The arts advocacy group behind securing public funding for arts and culture in Cuyahoga County through a cigarette tax is changing its name. Community Partnership for Arts and Culture, or CPAC, is now Arts Cleveland.
It was at times confused with Cuyahoga Arts and Culture, or CAC, the agency in charge of allocating the public dollars raised through the cigarette tax.
Arts Cleveland remains an advocate for arts and culture in the region, and, with the name change, shares a new strategic plan.
Identifying additional sources of funding for the arts and culture sector as revenues from the cigarette tax decline is one of the key initiatives, according to Arts Cleveland CEO Megan Van Voorhis.
Van Voorhis took over leading the organization this year after longtime CEO Tom Schorgl retired at the end of 2017.
While she said it was too soon to get into specific new funding options, she wants to focus on what is needed based on projections CAC has done on the decline of tax revenues and what people want to accomplish in the arts and culture sector.
“I’m excited, but at the same time I know it’s going to be challenging because the climate that exists today is somewhat different than existed before,” she said.
Arts Cleveland also wants to improve the region’s arts learning and increase participation in arts and culture. These new areas of focus respond to questions about arts education activities, including access outside of schools, and engagement with arts and culture.
The organization will also continue to work on developing cultural policies with local governments.
Arts Cleveland (as CPAC) was established by the George Gund Foundation and Cleveland Foundation in 1997 to support greater Cleveland’s arts and culture sector.
