By Caroline Corrigan
Staff Writer
The ArtsCenter has made a tremendous financial turnaround since January, when the community arts organization was facing a deficit of $265,000.
Since January, The ArtsCenter has taken several strategic measures to improve its financial situation, like eliminating the executive director and Youth Performing Arts Conservatory director positions, reducing the work week for some positions from 40 to 30 hours and cutting The ArtsCenter’s membership in several organizations.
Jay Miller, The ArtsCenter’s interim director, said that the organization’s initial financial struggle was due to its delayed reaction to the national economic downturn.
“Things were really slowing down, but we still had all the expenses we had ever had,†he said, adding that the organization didn’t make any real changes until about eight months ago.
By spring, The ArtsCenter had managed to cut the deficit almost in half, to $130,000. The debt was further reduced in July when The ArtsCenter received confirmation of a $100,000 grant from the Nicholson Foundation. Shortly afterwards, an anonymous donor presented The ArtsCenter with a new financial challenge.
“The donor told us that, if we could raise $15,000 from the community over a course of three months, then ‘I will match it,’†said Julie Tomkovick, development director for The ArtsCenter.
Tomkovick said this “15K challenge†helped draw a lot of public attention to The ArtsCenter’s needs.
“We got in touch with our members and attendees by email to talk about the proposition,†she said. “Our goal was to raise $5,000 every month, and every month we came in a little bit ahead of our goal.â€
The ArtsCenter ended up raising $21,000 by the end of the summer, which was matched by $20,000 from the donor for a grand total of $41,000. With the help of the community, The ArtsCenter’s staff and board successfully dug the organization out of the deficit it had faced at the beginning of the year.
“It was one of those things where, once we got the momentum rolling, everyone wanted to be a part of it,†Tomkovick said. “It was something that people could really visualize as being successful.â€
Miller said in order to help ensure The ArtsCenter’s prosperity in the future, the budget will be downsized from $1.6 million to $1.2 million. Additionally, a search for a permanent executive director will begin in January.
Overall, Miller said he is optimistic about The ArtsCenter’s future.
“It’s a great organization with a great, hardworking staff,†he said. “Morale is higher than it has ever been. We’re on the right track.â€