The Arts Council of Fort Worth and Tarrant County is a private not-for-profit 501(c)(3) organization founded in 1963 to support and promote arts organizations and help cultivate audiences throughout the community. Since that time it has raised and distributed over $27,000,000 to 60 different arts organizations and art program providers.

The Council operates on a $1.8 million budget. Approximately $575,000 comes from 1,500 individual, corporate and foundation donors through our Annual Campaign. Toast of the Town, our yearly black-tie gala, nets about $350,000. City, state, county and federal funds account for $510,000, while the balance reflects contributions to the Neighborhood Arts Program.

At the end of each year, the Arts Council distributes 80% of these monies among Tarrant County arts groups that have made application to the Council. These awards are made by grant panels composed of arts professionals and civic leaders who know our community, our institutions, and their needs. The Arts Council retains the remaining 20% to cover the costs of our fundraising activities, grants administration, publications, information services and technical assistance to the grantees.

The Arts Council has incubated a number of important art service programs. Imagination Celebration was started with the Arts Council in 1988 and was spun-off as an independent non-profit in 1993. Business Volunteers for the Arts was begun by the Arts Council in 1987 and spun-off in 1994. The Council helped to launch MAIN ST. Arts Festival, Urban Strategies for Tarrant County , Multicultural Arts Alliance of Tarrant County, the Tarrant County Cultural Consortium, the Contemporary Art Center of Fort Worth, and the Fort Worth Sculptural Symposium.

The Arts Council has taken a leadership role in the formation and operation of Texans for the Arts, our statewide arts advocacy organization, and plays a significant role in the Texas Urban Arts Partnership, an alliance of states' six major city arts agencies.

One of the Arts Council's most successful programs has been the Neighborhood Arts Program, which provides funding for local arts groups to:

• give in-school performances
• offer extracurricular classes to children in grades K-12 after school and on Saturdays, and
• present to the public free or very low cost performances in Neighborhood Arts Program centers and in other community settings evenings and on weekends.

A NAP grants panel reviews application each fall and makes recommendations to the Board of Directors as to what groups should participate in the program and at what level.

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