Art of the State: Public patrons fund Alaskan artists.

• Author: Kvapil, Rachael
• Position: NONPROFIT

In early May, Nancy DeCherney gave her last presentation as Executive Director of the Juneau Arts and Humanities Council (JAHC) to the Juneau City and Borough Assembly. With retirement on the horizon, DeCherney is shoring up JAHC program funding for the upcoming fiscal year before handing over the keys to current Operations Manager Reggie Schapp, who will serve as interim director. After sixteen years as JAHC's executive director and more than ten years in various arts administrative roles, DeCherney understands the cycle of arts funding and the adaptation by arts organizations. Most recently, funding and adaptation came to the forefront as the COVID-19 pandemic affected budgets within the industry and health and safety protocols forced arts agencies, arts organizations, and individual artists to feature and sell their work using streaming and virtual technologies.

Anyone who's heard the term "full-on Monet" could easily apply this concept when it comes to the importance of the arts industry: easy to appreciate from a distance but messy up close. It's easy to miss the full picture by looking at only one impact the arts have on a community. Stepping back to examine the interplay of financial, educational, and cultural significance reveals a greater contribution to the vitality of Alaska.

The Grantors

Though local arts agencies existed in several Alaska communities prior to 1965, the establishment of the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) increased funding opportunities. The NEA is the only funder, public or private, to support the arts in all fifty states, US territories, and the District of Columbia. To help facilitate NEA funding, state art agencies (SAAs) were created by every US state and jurisdiction. SAAs coordinate cultural policies and manage arts programming on behalf of, or as part of, state government. In 1967, the legislature established the Alaska State Council on the Arts (ASCA) to apply for NEA funds and manage funding requests from local Alaska arts agencies, arts organizations, and individual artists.

On this level, the process begins with the NEA designating 40 percent of its grantmaking budget to the state and regional arts organizations through partnership agreements. SAAs like ASCA must then match the federal dollars one-to-one with state government funds. Once matching funds are secure, ASCA develops grant programs to which local arts agencies apply on behalf of their local communities.

The one-to-one match between the NEA and SAA funding...