From the Field

Analysis of Rhode Island’s Arts and Culture Sector

In collaboration with the Rhode Island State Council on the Arts and the Rhode Island Foundation, SMU DataArts recently released the Analysis of the Arts and Culture Sector of Rhode Island report, which analyzes the financial and operational state of nonprofit arts and cultural organizations throughout Rhode Island from 2019-2023. The research uses a combination of survey data, IRS filings and national benchmarks to examine the ways organizations of varying sizes, disciplines and revenue models navigated the COVID-19 pandemic and other challenges. The report also analyzes how organizations in Rhode Island compare regionally. Key findings include:

In 2023, Rhode Island arts organizations reported higher median revenue surpluses than peers in both New England and nationally, primarily fueled by expense restrictions.
Despite slight improvements in overall median revenue, 70% of organizations ended FY2023 in a deficit.
Although revenue remained constrained, audience engagement rebounded and programming expanded.
Investments in employees increased, particularly among the performing arts, which saw a 22% increase in personnel expenses in 2023.

Conference Recordings of National Organizations for Orchestras, State Legislatures, Museums

The League of American Orchestras, the National Conference of State Legislatures (NCSL) and the American Alliance of Museums (AAM) have each made available recorded sessions from their recent conferences. These sessions offer unique insights into different aspects of the field and span a range of topics. Session recordings from the League of American Orchestras Conference 2025 include best practices for institutional funding, environmental sustainability and community health. Relevant session topics from the NCSL Legislative Summit include state budget outlooks and the implications of U.S. Supreme Court decisions. Sessions from the AAM annual meeting and MuseumExpo are available only to AAM members; topics include artificial intelligence, cultural institutions’ responses to environmental disasters and public programming.

How Nonprofits and Foundations Engage with the Communities They Support

The Center for Effective Philanthropy (CEP) recently released Voices That Matter, which analyzes survey responses from 241 nonprofits and 243 foundations to examine the ways nonprofit organizations collect and integrate feedback from communities they aim to support. The report explores how these practices may have changed over time. Unsurprisingly, the research found the overwhelming majority of organizations collect and use feedback from those they serve at all stages of program provision, that is, before, during or after a program or service has been delivered. 95% of the organizations surveyed collect information from stories of those they serve, 84% administer surveys, 47% conduct focus groups and 45% conduct systematic interviews. These findings echo results from a similar CEP survey 10 years ago. The full report also contains detailed information on the ways nonprofits use feedback and address challenges to feedback collection, including limited capacity and the roles of foundations and funders.