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November 21, 2007
Contact: Marilyn S. LeFeber, Vice President-Communications,
810.238.5651,
mlefeber@mott.org
Supporting cultural assets in Flint is focus of $2.9 million in grants by C.S. Mott Foundation
FLINT, Mich. – The Spotlight Series at The Whiting, special art exhibitions, programs for children and the Flint Symphony Orchestra are among the beneficiaries of three grants totaling $2.9 million from the Charles Stewart Mott Foundation to institutions on the Flint Cultural Center campus.
The one-year grants will provide general operating support as follows:
Funding to the FCCC also supports the Flint Youth Theatre, Longway Planetarium, Sloan Museum and The Whiting.
The grants allow the institutions to use the funds where they are most needed, such as supporting core programs and maintaining day-to-day operations. They also free other resources for launching new initiatives, expanding educational opportunities and reaching audiences throughout the community, including low-income families.
Nearly 600,000 people -- half of them children -- participated in events and activities across the campus during the 2006-07 season.
“The Cultural Center provides residents with exposure to the arts and live theater, music and dance instruction, and other cultural experiences,” said William S. White, Mott Foundation president.
“These anchor institutions are essential to the future of Genesee County. They can help attract new residents and businesses to the community, and add to the region’s economic health and quality of life.”
The new grants mark a fifth consecutive year of operating support -- totaling $11.5 million -- by Mott to the FCCC, FIA and FIM. The Foundation’s grantmaking to the Cultural Center and its member institutions has totaled $76 million since 1928.
Cindy Ornstein, president and CEO of the FCCC, notes the critical role of general operating support in helping to sustain the Cultural Center institutions.
“Without support for general operations, many nonprofit organizations and institutions -- including those of the Cultural Center -- could not exist,” she said. “The Mott grants allow us not only to continue our current programs, but also to explore new ways of reaching out and bringing the arts to all residents of greater Flint.”
John B. Henry III, FIA’s director, says the grants reflect a significant gesture by the Foundation.
“General operating grants can be difficult to secure because many funders don’t offer them or view them as exciting or innovative,” he said. “This support from Mott is recognition that Flint’s cultural assets are themselves both exciting and innovative, and vital to Genesee County.”
FIA completed a two-phase, $20-million renovation and expansion in September 2006, allowing more exhibits and an expanded film series.
Ensuring the long-term success and stability of all the Cultural Center institutions must be a community wide goal, says Paul Torre, FIM president.
Increased use of FIM programs, particularly the Flint School of Performing Arts (FSPA), led to a $6.4-million renovation and expansion of the Dort Music Center in 2003-04 and hiring additional staff. Supporting and maintaining those activities would not be possible without operating support, he said.
“Operational funding, such as the Mott grants, makes it possible for the Cultural Center campus to welcome, entertain and educate, in much greater numbers, those who walk through its doors,” he said. “And it ensures that we’ll continue to do so over the long run.
For more information, contact:
Marilyn S. LeFeber
Vice President-Communications
Charles Stewart Mott Foundation
810.238.5651
Cindy Ornstein
President and CEO
Flint Cultural Center Corporation
810.237.5193
John B. Henry, III
Director
Flint Institute of Arts
810.234.1695
Christina Mooney
Marketing Director
Flint Institute of Music
810.238.1350
The Mott Foundation, established in 1926 by an automotive pioneer, is a private philanthropy committed to supporting projects that promote a just, equitable and sustainable society. It supports nonprofit programs throughout the U.S. and, on a limited geographic basis, internationally. Grantmaking is focused in four programs: Civil Society, Environment, Flint Area and Pathways Out of Poverty. Besides Flint, offices are located in metropolitan Detroit, Johannesburg (South Africa) and London. The Foundation, with 2012 year-end assets of $2.28 billion, made 439 grants totaling $91 million. For more information, visit www.mott.org.
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