The Flinn Foundation supports the Maricopa Partnership for Arts and Culture (MPAC), a nonprofit organization that aims to develop arts and culture as a vital component of future economic development planning and growth in the Phoenix metropolitan area. MPAC stemmed from a collaborative planning strategy sponsored by four local foundations, including the Flinn Foundation, to enhance the infrastructure of arts and culture organizations in Maricopa County.
Maricopa Partnership for Arts and Culture
Launched in September 2004, MPAC aims to build vibrancy in the arts and culture sector to position Maricopa County competitively against other regions in building a knowledge-based economy. MPAC is charged with implementing the recommendations of the Maricopa Regional Arts and Culture Task Force, which issued its final report, Vibrant Culture-Thriving Economy, in May 2004. The report illustrated the benefits that regions accrue from strong investments in arts and culture, and outlined steps the Phoenix metropolitan area must take to be competitive. Through its leadership and seed funding, MPAC aims to:
- Integrate arts and culture more fully into current economic development activities
- Enhance participation in arts and culture activities through partnerships and regional marketing
- Build regional distinction by creating more signature events, arts districts and nationally recognized annual events
- Integrate arts and culture into education by supporting partnerships and opportunities for teacher training in arts education
- Achieve sustained funding by developing a detailed strategy that encompasses generating funds from multiple sources, including dedicated revenue streams.
The Task Force was formed in 2003 by the collaborative efforts and support of four foundations--the Flinn Foundation, The Virginia G. Piper Charitable Trust, J.W. Kieckhefer Foundation, and Margaret T. Morris Foundation. Participants included leaders from the corporate, arts, public, educational, and philanthropic sectors. The group assessed the challenges and opportunities impacting arts and culture organizations, drawing from research and facilitation provided by Battelle and Morrison Institute for Public Policy.
The Task Force followed on a 2002 study, The Arts in Arizona, by arts consultant Adrian Ellis. The report concluded that Arizona's arts organizations are ill-prepared to cope with the rapid growth in the number and diversity of the population, changing leisure-time patterns, the lack of capital investment in the arts, and civic leadership unfamiliar with the importance of the arts to tourism and a technology-based economy. Ellis suggested that the foundations encourage a coordinated regional strategy.
Past Efforts
From 1984-2001, the Foundation awarded more than $11 million in grants to major and mid-sized arts organizations in Arizona. The grants supported significant new initiatives that were part of a long-term strategy for the artistic development and growth of Arizona's principal-producing visual and performing arts organizations. From 1986-2004, the Foundation had been integrally involved in a major effort to strengthen the fiscal and managerial capacity of Arizona's principal and mid-sized arts organizations. This involved funding of more than $2.5 million, leveraging an additional $3.8 million, and building a partnership with National Arts Stabilization (now National Arts Strategies) and Arizona business and community leaders.
MARICOPA REGIONAL ARTS AND CULTURE TASK FORCE >>