The Foundation has had a longstanding interest in the arts, reflecting Benjamin Altman’s personal commitment and our belief in the essential role that cultural engagement and the arts play in enriching the lives of New Yorkers and creating new avenues of exploration and opportunity for the city’s young people. Given our particular focus on issues of access and inclusion, the Foundation invests in organizations, programs, and projects that achieve results aligned with the objectives outlined below. As a general rule, the programs that we support take place outside of the public schools. Please note that the "Results Sought" reflect the specific outcomes of interest to us.

Promote access to arts and culture for all New Yorkers, with a special focus on people from underserved communities

Results Sought:

  1. Increase sustained engagement and participation of underserved populations in high-quality programming at established arts and cultural organizations
  2. Strengthen the arts infrastructure in the city and build capacity at critical junctures for organizations providing high-quality arts and cultural programming
Grants 2019

Bronx Children's Museum
$125,000 (over two years)
To help the Bronx Children's Museum achieve institutional readiness, open its permanent home, and successfully operate as a museum “with and without” walls during its first year

The Council on the Arts and Humanities for Staten Island, Inc.
$50,000
To continue the Expanding Audiences initiative, providing Staten Island cultural organizations with professional development to expand their capacity to work with underserved populations; racial equity training; and resources to help implement related projects

Downtown Brooklyn Arts Alliance, Inc.
$50,000 (over two years)
To support member organizations and address issues affecting artist communities and cultural organizations in Downtown Brooklyn

Harlem Stage, Inc. FKA Aaron Davis Hall, Inc.
$100,000 (over two years)
To help support the development and initial implementation of a five-year strategic plan

The Metropolitan Museum of Art
$100,000 (over fifteen months)
To support the Museum's 150th Anniversary activities, with a particular focus on the marketing and communications components and programming that help to ensure the Museum's reach with a broad range of audiences

The Museum of the City of New York, Inc.
$250,000 (over two years)
Divided as follows, $200,000 to help build capacity following a strategic plan and a one-time special contribution of $50,000 to support the exhibition, New York Shopping:  Invention and Reinvention

The New York Botanical Garden
$50,000
To help support the expansion of Edible Academy programming, including planning efforts to develop partnerships with afterschool providers

The New York Community Trust (Mosaic Network and Fund)
$150,000 (over three years)
To help support the Mosaic Network and Fund, a funder collaborative created to foster greater racial equity within the NYC arts ecosystem through support to arts groups that are led by, created for, and accountable to African, Latinx, Asian, Arab, and Native American people

New York Hall of Science
$130,000 (over 26 months)
To build capacity to develop and design exhibits that embody its Design, Make, Play approach to STEM learning

The New York Public Library
$85,000
To support NYPL's Early Literacy Initiative

Orchestra of St. Luke's/St. Luke's Chamber Ensemble, Inc.
$80,000 (over two years)
To support the creation and implementation of a comprehensive strategic plan, in advance of OSL’s approaching 50th anniversary, that provides a roadmap for bolstering artistry, increasing organizational capacity, and strengthening the Orchestra’s ability to serve diverse audiences

Queens Council on the Arts, Inc.
$50,000
To help provide capacity building support for marketing and communications initiatives in advance of its move to a new location

Queens Museum of Art (dba Queens Museum)
$85,000
To renew support for the New New Yorkers arts and literacy initiative for recent adult immigrants

Sphinx Organization, Inc.
$30,000
To support and grow the capacity, sustainability, and impact on its New York partnerships and programming

Visual Arts Research and Resource Center Relating to the Caribbean dba Caribbean Cultural Center African Diaspora Institute
$50,000 (over fifteen months)
To help support capacity building priorities, including institutional rebranding;  business development efforts; board revitalization; and the expansion of school engagement programs

Promote positive youth development among underserved youth through engagement in arts, cultural, and other unique programs that provide sequential opportunities to participate over an extended period of time.

Results Sought:

  1. Significantly increase mastery of program-specific competencies and developmentally appropriate life skills
  2. Prepare participants to transition successfully to post-secondary and/or professional opportunities, including employment in the creative economy
Grants 2019

ArtsConnection, Inc.
$25,000 (over fourteen months)
To support ArtsConnection’s Teen Reviewers and Critics (TRaC), Take 5, and Teen Advisory Council (TAC) programs

Beam Center Inc.
$50,000
To support the expansion of Beam's out-of-school-time programming for high school youth

Center for Family Life in Sunset Park
$100,000 (over two years)
To support the positive growth and development of underserved youth in Sunset Park through the Life Lines Community Arts Project

CitySquash
$35,000
To support CitySquash's comprehensive youth development program

Harlem Lacrosse and Leadership
$40,000
To support Harlem Lacrosse's High School and Summer Enrichment Programs

Hudson River Community Sailing
$40,000
To strengthen capacity to expand a second youth development program for middle school students in Inwood and to support college-going alumni

Jazz at Lincoln Center, Inc.
$50,000
To help support Jazz at Lincoln Center's Youth Programs: the Middle School Jazz Academy and High School Jazz Academy

New Heights Youth, Inc.
$60,000 (over eighteen months)
To support continued planning, capacity-building, and preparation for an anticipated move to the Brooklyn Bedford-Union Armory in 2021

NYC Salt, Inc.
$60,000
To help support capacity building efforts that advance plans for long-term organizational sustainability and program expansion

Peter Westbrook Foundation, Inc.
$25,000
To provide program support for this youth development program anchored by the sport of fencing

Publicolor, Inc.
$90,000 (over two years)
To support the COLOR Club, Next Steps, and Summer Design Studio programs

Reel Works Teen Filmmaking
$50,000
To support MediaMKRS – a badging credentialing platform and consortium of educators, philanthropy, government, employers and labor unions to create pathways for careers for young New Yorkers to join the city’s growing media industry

Rockaway Waterfront Alliance, Inc. (AKA RISE Rockaway Initiative for Sustainability and Equity)
$70,000 (over two years)
To provide capacity building support for the Rockaway Initiative for Sustainability and Equity’s Shore Corps Youth Development Program

Rocking the Boat, Inc.
$90,000 (over two years)
To provide general operating support for Rocking the Boat's extensive youth development and community programming in the South Bronx

Roundabout Theatre Company, Inc.
$100,000 (over two years)
To help create pathways for young adults into technical theatre training, professional mentorships, and employment

Staten Island Children's Museum
$25,000
To help support the Museum Intern and Ambassador Program

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