Cuyahoga Arts & Culture’s Board of Trustees met on Wednesday, September 11, at Karamu House in Cleveland. Here’s what you missed if you weren’t able to attend.
Celebrating Karamu House: Karamu House president and CEO, Tony Sias, shared about the impact of CAC funding on Karamu House and the CAC-funded “Room in the House” artist residency program. After the meeting, Tony led a tour for meeting attendees to explore the newly renovated theater wing.
Oath of Office: CAC Trustee Nancy Mendez took the oath of office. Nancy was appointed to the CAC Board of Trustees earlier this year.
Administrative Matters:
- Partnerships: CAC staff updated the Board on a new partnership project among CAC, Arts Cleveland (formerly CPAC) and the Arts and Culture Action Committee (political action committee). The three organizations are working with a consulting firm to help identify ways we can work better together for the benefit of residents and arts organizations.
- Revenue: Tax receipts year-to-date are under budget, running 9.7% lower than the same period in 2018. Because of the continued decline of the cigarette tax, it is projected that 2019 tax receipts will be $350k-450k below budget. It is unlikely that we will see this trend reverse by year’s end. The Board noted it will be important to take into consideration the significant drop in tax receipts as the agency plans for future grant commitments beyond 2020-2021. We anticipate that the pool of dollars available for General Operating Support and Project Support I and II (also called the allocations) will remain the same, but because grants are recalculated each year, grants to individual organizations may go up, down or stay the same. Our Program Managers have been in communication with grant recipients and will continue to communicate recommended grant amounts in advance of the November Board of Trustees meeting.
- Search: Board Trustee and Search Team Liaison Gary Hanson provided an update on the search for CAC’s next Executive Director. The search continues with ongoing consideration given to both to existing and new candidates. CAC’s agreement with the search firm Arts Consulting Group remains in force until the search is concluded, regardless of the length of time required and without additional fees. In the meantime, the Board is confident in the current interim leadership at the agency.
How can you stay informed?
Our blog and e-newsletters are the best ways to keep on top of what's happening at CAC. Our board meeting minutes and agenda packets are published on our website. You can review those to see any previous actions our board has taken and for updates on other key projects.
Learn more about Cuyahoga Arts & Culture's Board of Trustees and view a schedule of upcoming meetings at cacgrants.org/about-us/board. CAC's Board of Trustees meetings are always open to the public.
Our next regular Board of Trustees Meeting will be on Wednesday, November 13, 2019 at 4:00 pm.