East Bay Matching Commissions Program

Community foundations take heart: new donors are out there! They may just be waiting to be asked. A pilot program challenged arts nonprofits in and around Oakland to attract individual donors. And it worked, bringing in more than 800 new givers. The idea came from the East Bay Community Foundation, and was quickly adopted by The San Francisco Foundation.

Good numbers

East Bay Community Foundation offered matching grants of up to $10,000, and selected 15 organizations to receive matching commissions supporting 36 artists. The San Francisco Foundation offered matches up to $5,000, and supported 22 organizations commissioning 36 artists. Incredibly, these grants were matched by a total of 801 donors with gifts averaging $236.17.

On-the-ground value

Sherri Young, executive director of San Francisco’s African-American Shakespeare Company, wrote: “This funding challenge was a wonderful opportunity for our supporters to step up and give, and a true reason for us to ask for funds. It was an eye-opener for us in challenging preconceived ideas about who has money and who did not. The challenge works and is encouraging for organizations such as ours to increase our individual donor base in a way that works for us.”

Eugene Rodriguez, Executive Director of Los Cenzontles Mexican Arts Center in San Pablo, wrote: “The outcomes of the donor match have been broader and deeper than we had anticipated. It enabled donors to become part of our core artistic process thereby strengthening their understanding of the many facets of our work and deepening their connection and commitment to the organization and its mission.”

Lasting benefits

This approach continues to have a major impact on smaller arts organizations that lack significant fundraising infrastructure. Regranting funds went to a number of organizations that had never fundraised for artistic commissions before; many had no idea that their supporters would respond so favorably. More importantly, the success of the matching commissions helped build a donor base that these organizations can continue to connect with in support of future financial sustainability.

This activity was conducted as part of Communities Advancing the Arts, a major funding initiative of The James Irvine Foundation.

Filed under: Engaging donors