Racial Equity and Arts Funding in Greater Pittsburgh

Racial Equity and Arts Funding in Greater Pittsburgh a research report by the Greater Pittsburgh Arts Council Prepared in partnership with the Learning and Leadership Committee 2018

Contributors to this Report Learning and Leadership Committee The Committee’s work was made possible by a generous grant from the Advancing Black Arts in Pittsburgh program of The Pittsburgh Foundation and The Heinz Endowments GPAC Staff Consultants and Advisors

Thank You Thank you to private and public funding agencies serving Allegheny County who provided primary data on their support of the arts.

Core Questions • Is the distribution of arts funding here equitable by race? • Do funders here need to change their grant-making policies and practices? • What benefits would a more equitable distribution system yield?

Objectives of Report Uncover facts of how arts funding has been and is distributed by race (create a baseline) NOT to call out, shame, or embarrass arts funders Share knowledge to shape paths forward on racial equity and the arts Recommend changes in decision-making and arts policies

Context of Report This report takes into account many trends in racial equity and arts funding. Concepts of Racial and Cultural Equity Center on Race and Social Problems 100 Percent Pittsburgh p 4 Grantmakers in the Arts Helicon Collaborative research

Report Methods, Data Collection, and Post-Coding Primary and secondary data Public and private funders Key measures: • Grants by race • Total dollars and average dollars by race • Funds sought vs. funds received Focus on arts organizations Devised system of racial codes

Report Methods, Data Collection, Post-Coding Post-codes devised: • Racial identifiers • Additional identifiers Used identifiers to code 218 arts organizations Hope codes can be integrated into funders’ application forms, so can track distribution of funds over time.

Aggregated Data Analyzed Percentages of Total Grants Amounts How do these demographic proportions baselines relate to the distribution of arts funds? 84% 16% Private 16% Public ALAANA 86% 84% 83% 17% 88% 86% Totals White, non-Hispanic 12% 14% Private 14% Public ALAANA Totals White, non-Hispanic ALAANA organizations not proportionately represented according to area demographics. ALAANA organizations have received 16% of the grants and 14% of total funds from private and public sources.

Trend Data Analyzed Have these percentages changed over time? Numbers of Grant Dollars by Percentage of Total Dollars Numbers of Grants by Percentage of Total Grants 82% 79% 21% 18% 81% 19% 92% 77% 23% 88% 92% 86% 90% 69% 31% 8% 12% 14% 8% 10% 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 Of note, numbers of grants have changed somewhat over time, with a shift toward higher percentages of ALAANA White, non-Hispanic ALAANA arts organizations receiving grants. Those distributions reflect the demographic profiles of the area’s Percentages of grants distributed by race have changed over time. The same cannot be said for grants dollars. There has been minimal change in dollars distributed by race between 2012 and 2016.

Why the Continuing Funding Disparities? Low proportion of Funders with: • Board-approved racial equity policy • Racial equity training • Outreach efforts to ALAANA applicants • Data collection requirements • Use of panelists with knowledge of ALAANA cultural traditions There are, however, some such efforts, as well as special funding programs.

Summary of Key Findings Continuing disparities in funding Considerable variability of grants and funding that ALAANA arts organizations receive annually. ALAANA arts organizations receiving more grants, but not more dollars overall. Clustering of key ALAANA arts organizations receiving highest grant and fund totals.

Recommendations Grant-making Policies and Procedures Policy-making and Collective Impact Additional Research and Convenings