Arts & Economic Prosperity 6

Change the conversation. The arts mean business.

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Scalehouse is excited to partner with Americans for the Arts to announce the launch of Arts & Economic Prosperity 6 (AEP6), the sixth national study of the economic impact of the nonprofit arts and culture industry. Twenty-one Oregon communities––including Central Oregon (Crook, Deschutes, and Jefferson Counties), will participate in AEP6, the most comprehensive economic impact study of the nonprofit arts and culture sector ever conducted in the United States. 

 

In 2017, AEP5 documented that Central Oregon nonprofit arts and culture is a $34.7 million industry, supporting 968 full-time equivalent jobs and $2.4 million in local and state government revenue. When we invest our dollars in the arts, we are not doing so at the expense of economic development. Rather, we are investing in an industry that strengthens our local economy.

 

Anonymous, audience-intercept surveys will be collected from attendees at arts and culture events, programs, venues, facilities, museums, and historical/heritage organizations or sites in Central Oregon from June 1, 2022, through April 2023. Surveys include event and visit-related spending by our audiences (at local retail, parking, hotels, and restaurant establishments), distance traveled, cultural impact, and audience demographics. 

 

An additional study of nonprofit arts and culture organizations will occur from January through April 2023. Including the number of jobs supported and the amount of government revenue generated by our community’s nonprofit arts industry. The national and local findings will be made public in September 2023. Results will serve as a vital tool when advocating for funding and support for Central Oregon nonprofit arts and culture organizations.

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Americans for the Arts is committed to addressing equity and inclusion as a critical component of the methodology, organizational participation, and data collection for AEP6. By centering and representing BIPOC (Black, Indigenous, People of Color) and ALAANA (African, Latinx, Asian, Arab, Native American) identifying communities—a segment of the nonprofit arts and culture sector that has been underrepresented in past studies. 

 

For the first time, AEP6 will require that the local and state research partners collect a portion of audience surveys from attendees at events hosted by arts and culture organizations that primarily serve communities of color.

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We need your help to collect data for AEP6!

Community support is crucial to the success of the Central Oregon AEP6 study. 

How to participate:

• Are you a member of a Central Oregon nonprofit arts and culture organization?

  • Confirm your eligibility.

  • Register your organization.

  • Report your upcoming events.

  • Attend an information session (see below)

• Volunteer your time! We’re seeking volunteers who are enthusiastic about arts and culture in Central Oregon. 

• Know of an organization that may be interested in participating? Share their information by emailing lauren@scalehouse.org.

 

For more information visit www.americansforthearts.org/AEP6. 

For Central Oregon, specific questions, including enrolling your organization, information sessions, media and press, and volunteer opportunities, contact Central Oregon AEP6 Coordinator, Lauren Seiffert (lauren@scalehouse.org).

Central Oregon AEP6 is led by Scalehouse Collaborative for the Arts and funded by Visit Central Oregon, with support from Travel Oregon, and  Oregon Arts Commission.