant Program awarded more than $66 million to 243 arts organizations. The amount organizations received is based on loss in revenue from 2019 to 2021 and 2022 operating budgets.
Recipients can use the funds for employee compensation and recruitment, rent or mortgage payments, operating costs and capital expenditures – categories, Vukoder said, that are sometimes tougher to receive funding for.
“When we talk about supporting our mission or our exhibitions and our family and youth programming, those programs are slightly easier to get funding [for] because the community can see the direct impact,” she said. “But none of those things are possible, of course, without employees.”
The pandemic had a devastating effect on arts organizations across the country. Stay-at-home orders in many states, Ohio included, kept audiences away and shut down museums, theaters, playhouses and more. Although the worst of the pandemic is over, many organizations are still feeling its effects.
A March study from the National Endowment for the Arts outlined some of those challenges. While the unemployment rate for artists declined somewhat from 2020 to 2021, it’s still not back to its pre-pandemic level. In Ohio, the arts and culture sector has rebounded more slowly than in other states. Since 2020, employment in the sector has grown 3.5% in Ohio, compared with a 5% increase nationally.
The state also lags the nation when it comes to compensation. In Ohio, the average annual salary for the industry was $69,255, compared to $72,771 nationwide.
The Akron Art Museum continues to struggle with attendance numbers. Although the museum has seen a steady uptick, it has not yet returned to pre-COVID numbers, Vukoder said.
“We’re not just competing against other museums or other cultural institutions. We’re competing against anything else anybody could possibly do,” she said. “Part of our role is really making sure our community knows what we have to offer for them, as well as listening to [the] community to know what it is that they want so we can make those offerings appealing.”
